Softball: Canada hand Black Sox their first defeat

9.35pm - By HARRIS CHOY

UPDATED REPORT - Favourites New Zealand stumbled at their first true test at the world's men's softball championship in Christchurch today but coach Don Tricker was relieved no real damage was done.

The Black Sox lost 4-5 to Canada, the first of the genuinely strong teams they have faced at the championship, to finish second in pool A.

The upset result doesn't deny New Zealand the two crucial lives they needed for the top eight playoff starting tomorrow.

The top four teams in each of the two pools qualify for the playoff and the top two teams in each pool will have two lives, unlike the bottom two who will be eliminated if they lose a game.

In pool B the United States and Japan finished first and second respectively, with the US meeting New Zealand tomorrow and Japan facing Canada.

In they other playoff games, Australia face Argentina and Samoa are up against the Czech Republic.

Black Sox coach Don Tricker, while disappointed with their first loss at the championship -- in their final pool game -- said he wasn't worried going into another tough match against the US tomorrow.

"We're feeling good about the States. We can't wait to get into the business end of this," he said.

There had been concern in the New Zealand camp during the week after they cruised through four consecutive games without any meaningful resistance.

Today's match against Canada wasn't without controversy.

Tricker and his Canadian coach Mark Smith joined an argument on the field when, at the bottom of the fourth inning with New Zealand down 0-2, Canada claimed their catcher Sean O'Brien was interfered with in a melee on the home base.

New Zealand captain Jarrad Martin stormed in from third base on a bad pitch by Sean Whitten and collided with O'Brien, who was forced to leave the field with injury. Martin was ruled run out.

Makea then drove to right field to get Mark Sorenson home for New Zealand's first run.

The Canadian first base muffed two catches and Taifau Matai got Patrick Shannon home to tie the game at the bottom of the fifth inning.

The second Canadian fielding error enabled them to take the lead and then Clayton Willocks made it 4-2 for New Zealand.

However, in the seventh inning, Canada's Rob Gray hit an automatic home run with two runners on base to snatch the win.

Batting for the first time, Gray lifted Karl Gollan's 96km/h pitch over the right fence to score three runs when Canada needed it most.

The Canadians had Terry Challis on second base and Dean Holoien on third and overlooked their starting batters for substitute Gray to deal with Gollan's improving pitching.

Meanwhile Samoa, with superb pitching from Heinie Shannon, beat the Phillipines 6-0 to earn a place in the top eight.

The two teams battled for the fourth and final spot in the top-eight playoff in their last pool game but the Samoans, made up largely of New Zealand-based players, had little trouble qualifying.

Shannon kept the Filipinos scoreless in five innings as they struggled with his speed and variation.

The pitcher finally made way for Michael Roberts to pitch the sixth inning so he could rest a strained buttock muscle but the game was in the bag by then.

"We're pretty happy to make the top eight -- that was our target coming into this tournament," Shannon said.

"We wanted to show that we weren't here just to play, we wanted to compete. I suppose the biggest thing for us was to earn respect here. Anything from here is a bonus.

"It was all or nothing today and we wanted to get ahead early -- which we did."

- NZPA

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