| rosebowlcricket.co.nz |
|
Game I of Season 2004/05
Saturday 18th December 2004
Conditions: Cold, Windy & Miserable
Toss: Hutt Valley (elected to field)
Result: Hutt Valley won by 2 Wickets
Man of the Match: Andrew Torrance
Saturday 18th December 2004
Conditions: Cold, Windy & Miserable
Toss: Hutt Valley (elected to field)
Result: Hutt Valley won by 2 Wickets
Man of the Match: Andrew Torrance
"Conditions were horrible for batting - anything in double digits was exceptional. Even so, Porirua's second innings of 21 all out was always going to be costly. Torrance and Kachwalla steered the Hutt home in a tight one."
The Haywards Shield is always eagerly anticipated - not just for the epic contests, but also for the warm, sunny days that a New Zealand summer brings. This game, however was played in some of the coldest, dampest and least-pleasant conditions imaginable. But importantly, although the weather wasn't memorable, the match certainly was.
The Hutt won the toss and sent Porirua in on a wicket offering plenty of assistance to the bowlers. In warmup games prior to the Shield, considerable movement was noticed off the pitch due to an uneven surface. However it was Porirua who took the early initiative through a 30-run opening stand between Lees and the un-capped Jake Hocking. Lees dominated the partnership, hitting another amazing six hooked of Eu-Ving Au. He was beginning to get on top before he was caught off a mis-cued slog - caught at mid-on by Kachwalla. Hocking departed soon afterwards for just 2 runs. This brought Jason McHugh to the crease, and he too looked to dominate the attack through lusty hitting. He scored 24 of his 28 runs off one over from Cockburn, including three sixes in a row. However, unfortunately for Porirua he too departed just when he looked like he might go on to a big score - bowled by Kachwalla for 28. Nathan Rose was dismissed after just 3 balls when he missed a straight one from Andrew Torrance. This was Rose's 4th duck in Haywards Shield cricket. The last man in was Paul Spencer who grabbed a 6-and-out. So good bowling and mediocre batting had restricted Porirua to just 62 runs. Torrance was the pick of the Hutt bowlers with 2 wickets without conceding a run.
But this paltry total was made to look respectable when the much-vaunted Hutt Valley batting lineup made even harder work of making runs. Kachwalla was the first one to go when McHugh bowled him with a vicious change-up delivery. Deliberately imparting spin on the ball, it snuck through Kachwalla's defences to dismiss him for 2. Luke Williams then continued his horror run in Haywards Shield cricket as he was easily caught & bowled by Hocking for a duck. Cockburn and Torrance briefly threatened to cut loose against the Porirua attack with a few valuable boundaries, but it wasn't long before this partnership was also broken. Rose had Torrance caught-behind for 8, and dismissed the new batsman Eu-Ving Au the very next ball in identical fashion. Two wickets in two balls meant that he would be on a hat-trick at the start of his next over. Lees ensured that Rose would have to wait until the Hutt's next innings as he removed Cockburn with a clean bowl to end the Hutt's first innings at 37. Incredibly, Porirua held a first innings lead of 25.
During the luncheon interval, heavy rain soaked the pitch. Some grass clippings were brought in to cover the puddle which formed at the strikers end in an attempt to give the batsmen some sort of firm footing.
However, whether it was caused by shocking conditions or just shocking batting, the Porirua side soon collapsed to be 21 all-out. No-one even got into double-figures as the Hutt bowlers knocked them off one-by-one like lambs to the slaughter. Lees was again caught by Kachwalla - this time off the bowling of Au for 6. Hocking failed to make any runs, being caught behind by Torrance. McHugh struck a nice four but succumbed to a catch at mid-wicket by Williams off the bowling of Cockburn. Rose again struggled badly with the bat, making just 4 before he was again bowled; this time by Kachwalla. The last man in, Spencer, was also a victim of Kachwallas'. He was dismissed LBW for zero and gave Kachwalla his 10th Haywards Shield wicket.
By now the conditions were deteriorating even more with a cold southerly battering the Rose Bowl and drizzle getting heavier with each passing minute. But the decision was made to allow play to continue, meaning Hutt Valley would need 47 runs to go 1-up in the 3-match series.
At first it looked like 47 runs would be plenty. Cockburn and Torrance opened the Hutt Valley innings, and it wasn't long before McHugh got the breakthrough - Cockburn holed out at long-on for a catch to Nathan Rose. When Rose came on to bowl, the hat-trick ball was kept out by Williams. But the next ball wasn't. Rose grabbed his 10th Shield wicket by bowling Williams for 1. Later in the same over, he skittled Eu-Ving Au for a duck, giving the Malaysian the dreaded "pair". At this stage, the Hutt Valley looked in absolute disarray with three batsmen dismissed for 0, 1, and 0.
But when Kachwalla joined Torrance at the crease, they set about the task of winning the match with a certain amount of resolve which was lacking throughout the day from batsmen from both teams. They were happy to see out the good balls and punish the bad ones - giving the Porirua players who had collapsed in their last turn at bat a lesson in concentration and discipline. Although the Porirua bowlers kept it tight, Spencer and Hocking were targetted and slowly but surely the runs accumulated.
