Cricket at its toughest!

Day 1: Whitaker Civil Engineering Taranaki Men versus Canterbury Country (Hawke Cup)

Taranaki: 215-5

Rupert Young 59; Liam Muggeridge 47; Trent McGrath 33 not out. Dean Robinson 29.

It took 96 long, hard overs for Taranaki to reach 215, and an old legend of Taranaki cricket couldn’t have been more impressed.

Terry Dravitzki, one of the greats of the Taranaki Hawke Cup era in the early 70’s, was grinning from ear to ear. ‘That’s how the Hawke Cup is played’, he said, ‘keeping out the good balls and hitting the loose ones to the boundary. I love what they are doing’.

And that was it for much of the game. After being put into bat when Canterbury Country won the toss, which would have been seen as a huge advantage to the bowling side on a green looking surface, Taranaki have not given an inch against a pace attack containing a Blackcap, and three further first-class players.

However, neither team will be going to bed tonight believing they have the advantage. The first session on day 2 will more than likely determine who eats their lunch with a smile.

Taranaki started the day looking comfortable and not in a rush. Dean Robinson and Bailey Wisnewski were ticking things over before Wisnewski was unfortunately run out. Comfort turned into just a little pain. It’s a tough way to lose a wicket.

Robinson and skipper Sam Fastier then took the total to 60 before Robinson nicked out and Fastier followed soon after. There were 41 overs completed, and the score was 3-67. The boys were working hard for every run.

Liam Muggeridge then joined Rupert Young at the crease and with contempt raced to 20 in less than 20 balls. This is just what was needed. The initiative was turning back towards the batting side.

Muggeridge and Young were starting to look at ease as Canterbury Country changed their tactics and the paceman tried to bully the batsmen out with a barrage of short bowling. There was the odd wide called, and many deliveries that demanded the batsman should duck out of the way, but mostly the score continued to grow.

With a 92-run partnership built, Muggeridge couldn’t resist any longer and was caught on the boundary from a hook shot. He could feel pleased that he had eased the momentum back towards the locals.

Young was joined by Trent McGrath and they continued to pick up runs, keeping out the good balls and dispatching the loose ones. At 208-4 Taranaki were all smiles. With only four overs left in the day this had been a huge effort when the odds were stacked against the batting side.

Of course, cricket can kick you fair in the stomach when you least expect it, and as the dark shadows spread out over the pitch, Young played a defensive shot which popped up to short cover, and it was 208-5.

There were four torrid overs for McGrath and the evergreen Mattie Thomas to deal with, which they have done. Tomorrow they will set about building a total that will make the chase a tough gig for Canterbury Canterbury.

There is a lot of cricket left in this game.

Full scorecard available here at NZC