Ken Borland

The inconsistency of the Highveld Lions batting was once again to the fore as they bowed out of the CSA T20 Challenge in the playoff against the Warriors, and was the story of their campaign according to coach Geoff Toyana.

The Lions could only muster 136 for seven in their 20 overs against the Eastern Cape side, everyone in the top six reaching double figures but nobody scoring more than Reeza Hendricks’ run-a-ball 32, as the trio of Warriors spinners dominated the middle overs.

“It was disappointing and not good batting, we didn’t push through. The whole season we’ve been falling apart in the middle overs and losing wickets. The absence of Alviro Petersen’s experience was a big loss,” Toyana told The Citizen on Wednesday.

Opener Rassie van der Dussen was the only consistent Lions batsman through the tournament, scoring 345 runs, including three half-centuries – exactly half of the total amount scored by the team.

While the bowling of Bjorn Fortuin, Hardus Viljoen, Aaron Phangiso and Eddie Leie was excellent throughout, Viljoen lacked the support of another reliable pace bowler, with Dwaine Pretorius unable to match his form for the Proteas in the six games he played.

But Toyana pointed to the character showed by a young side and the occasional performances of inexperienced players like Fortuin (more often than not), Hendricks, Nicky van den Bergh and Wiaan Mulder as indications of a bright future.

“There have been lessons learnt and I’m quite happy with the whole competition, for a young side to come through to the playoffs. The bowlers were the highlight, they were superb, with the spinners choking the batsmen in the middle overs.

“It’s been good to give youngsters that opportunity and they will play better for it in the future. To lose the first two games with bonus points and then win three on the bounce to give ourselves a chance again showed their character, especially beating a quality Cobras side in Paarl. We fell short in the end, but I’m happy with the team,” Toyana said.