Story courtesy of College Sport Media

Wellington College 2ndXI are Wellington Premier Cricket champions following the last round of matches on Saturday.

Wellington Second XI beat Hutt International Boys’ School (HIBS) by eight runs in the final with the First XI denied a place in the decider following a loss to HIBS and disruptive weather earlier in the season.

William Chandler is head prefect at Wellington College and bats at four for the Second XI. Was the First XI filthy they missed out on overall honours to a team supposedly beneath them?

“I reject that. We are all mates and love our school at the end of the day. Sure, it’s competitive when we play each other, but honestly the First XI was delighted we won instead of a school that isn’t Wellington College,” Chandler responded.

In the final against HIBS, Wellington scored 207 for 9 off 50 overs with nine players achieving double figure scores. In deteriorating conditions HIBS was reduced to 199 for 8 when the game ended. Five bowlers took at least a wicket each and three run outs were executed.

“We are not the best cricketers in the school so when we play the whole has to be greater than the sum of its parts. We’ve really come together this season and executed some big plays.

“We are lucky we have got more cricketers than any other school which means we have got people coming through all the time. When the seconds play in the Premier grade we don’t think of ourselves as the seconds. We think of ourselves as Wellington College.”

The seconds’ warned of their championship credentials on October 30 when they played the First XI. The seconds were rolled for 142, a paltry total they nearly defended. Cricket guru Hamish Wareham witnessed the match.

“I have been to a couple of these games and there always seems to be carnage after the drinks break. Wellington Firsts’ were 106 for 8 and only got home because of the mature batting of Jago Sperring. After that game I thought, ‘Hello’ anything could happen this summer.”

The seconds’ demolished St Pats Wellington by 115 runs on November 20 and a week later pulled a rabbit out of a hat to topple Onslow College. Chasing 233 to win, Wellington was 182 for 8.

“We bat down to number 11 and have a lot of belief in ourselves. Obviously, the top order didn’t do brilliantly that day, but the way Nick Martin played was special,” Chandler said.

The most special individual display of the season was by Dylan McCardle against Scots College. McCardle smashed 132 off 103 balls, including nine fours and eight sixes. The Year 11 outscored his entire team and Scots.

“He’s a cracking cricketer and awesome team bloke. That innings against Scots was phenomenal, the best I saw at Wellington College. I look forward to seeing how he goes in the next couple of years because I think he’ll become a really good player.”

Chandler will work over the holidays as a Deliver Easy driver and Spark Sport cableman before heading to Otago University to study law. He admits leaving Wellington College will be “tough” but he’s “super proud of the boys.

“Covid has shown us things set in stone can get thrown out the window just like that. We lose, suffer and fail all the time but the way you respond to adversity defines you. Look at the Black Caps in the 2019 World Cup final. They captured the hearts, minds and imaginations of the cricketing world. They won’t be remembered for losing that game, rather the class in which they conducted themselves.”