PNG Cricketer's Continue Great Aussie Form

The squad of Cricket PNG players competed over the weekend with their Australian clubs as part of the Brian Bell Future Stars Scholarships initiative.

Cricket PNG has sent 12 of their contracted players competing in local competitions in Melbourne and Canberra.

Amongst the boys playing in the Victoria Sub-District Cricket Association, the most notable performance came from Joel Tom who bowled a sensational spell for Kingston Saints, taking 6 for 27 off 21.1 overs. Tom was the undisputed man of the match as his team recorded a comfortable 62 run victory over Croydon. The win places Kingston Saints 9th on the ladder but only one game out of 6th place and the finals with 4 games to go in the season.

Assad Vala & Tony Ura got their Broadmeadows team off to a solid start with a 38 run opening partnership against Plenty Valley. However, when Ura was dismissed for 22 and Vala eventually for 35 their batting never recovered and fell 71 runs short of victory. Broadmeadows are also now placed 9th in the North-West Group and still a chance to push for the finals.

Meanwhile in the Eastern Cricket Association, Norman Vanua got his team Donvale out of trouble with a fighting knock of 58 not out. Known more for his bowling, Vanua came to the crease with his team 7 for 104 but was instrumental in getting the score up to a respectable 180. Vanua then bowled 5 very tight overs for 9 runs as North Balwyn ended up 1 for 45 at stumps in reply.

The Brian Bell Future Stars Scholarships gives talented PNG cricketers the chance to live and develop their cricket in a foreign city. It is now in its 3rd year has seen 39 players go through the program. Players from all national squads have been sent to live and play Cricket in Australia, New Zealand & Scotland.

Updates on the boy's progress and player's statistics while they are abroad can be found at: http://www.cricketpng.com/content.aspx?file=35609|24544i