Suva wins roller-coaster Easter tournament final

Suva Warriors have won the re-scheduled Easter tournament final thanks to match winning innings from Noa Acawei and Mesui Qalobula.

It was a match that both teams could have won and lost on a number of occasions as the momentum of the match swung on numerous occasions throughout the match.

Officials and volunteers had to work for several hours to make the field playable after consistent rain had caused play to be abandoned on Monday.

Moce won the toss and elected to bat first hoping to score a big total and put the pressure on Suva. However, when Cakacaka Sau was bowled by Sak Lomani without offering a shot the innings was off to a poor start.

Suva continued to build the momentum as Lomani and Sam Draunivudi struck twice each to leave Moce reeling at 28-4.

The news only got worse for the Lau Islanders as it stumbled to 36-6 before a fightback was staged.

Jimione Duvu (18) and Iliesa Tale (16) helped steady the ship for Moce with some attacking hitting against a strong Suva bowling lineup to help them reach a competitive total of 94-9 from its twenty overs.

With the occasional rolling thunder heard in the distance officials again prepared their Duckworth/Lewis calculations in case of rain, but fortunately on this occasion the rain clouds stayed away and a full match was able to be completed.

The Moce bowlers started in the same vein as their Suva counterparts by claiming early wickets. Tagilala Rakuita (2-15) and Bale Taione (2-11) got the early breakthroughs to leave Suva in deep trouble at 32-6 and needing a big partnership to get them back into contention.

Fortunately for the capital city side, Noa Acawei (43 not out) and Mesui Qalobula (26 not out) stepped forward to lead the charge.

They set off some fireworks with big hitting culminating on one over where they plundered 24 runs from the Moce bowling to turn the tide for Suva.

The Moce bowlers had no answer to the big hitting and in the end Suva reached its target for the loss of just six wickets, Acawei bringing up the win with a six.

The exciting final brings to a close an Easter tournament that has exceeded expectations with new teams competing after several years absence and the first overseas team in many years courtesy of Friends United.

With the continued resurgence in cricket officials are sure that the 2011 Easter tournament will be even better.