CRICKET

Taupo Times, Volume II, Issue 65, 15 April 1953, Page 3

CRICKET

National Park v. Taupo Steady rain commenced at the Taupo Domain on March 29th jusfc as the visiting National Park team reached Taupo to play the usual match for the Lett Cup. The visiting players remained until after iunch, hut the Cup match was abandoned early in the afternoon and some, of. the Taupo players went home. Then aimost miraculously the sky cleared and a scratch game was commeneed with each side batting one fcomr. National Park went to the wic- i kets first and scored 58. J. Dean (18) ' and D. McLean (19) were the only players to reach double figures. Denis Clark, who, aithough still quite a small schoolboy, has turned out regularly for the Taupo Club this season, had his? first tum with the ball and showed the value of keeping the ball well up to the batsman and letting him make the mistakes. Assisted by two l.b.w. decisions he collected four wiekets for 12 cruns in 3 .©vers, taking wiekets with the first two balls of eaeh of his first two ©vers. Curham took two wiekets for 13 runs, Woodward 1 for 7, and Macken 1 for 11. Even this small total seemed to be too much for Taupo and 8 wiekets were down for 21 (runs. Oeoghan and Collett then came together and, batting a second time in place of the missing plaj^ers took the score to 68. Throughout this inrimgs Dean and Hartley bowled steadily to a close field and were rnore aecurate and able to make more pace* off ihe pitch than the Taupo bowlers. Dean, who at one time had taken 4 wiekets for 11 runs finished with 4 for 28 in 8 overs and Hartley who bowled two overs fewer took 4 for 19. This match eoncluded a >season which has been dogged by ill-luek in the caneellation of matches previously arranged. Through lack of practice and match play the Taupo players have been unable to find form but they look forward to better hick in * the future. '