At the wicket with Anna Peterson

Teapots - this?

Anna Peterson is living the dream – a lifestyle many of us imagined as young children hitting a taped-up tennis ball in the backyard. She may not be the Malcolm Marshall or Martin Crowe figures we had “dibs” on as we wiled away long into the summer sun, but she lives and breathes cricket – at work, play and recreation.

To have debuted wearing the hallowed silver fern of your country would suffice for most, but “Wolfy” is working hard to add to her international caps. She is carving out a strong record for herself as part of the Northern Spirit, juggling her time between a congested domestic season and her operational role with Waikato Valley Cricket. Anna has also found time to edit a magazine for her association – spreading the word on our great game in her local community.

Or this?

Anna talks to a cricketing Buddha about what she needs to do to regain her spot in the White Ferns, her work with young girls wanting to give cricket a go, and ascension of a woman to the coach’s job (that plug should help with the first point…) . She also enlightens us about her love of teapots - there’s far more to the young Hamiltonian than just cricket.

Six quick singles – plenty of gifts for everyone

This week’s Plunket Shield round-up is a little later than normal – my apologies. Unfortunately, my “real” job has got in the way of my passion, as it so often does at the tail end of one year and the start of the next.

The final pre-Christmas round involved all six sides and there were more highlights than Willie Watson bowling to a young Sachin Tendulkar. Records tumbled, as did wickets, and the ball was despatched to, and over, the fence on a regular basis. Players with international experience, whether local or foreign, shone through in every match. The Plunket Shield now takes a break for a month to allow for the HRV Cup to dominate the holiday period – for those who complain, think for a minute where the money comes from to finance our domestic game.

At the wicket with Morna Nielsen

22 year old Morna Nielsen’s game has undergone a major transformation. Entering New Zealand’s domestic game as a wide-eyed 17 year old medium pacer, she is now carving out a niche as one of New Zealand’s premier limited overs’ bowlers – as a left arm spinner. 

(Courtesy of BlackCaps.co.nz)

In her third year in the White Ferns, Nielsen has been a shining light with the ball in the two opening matches of the Rose Bowl series against Australia – some of the game’s most destructive batters struggling with her guile and accuracy. Though she battled against the power of Meg Lanning in the third match, her returns in the fourth match will likely have a large influence on the final series result.

Leading her Northern Spirit side from the front, Nielsen has a long future in our domestic game. New Zealand cricket fans need to all cross their fingers that her cricketing future isn’t cut short by a “real” career or the draw of a family, as is the case with so many of our promising female cricketers.

Six quick singles – the night watchman delivers

It was going to take a Herculean feat from Central Districts to recover from a poor first day – it never came. Will Young’s maiden century was lost in a heavy defeat, surpassed by a nonchalant innings from the talismanic Jesse Ryder and a maiden ton from Scott Kuggeleijn.  Cricket matches aren’t won or lost by the individual feats of one man, though CD management must be tempted to touch base with Tonya Harding’s husband, and bodyguard, prior to the sides’ next meeting.

Central Districts 260 (W Young 121, M Gillespie 3/56, S Kuggeleijn 3/53; 59.1 overs) and 389 (J How 51, J Raval 74, C Cachopa 90, P Trego 59, J Franklin 4/71, J Patel 3/66; 116.4 overs) lost to Wellington 403 (M Papps 117, J Ryder 162, A Lamb 3/76, A Patel 3/62; 98 overs) and 248/3 (M Papps 77*, S Kuggeleijn 142*; 66.4 overs) by 7 wickets at Karori Park, Wellington

Six quick singles – a rose amongst thorns

After a run-filled November, December has been a return to the “bad old days” of domestic cricket – inclement weather, cavalier batting and totals that would raise the wrath of club coaches. Colin Munro continued his dominance in Kingsland but Otago’s Dr Jekyll won out over Mr Hyde. Northern Districts’ James Marshall showed loyalty is a virtue, but his female contemporary Nicola Browne took the early honours, setting a new benchmark in the women’s game.

