ACTIVE Physio Wanganui were in a desperate fight to avoid their second innings-defeat in a fortnight after Wairarapa's lower middle order got away from them on Saturday and their own weak batting unit collapsed yesterday afternoon.
In a red-faced Hawke Cup qualifier, Wanganui's bowlers started very well at the RathkealeCollege Oval, with Ross Kinnerley picking up opener Alex Treseder and No3 George Deans in the opening overs.
Mason Hughes was scoring very slowly from his first 40 or so deliveries, while Brock Price came and went to a nick behind off Dominic Rayner as first-change bowler.
However, Hughes anchored his team and began to find the boundary rope, making 72 from just over 100 deliveries, before being run out from a good throw by Hamish Harding back to Mathew Boswell at the stumps.
At 144-6, Wanganui appeared poised to wrap the innings up, but wicketkeeper Paul Lyttle and acting captain Gordan Reisima had other ideas in a stunning century partnership for the eighth wicket, scoring at a run a ball.
Kinnerley and Nick Harding were brought back into the attack but copped some stick, as did Rayner and Sam O'Leary after good starts, as Reisima began to dropkick the ball over the boundary rope.
Chris Sharrock managed to break up the pair with a runout of Lyttle and then getting Reisima caught in sight of a well deserved captain's century, but the damage was done as the home side could declare overnight with an imposing 300 on the board.
As it was against Manawatu, Wanganui had to start afresh on Sunday with the plan of batting most of the day to survive, but opener John McIlraith was gone in the second over and after watchful starts, Dominic Lock and captain Morgan Inness followed him, continuing their batting woes at representative level.
Boswell and Greg Smith got starts but concentration eluded them, as it did Rayner and Hamish Harding, while Lyttle was having a field day behind the stumps with six catches nestling in his gloves.
Dean van Deventer and Daniel Ingham were the main recipients with two wickets each through Lyttle, while van Deventer cleaned up the tail with two more catches in the field to finish with a four-for.
Only Nick Harding with an unbeaten 40 off 30 balls was able to see the ball how he wanted.
Forced to follow-on and needing 202 to make Wairarapa bat again, Wanganui's top order fell apart once more to leave them in dire straits at 87-5 after 27 overs about 4pm yesterday.
