Cricket: Passage of time has little effect on Hunt's prowess

Alan Hunt wore the mantle of Auckland's leading allrounder for 11 seasons until he retired in 1993 after 65 first-class and 33 Shell Cup matches.

At Eden Park yesterday, now aged 40, and despite hardly ever playing these days, he showed he has not lost any of his vast array of skills when he steered Howick Pakuranga to a seven-wicket win over North Shore in the first grade club one-day final.

With his loopy off-spin he took 4-27 from 10 overs in North Shore's innings of 199, and then combined with Kerry Walmsley in a third-wicket partnership of 96 that gave his side victory with seven overs and five balls to spare.

Hunt scored 57 before he was run out, his only deference to age. "I just cannot run fast enough now," he said.

Walmsley, who took the improbable role of opening batsman, ended with an unbeaten 84, but as a mark of their ability at the crease, Walmsley, 13 years Hunt's junior, took 65 balls for his 50, and Hunt 53.

The highlight of North Shore's innings was an elegant Richard Jones 99, a figure he is quite familiar with as it matches his highest score in 26 first- class matches for Auckland.

On the first day of the final preliminary round of two-day first grade cricket, Howick Pakuranga might have sunk the chances of Suburbs New Lynn leading into the championship rounds, when the top four sides split for the round-robin play-offs with their points carried forward.

But a superb bowling performance by Suburbs skipper Chris Fawkner, who took 9-55 in the easterners' first innings of 166, kept the Howick lead to just 36.

Grafton, at 27-0, have started the long haul to match Cornwall's 300-8 declared which included a second-wicket partnership of 155 by David Storer (94) and Charles Ewart (80).

University Akarana are seven runs in arrears of North Shore's 140 and Takapuna, in making 218-8, have a handy 94-run lead over East Coast Bays.

The feature of the second division was a superb century by 18-year-old batsman Akshay Reddy for Parnell (300-7 declared) against Waitakere, who were 16-1 at stumps. Papatoetoe (243) have Eden Roskill (63-5) in trouble and Birkenhead are 52-2 chasing Ellerslie's 266.