The Porirua brains trust could do nothing as the Hutt hit smart singles and guided several lovely fours to the fence. The winning runs came off the bat of Kachwalla as he hit Hocking for six over the straight boundary. He finished on 25 not out, while his partner Torrance carried his bat to end on 17 not out, giving Hutt Valley the win by 2 wickets.
The Hutt won the toss and sent Porirua in on a wicket offering plenty of assistance to the bowlers. In warmup games prior to the Shield, considerable movement was noticed off the pitch due to an uneven surface. However it was Porirua who took the early initiative through a 30-run opening stand between Lees and the un-capped Jake Hocking. Lees dominated the partnership, hitting another amazing six hooked of Eu-Ving Au. He was beginning to get on top before he was caught off a mis-cued slog - caught at mid-on by Kachwalla. Hocking departed soon afterwards for just 2 runs. This brought Jason McHugh to the crease, and he too looked to dominate the attack through lusty hitting. He scored 24 of his 28 runs off one over from Cockburn, including three sixes in a row. However, unfortunately for Porirua he too departed just when he looked like he might go on to a big score - bowled by Kachwalla for 28. Nathan Rose was dismissed after just 3 balls when he missed a straight one from Andrew Torrance. This was Rose's 4th duck in Haywards Shield cricket. The last man in was Paul Spencer who grabbed a 6-and-out. So good bowling and mediocre batting had restricted Porirua to just 62 runs. Torrance was the pick of the Hutt bowlers with 2 wickets without conceding a run.
But this paltry total was made to look respectable when the much-vaunted Hutt Valley batting lineup made even harder work of making runs. Kachwalla was the first one to go when McHugh bowled him with a vicious change-up delivery. Deliberately imparting spin on the ball, it snuck through Kachwalla's defences to dismiss him for 2. Luke Williams then continued his horror run in Haywards Shield cricket as he was easily caught & bowled by Hocking for a duck. Cockburn and Torrance briefly threatened to cut loose against the Porirua attack with a few valuable boundaries, but it wasn't long before this partnership was also broken. Rose had Torrance caught-behind for 8, and dismissed the new batsman Eu-Ving Au the very next ball in identical fashion. Two wickets in two balls meant that he would be on a hat-trick at the start of his next over. Lees ensured that Rose would have to wait until the Hutt's next innings as he removed Cockburn with a clean bowl to end the Hutt's first innings at 37. Incredibly, Porirua held a first innings lead of 25.
During the luncheon interval, heavy rain soaked the pitch. Some grass clippings were brought in to cover the puddle which formed at the strikers end in an attempt to give the batsmen some sort of firm footing.
However, whether it was caused by shocking conditions or just shocking batting, the Porirua side soon collapsed to be 21 all-out. No-one even got into double-figures as the Hutt bowlers knocked them off one-by-one like lambs to the slaughter. Lees was again caught by Kachwalla - this time off the bowling of Au for 6. Hocking failed to make any runs, being caught behind by Torrance. McHugh struck a nice four but succumbed to a catch at mid-wicket by Williams off the bowling of Cockburn. Rose again struggled badly with the bat, making just 4 before he was again bowled; this time by Kachwalla. The last man in, Spencer, was also a victim of Kachwallas'. He was dismissed LBW for zero and gave Kachwalla his 10th Haywards Shield wicket.
By now the conditions were deteriorating even more with a cold southerly battering the Rose Bowl and drizzle getting heavier with each passing minute. But the decision was made to allow play to continue, meaning Hutt Valley would need 47 runs to go 1-up in the 3-match series.
At first it looked like 47 runs would be plenty. Cockburn and Torrance opened the Hutt Valley innings, and it wasn't long before McHugh got the breakthrough - Cockburn holed out at long-on for a catch to Nathan Rose. When Rose came on to bowl, the hat-trick ball was kept out by Williams. But the next ball wasn't. Rose grabbed his 10th Shield wicket by bowling Williams for 1. Later in the same over, he skittled Eu-Ving Au for a duck, giving the Malaysian the dreaded "pair". At this stage, the Hutt Valley looked in absolute disarray with three batsmen dismissed for 0, 1, and 0.
But when Kachwalla joined Torrance at the crease, they set about the task of winning the match with a certain amount of resolve which was lacking throughout the day from batsmen from both teams. They were happy to see out the good balls and punish the bad ones - giving the Porirua players who had collapsed in their last turn at bat a lesson in concentration and discipline. Although the Porirua bowlers kept it tight, Spencer and Hocking were targetted and slowly but surely the runs accumulated.
The Porirua brains trust could do nothing as the Hutt hit smart singles and guided several lovely fours to the fence. The winning runs came off the bat of Kachwalla as he hit Hocking for six over the straight boundary. He finished on 25 not out, while his partner Torrance carried his bat to end on 17 not out, giving Hutt Valley the win by 2 wickets.
