Cricket: Worker lives up to name as CD hang tough

George Worker has had a dream start to his domestic season. PHOTO/FILE

No more highway construction projects this weekend as the Central Districts Stags were endeavouring to dig deep this morning in Nelson.

The Devon Hotel-sponsored side were to resume this morning at Saxton Oval on a wicket that is a far cry from the benign batting strip at Napier's Nelson Park in the previous Budget Rental Plunket Shield opening-round, a drawn-out affair against the Otago Volts.

The Wellington Firebirds were frothing around the mouth when they won the toss and injected the hosts in a rain delayed and interrupted day one yesterday to leave CD at 239-7 when the umpires lifted the bails.

"We were going to be bowling, too, if we had won the toss because the wicket has a little bit of grass and it drizzled a bit through the day," said No 4 batsman George Worker, who was 86 not out and was to soldier on with No 9 Ajaz Patel (13 not out) today.

Worker, coming off a century against the Volts last weekend, carved up 14 boundaries from 162 balls in occupying the crease for 226 minutes.

It hardly mattered to the former left-hand opener that there was a rain delay for about 90 minutes but today he is determined to patiently grind out his second ton of the summer.

"I'm not sure what the weather is doing tomorrow but Ajaz and I will work our way into it to try to post a total we can defend."

The 23-year-old from Manawatu was loathed to predict a total but felt 350 would make the Kruger van Wyk-captained CD camp happy.

The former New Zealand Under-19 rep, who racked up 3000 first-class runs when he scored 40, and Van Wyk forged a timely partnership to arrest a slide with the latter scoring 51 off 99 deliveries before falling to veteran Jeetan Patel's off-spin.

"I'm not following those sorts of things too closely and it won't really bother me much, really," he said of the milestone.

The player who had a brief stint with the Black Caps on their Zimbabwe tour during winter said that and his recent spell with NZ A v Sri Lanka A had inspired him so early this season.

He felt today the CD tail had the propensity to wag.

"Ajaz has gone well at club level and Matho [seamer Andrew Mathieson] can bat too."

Last game's double-century hero, Ben Smith, started with 41 runs at No 2 but, like Greg Hay (23 runs), didn't build on it as Brent Arnel, Matt McEwan and Patel went about their work, claiming two wickets each and Dane Hutchinson one.

"Ben was great last week but it is more of a challenge this week," Worker said of the oval strip that offered more purchase to bowlers.

Arnel and McEwan, in particular, had caused them some strife but "we know what to expect from Jeetan in terms of building pressure", with the new ball beckoning about 3-4 overs heading towards lunch today.

In the other game, ND and Auckland Aces seem to be in a rush to finish at Mt Maunganui with the Knights 65 runs ahead in their second dig and Scott Kuggeleijn claiming a five-wicket bag.