Written By Brian Lockhart

The Shelburne Gladiators have secured first place in the Shelburne Cricket League and have qualified for the finals.

The Samurais are in second place and will face the Warriors in the semi-finals.

The Knights, currently in fourth place, have been eliminated but will still play the remaining league-scheduled games.

There were two games over the weekend but both games were cut short due to rain.

On Saturday, Aug. 17, the Warriors were up against the Samuaris.

After winning the toss, the Samurais elected to bat first with hopes of putting up a big total.

However, they struggled to build momentum due to the regular loss of wickets.

Despite the tough start, contributions from Shivdhan, who scored 18 runs, Akash with 20 runs, and Garry with 19 runs, gave the Samurais a total of 112 runs.

The highlight of the Warrior's bowling attack was Sony Poulose, who delivered a stellar performance, claiming five wickets and placing his team in a strong position.

When the Warriors took to the crease, Sony Polouse continued to work hard with a good performance with the bat. He blasted a half-century in just 22 balls, setting a new record for the Shelburne Cricket Club.

The Warriors were not able to capitalize as wickets fell at regular intervals.

The Samurais managed to hang on to the lead and secured a narrow victory by just five runs.

Sony Poulose was named the Man of the Match.

On Sunday, Aug. 18, the Knights went up against the Gladiators.

The Knights won the toss and opted to bowl first.

The Gladiators opening batsman, Rajmohan, scored his first half-century of the season with 57 runs.

Skipper, Jajbir, contributed 22 runs, helping to propel the Gladiators to a total of 172 runs.

Knight's captain Sagar Arora made an impact with the ball, taking three wickets.

The Knights started the chase, with Abul Rashid contributing 23 runs and Paul adding 14.

Things unravelled for the Knights when they began losing wickets.

Abdul Razzaq played a pivotal role for the Gladiators, taking four crucial wickets, which ultimately dismantled the Knight's batting line-up.

The Gladiators came out on top with a 70-run win.

Rajmohan was named Man of the Match.