South Canterbury player-coach Nick Horsley was full of praise for his side following Sunday’s warmup match against Christchurch Metro, at Edgar MacIntosh Park, in Christchurch.
The match was the side’s final hit-out ahead of their opening Hawke Cup fixture against Mid Canterbury, at Aorangi Oval, this weekend.
Although South Canterbury were unable to defend their 219-8 off 50 overs, with Canterbury Metro scoring 220-8 off 48 overs to secure a two-wicket win, Horsley was full of smiles.
It was the last chance for players in the 17-man squad to impress Horsley, before the side is selected next Wednesday to face Mid Canterbury.
He said what he saw from the players was encouraging.
“I was really happy with the performance this week. We showed fantastic application and batted like we were preparing for a two-day match.”
Horsley said the players were focused about their role.
“We had the batters taking their time and focusing on their job which was pleasing.”
Horsley said the result of the match was not major.
“Win or lose we didn’t mind. I was really happy with the performance and a number of people took their chances.”
He said the top-order did exactly what was asked of them.
“They applied themselves, spent time in the middle and left a lot of balls which they could’ve attacked in one-day cricket.”
The side made 219-8 from their 50 overs with Adam Beck (73) and Prabodha Arthavidu (53) leading the way with the bat.
Beck and Phill Lill applied themselves superbly blunting the new ball and laying the perfect foundation for the rest of the lineup.
Arthavidu and Beck then combined to bat nearly 30 overs together before they were both dismissed.
Horsley walked to the middle in the 39th over, something which pleased him.
“I was really happy Becky [Adam] and Phill laid a superb platform and it was great to see Arthur [Arthavidu] spend time at the crease.”
He said the side could have scored 30-60 runs extra but preparing for next weekend was more important.
Bowling wise, he said everyone performed well.
“Hinto [Craig Hinton] started well up front and Alex [McDuff] did as well, then Nick Maguire and Glen Drake showed what quality spinners they are.”
New Pleasant Point recruit Stanley Mair, who is the quickest bowler in South Canterbury club cricket, was another to catch Horsley’s eye.
“Stanley bowled superbly. He’s a big man who bowls a very heavy ball and has certainly put himself in the frame. He impressed me a lot.”
Picking next weekend’s side will be difficult for Horsley, but is a dilemma that he is happy to have.
“It’s great having this sort of depth. It shows people want to be part of the squad and if injuries occur then we know there are people waiting to fill the void.”
Wicket-keeper Willie Wright is the only uncertainty for next weekend after dislocating a finger in club cricket on Saturday.
“I hope he’s OK, because wicket keeping is a specialist position and something Willie is very good at.”
The exact makeup of his rep side will be an interesting one, with the selection of the quick bowlers and who opens the batting with James Laming the main areas of intrigue.
Scoreboard
| Batsman | How Out | Bowler | Runs |
|---|---|---|---|
| Adam Beck | caught | b Percasky | 73 |
| Phil Lill | run out | (Columbus) | 17 |
| Prabodha Arthavidu | caught | b Winchester | 53 |
| Nick Horsley | caught | b Percasky | 16 |
| Glen Drake | run out | 17 | |
| Liam Beck | caught & bowled | Winchester | 0 |
| Josh Dick | lbw | b Percasky | 11 |
| Jacques Marais | not out | 6 | |
| Stan Mair | DNB | ||
| Craig Hinton | DNB | ||
| Nick Maguire | DNB | ||
| Alex McDuff | (Bowler Only) | ||
| Byes 0 | Leg Byes 6 | Wides 7 | No Balls 1 |
| Extras | 14 | ||
| Total | 219-8 | ||
| Bowling | O-M-R-W | ||
| Columbus | 10-2-25-0 | ||
| Gooday | 4-2-6-0 | ||
| Winchester | 9-1-61-3 | ||
| B Cochrane | 9-0-55-0 | ||
| G Stuart | 5-1-14-0 | ||
| Percasky | 10-0-39-3 | ||
| J Carr | 3-0-15-0 | ||
| Chch Metro | |||
| Batsman | How Out | Bowler | Runs |
| M House | caught | b McDuff | 8 |
| D Fielding | b Mair | 55 | |
| M Vesty | caught | b McDuff | 30 |
| J Carr | b Mair | 4 | |
| C Grey | caught | b Hinton | 59 |
| T Gooday | caught | b Maguire | 0 |
| H Winchester | caught | b Drake | 22 |
| M Diamond | caught | b Hinton | 0 |
| B Cochrane | not out | 15 | |
| G Stuart | not out | 5 | |
| Percasky | DNB | ||
| Columbus | DNB | ||
| Byes 1 | Leg Byes 2 | Wides 15 | No Balls 3 |
| Extras | 21 | ||
| Total | 220-8 | ||
| Bowling | O-M-R-W | ||
| C Hinton | 9-1-50-2 | ||
| A McDuff | 6-0-33-2 | ||
| S Mair | 10-1-31-2 | ||
| J Marais | 6-0-48-0 | ||
| N Maguire | 10-0-37-1 | ||
| G Drake | 6.1-2-18-1 |