It was an oh-so-close moment for Napier Technical Old Boys junior cricketer Luke Pawson last weekend.
The year 4-6 player came close to claiming a hattrick of wickets in his club side's match against Poverty Bay counterparts in Gisborne on Sunday.
The 9-year-old, from Nelson Park School, claimed two wickets in the fifth and sixth balls of his first over but managed a dot ball in the first ball of his next over before taking a wicket a ball later to finish with three scalps for four runs.
"I did the same two months ago," said Pawson last night after a stint at the annual Riverbend Cricket Camp.
The right-armer, who bats left, is in a running bet to see if he, or brothers Charlie, 11, and Samuel, 13, will be the first to claim a hattrick.
