Cricket
Dragons crush Titans for back-to-back wins─── MORGAN PIEK 08:02 Mon, 06 Oct 2025
The North West Dragons have made it two-from-two in the CSA 4-Day Series with an outstanding 196-run win against the Titans at the JB Marks Oval in Potchefstroom.
On Sunday, the Dragons claimed back-to-back victories after their big win against the KZN Tuskers a week prior during the opening round.
The Dragons had a bat first in the game and declared their first innings on 491/8d after 134 overs, with Meeka-eel Prince scoring 142, while all-rounder Dian Forrester scored 94, captain Wihan Lubbe chipped in with 75, and Rubin Hermann contributed 69.
Schalk Engelbrecht was the Titans’ most successful bowler with 4/179 in 50 overs.
In reply, the Titans were bowled out for 262 in their first innings in 70.3 overs, with captain Donovan Ferreira scoring 71, while Potchefstroom-born Lhuan-Dré Pretorius scored 70. Onke Nyaku was the pick of the Dragons bowlers with 3/40 in 11.3 overs, while Lubbe took 2/23 in 6 overs.
The Dragons opted not to enforce the follow-on and instead went in to bat their second innings, in which they declared on 225/6d after 44.4 overs.
Lesiba Ngoepe fell just short of his 6th first-class century after being bowled by Engelbrecht for 99 off 124 balls.
Lubbe struck 91 off 91 before being bowled by Ferreira.
Despite a valiant 119 not out by former Knights and Proteas batter Keegan Petersen, and 64 by Ferreira, the Titans were bowled out for 258 late on Sunday afternoon.
Lubbe was the pick of the bowlers with 2/12 in 10 overs, while Forrester took 2/24 in 11.3 overs. Achille Cloete and Nyaku each bagged two scalps as well, as the Dragons claimed a 196-run victory.
Following the win, Lubbe said it was all down to a solid team effort.
“We're very happy – any win in four-day cricket in Potch is something we’ll always take, especially against a team like the Titans; they're a very talented unit, to say the least,” said Lubbe.
“So yes, very happy with the way the boys performed.
“Obviously happy with the way we batted, but also really, really happy with how the bowlers have gone about their work. Not just this week, last week as well. The guys are doing something right, and they’re making my headaches less and less every week, so I'm happy with that.
“I must be honest, the call actually came from Craig Alexander, so I’ve got to give credit where it’s due. Yeah, I wanted to get someone with a bit more bounce, but a swing – and yeah, it paid off.
“Fair dues, that’s why I think we always say that it’s not just one man.
“We’re a unit out there. There are a lot of good heads on shoulders, whether it’s up there or out there. We all work together to get to the end result, and I think that’s exactly what happened today.”
The Lions thumped Western Province by an innings and 134 runs at Newlands in Cape Town. Photo: Lions
After two rounds, the Dragons are at the top of the table, but it is still early days, and there’s a lot of cricket yet to be played.
Next week, the Dragons will hit the road for the first time this season when they travel to Cape Town to face bottom-of-the-log Western Province.
Meanwhile, in the second round’s other games, the defending champions, the Lions, crushed Province by an innings and 134 runs at Newlands.
The Dolphins chalked up a win by beating Boland by 5 wickets at Boland Park in Paarl, while the game between the Warriors and KZN Tuskers at St George’s Park in Gqeberha ended in a draw.