Northern Districts 200 (G Andrew 3/46, R McCone 4/48; 73.5 overs) and 410/5 decl. (J Yovich 128, J Marshall 61, D Mitchell 73, BJ Watling 68*, C Anderson 69*; 122.0 overs) drew with Canterbury 186 (G Andrew 89, B Arnel 3/48, G Aldridge 5/45; 45.3 overs) and 112/2 (P Fulton 68*; 33.5 overs) at Seddon Park, Hamilton

Auckland 196 (C Munro 59, I Butler 5/57; 51.2 overs) and 274 (C Munro 118, I Butler 4/61; 56.4 overs) lost to Otago 253 (A Redmond 98, H Rutherford 70, D Bartlett 5/53; 97.0 overs) and 223/7 (N McCullum 77, C Martin 3/62, M McClenaghan 3/48; 60.3 overs) by 3 wickets at Eden Park Outer Oval, Auckland

Six quick singles – Munro goes long

Central Districts humbled Otago by 10 wickets, Auckland and Wellington took part in a run-fest on the Eden Park Outer Oval, records were amassed like a ‘70s DJ building his collection, but it was all irrelevant. All anyone will remember was a large double hundred in Kingsland, Colin Munro putting on a master class unrivalled in the City of Sails.

Central Districts 476 (C Cachopa 123, T Nethula 108, A Milne 97, B Soper 3/116, I Butler 3/132; 127.2 overs) and 21/0 (4.5 overs) defeated Otago 257 (S Wells 78, I Butler 73, P Trego 3/57, A Milne 5/47; 73.5 overs) and 239 (A Redmond 57, H Rutherford 55, A Mathieson 5/39, C Cachopa 3/28; 98.0 overs following on) by 10 wickets at McLean Park, Napier.

Wellington 380 (J Ryder 72, L Ronchi 127, M McClenaghan 4/90; 95.2 overs) and 145/2 (J Brodie 60*; 42.0 overs) drew with Auckland 658/9 decl. (C Munro 269*, C Cachopa 166, M Gillespie 4/166; 147.5 overs) at Eden Park Outer Oval, Auckland.

Six quick singles – more records than Elvis

The start to the 2012/13 Plunket Shield season has seen records broken like plates at a Greek wedding. For a competition steeped in history, the play has been fascinating – domestic cricket’s cream has risen quickly to the top.

A mixture of youth and experience continued to show through in the most recent round. Michael Papps, Dean Brownlie and Peter Fulton all dominated with the blade, while promising young international Tom Latham led his Canterbury team mates to an unlikely victory in Rangiora. But the most encouraging performance came from Central Districts’ young quicks, Adam Milne and Ben Wheeler – if only they can stave off injury that so regularly strikes down bowlers with any pace in this country.

Six quick singles – the battle for Southern supremacy

Few domestic encounters in New Zealand cricket evoke the same passion at the clash of the two Southern sides – Canterbury and Otago. The provincial neighbours have already met in the first round of the Plunket Shield, with Otago securing a comfortable victory in Rangiora on the back of Aaron Redmond’s pair of centuries.

The return encounter at Dunedin’s University Oval flattered to deceive. A low scoring affair, both sides has opportunities to win the match in the final hour, and neither would be overly satisfied with the draw. But it was what Southern derbies are all about – two sides giving all they have, grafting for every inch.

Canterbury 254 (P Fulton 102, S Stewart 76, J Duffy 3/35, M Craig 3/28; 95.3 overs) and 252/9 decl. (P Fulton 108; 105.3 overs) drew with Otago 272 (T Johnston 3/88; 101.1 overs) and 203/7 (A Redmond 61, N Broom 49, B McCord 3/35; 68 overs)


1. That’s two for Fulton, and Fulton for two
Peter Fulton was to the fore for Canterbury hitting back to back hundreds (102 and 108) – the third time this season a batsman has achieved the double in a Plunket Shield fixture. Aaron Redmond and Jesse Ryder doubled up in the opening round – now in just the sixth match of the summer Fulton has joined the elite group. 

Second rate coverage of a first class game

The Plunket Shield - full of history

The Plunket Shield got underway on Saturday with all the hoopla of an Eketahuna calf show. What was once New Zealand Cricket’s domestic flagship has been usurped - left to its own devices.

Mirroring the 2011/12 season, first class cricket in New Zealand is missing a voice on the airwaves, left to make its way on sporadic updates from around the grounds. Cricket is a game steeped in statistical history but it is words, and pictures, that bring it to life. Short score segments tell nothing of the game’s ebb and flow, the breakthrough performances of its emerging talent or the individual battles that hold centre stage in our great game.