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Powell River Royals Cricket Club takes first match

New local team earn one-run victory over more experienced Vancouver Island club
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WICKET WINNERS: Powell River Royals Cricket Club member Charl Meyer faces an opposition bowler during a recent match in Qualicum Beach. The local cricket club played its first game ever and also claimed its first victory by downing Arrowsmith Cricket Club 120 runs to 119. Contributed photo

In its first game ever and by the slimmest of margins, Powell River Royals Cricket Club bested Arrowsmith Cricket Club 120-119 on Sunday, June 24, at Qualicum Beach.

“It was a good-spirited game and it came down to the wire,” said Powell River captain Alex Rawnsley.

Despite billions of followers around the world, cricket is not the most well-known sport in Powell River, and the Royals are a new organization. However, Ranwsley said he hopes the club gains more followers.

Against Arrowsmith, the game format saw each team batting once. Royals batted first and scored 120 runs on 35 overs.

An over is a set of six balls bowled from one end of a cricket pitch. Arrowsmith needed to then score 121 runs to win and came up just short with a total of 119.

Top scorers for Powell River were Rawnsley with 37 runs, Charl Meyer with 34 and Adam MacLaine with 19.

According to Rawnsley, after a shaky start the Royals managed to turn the game around.

“We were able to take all 10 wickets, so we got 10 of their players out, which ends the game,” said Rawnsley, “and they had only scored 119 when that happened, so we won by only one run.”

With Arrowsmith requiring two runs off the last over and Powell River needing one wicket, Rawnsley was able to cement the win on the first bowl.

“For us to get up and win, call it beginner’s luck, a fluke, or call it skill, I don’t know what,” said Rawnsley, “but we’ll find out when we play game number two.”

The teams are organizing a second match for sometime in August.

Arrowsmith plays six to seven games a year and its members travel from up and down Vancouver Island to participate.

“We heard afterward that a couple of the guys from Arrowsmith told a couple of our players they had won their last 15 games,” said Rawnsley. “We snapped a bit of a streak for them.”

Royals started in March and have been practising weekly outdoors at Oceanview Learning Centre.

For more information, go to Powell River Cricket Club on Facebook.