Cricket: Cracking form continues

Northland cricketing ace Henry Cooper continues to crack bowlers to the boundary, this time wearing the Northern Districts A colours.

Cooper has scored 323 runs for Northland this season at an average of 65 per innings, scoring his maiden ton along the way.

Yesterday, Cooper cracked an unbeaten 126 in Hamilton against an Invitation XI. While it was against an Invitational XI, it's the audience who would have been watching which matters for Cooper.

Northland senior men's cricket team coach Stephen Cunis said Cooper is having an outstanding season with both bat and ball in club cricket and is second to only Neal Parlane in terms of leading run scorers in the club scene.

"Henry [Cooper] has really matured this season and is playing some great cricket," said Cunis, who himself played first-class cricket for Canterbury. "He has started to groove his game and understands his role in the Northland team.

"Having Neal and Michael Parlane in the team certainly helps him technically and mentally ... and I keep him on his toes in terms of having the drive to be the best he can be and working on the skills that'll make him into a first-class cricketer."

Cunis said Cooper has the ability to take cricket a long way and we could be reading about Northland's next Black Cap.

"[Cooper] is a bloody talented cricketer and is learning his trade by working hard."