Youngsters have a ball with giant set

This group of eager young lads from Port Ahuriri School gave the great cricket activity the thumbs up yesterday. Photo / Warren Buckland

Black Caps pace pair Tim Southee and Trent Boult were nowhere to be seen at Ahuriri Park in Napier yesterday but there were clearly plenty of young bowlers eager to take the first steps in becoming equally adept at knocking wickets over.

Although it has to be said the wickets the youngsters from Port Ahuriri School took aim at were slightly larger than the official variety.

Like about 6m tall.

And a ball just over 2m wide.

'Whack a Wicket' was designed and produced by Rick Kirkland and Funworks, the Ahuriri-based company which specialises in inflatable fun activities and yesterday saw its debut as part of the great ICC World Cup Cricket build-up in Hawke's Bay.

Last year, Hawke's Bay Tourism general manager Annie Dundas and Inner City Marketing manager Zoe Barnes sat down with Mr Kirkland to discuss creating "something different" to celebrate the cup in Napier, and to create some fun.

"He gave us a bunch of concepts and this one looked nice and simple, easy to use and very visual," Ms Dundas said.

The activity features two balls, which have internal weights to make them "seam" off the pitch when rolled.

From each end of the wicket youngsters, or anyone for that matter, has to be first to break the stumps.

The reaction from the youngsters who had a go?

"Awesome," one of eight boys who gave it a shot said.

There was a united cry of "bowled him!" when the great stumps were sent to the ground.

On game day tomorrow the giant 'Whack a Wicket' game will be set up at the Napier Sound Shell between 10am and 2pm, with a gold coin donation being asked for (proceeds to Hawke's Bay Cricket).

It will also be there on Saturday between 10am and 4pm.

There was less action at the Nelson Park practice nets yesterday with the only people walking the grass being a groundsman and security staff.

Bowling and batting nets, along with sight screens, boundary ropes and hoardings were set up but there was no official word when the players, from UAE, Pakistan or even some of the Black Caps who had also arrived in Napier, would head there.

However, several Black Caps players had taken to some green fields - in the form of a few rounds of golf.

The team is effectively on time off for a few days before again taking to the ICC Cricket World Cup stage when they take on Afghanistan on Sunday.

The forecast for tomorrow's big game is for plenty of sunshine and a warm 25 degrees.

At this stage, although MetService makes it clear that long-range forecasts are created from computer weather models, the outlook for Sunday, when the Black caps are set scheduled to take on Afghanistan, is not the brightest.

While the Saturday and Monday are down for a fine weather match day, at this stage Sunday is 25 degrees but with showers and southwesterlies.

Head groundsman Phil Stoyanoff never discusses what was likely to be "in" the wickets he prepares although McLean Park has a great reputation for creating plenty of runs.