weekend cricket warm-up

LEFT-HANDER: Manawatu's Ben O'Connor sends one down to Ray White Wanganui's Akash Gill during the U17 warm-up match at Victoria Park on Wednesday. PHOTO/Stuart Munro

For once the final score was obsolete in the under-17 cricket clash between Wanganui and Manawatu at Victoria Park yesterday.

The one day match was part of a warm-up series designed to ready teams for the Central Districts U17 tournament in Napier at the weekend.

And the purpose of that tournament is to name the CD U17 representative squad for the summer and to find a district winner.

The Ray White Wanganui U17 team, however, did have bragging rights after narrowly beating a strong Taranaki squad on Monday, although the wind was taken out of its sails early against Manawatu yesterday.

Manawatu soon had Wanganui firmly on the back foot early with bowlers on point claiming some good scalps in the first inninings.

Dilan Raj from Cricket Wanganui said the warm-up matches were more about getting the teams ready for the CD tournament in Napier with the focus more on individual performances than a specific outcome.