Cricket: Sure hands punish Central

By BOB PEARCE and NZPA

Auckland wicketkeeper Reece Young took five catches as Central Districts were dismissed for 245 yesterday, but the decisive catch came from veteran Aaron Barnes.

After being put in to bat on a pitch at Colin Maiden Park in Glen Innes that again looked full of runs for the State Championship game, Central reached 203 for five at tea, with their punishing young star, Jesse Ryder, not out on 45, including eight fours.

Four balls after the break, the left-hander pulled a delivery from Auckland captain Brooke Walker powerfully to midwicket. Barnes initially moved the wrong way, but flung out his right hand and the ball stuck.

Next over he was at the bowling crease and soon removed Bevan Griggs (26), who had shared a 56-run partnership with Ryder that was threatening to give Central the initiative.

Earlier, Auckland's decision to put Central in seemed to have backfired when the visitors reached 96 for the loss of only two wickets at lunch.

Opener Jamie How, better known in Auckland as a soccer player for Manawatu, was 47 not out.

But like Ryder later, the break undid him. At 54 he tried to cut a ball too close to him and gave left-arm paceman Andrew McKay his maiden first-class wicket.

Glen Sulzberger made a fairly scratchy 31, but of the rest, only Ryder and Griggs prospered.

Auckland's bowlers chipped away steadily all day, with Walker's two for 19 and Barnes' two for 13, the best.

With 14 overs to be bowled to finish the day, Mark Richardson and Tim McIntosh opted for caution, reaching just 17 without loss.

* Pace bowler Ian Butler added Otago to the list of provincial cricket sides who now know just what a dangerous player he is.

Butler, who missed World Cup selection when a groin injury ruled him out of cricket for six weeks during December and last month, took four for 82 for Northern against Otago in Hamilton.

In the process, he had all of the southern batsmen jumping around the crease in an effort to avoid his short-pitched deliveries, which have already taken their toll on a number of the country's top batsman since his return to the game.

Not all of them succeeded in dodging either, with opener Mohammed Wasim faring the worst when a ball from Butler cut back and hit the Pakistani in the groin.

Wasim spent five minutes on the ground recovering and showed plenty of fortitude on his way to being Otago's topscorer with 78 as they were dismissed for 229.

At stumps, Northern Districts were 57 for two in reply.

* James Franklin has come of age as a batsman.

Hard on the heels of his 87 against Otago earlier this week, Franklin produced another quality knock for Wellington against Canterbury at the Basin Reserve. Franklin, 22, was solid in defence, efficient off his pads and unleashed some thundering straight drives on his way to an unbeaten 68 as Wellington reached a respectable 296 for seven by stumps.

He had a reprieve on 50 when Warren Wisneski spilled a simple catch at slip.