Kaipara Flats looks to end 12 year drought

Kaipara Flats kick start their bid for a spot in the National Club Cricket Championships tomorrow against Counties side Pukekohe Metro in the first round of qualifying.
Skipper for the Kaipara side that dominated the Lion Red Premier Grade One Day Competition to earn their spot in the playoffs, Jake Phillips is hoping for a happier ending this season after falling at the last hurdle of their campaign in 2010.
"We beat Pukekohe and Weymouth in the first two rounds of qualifying then went down to Mount Maunganui in the Northern Districts final. Obviously we're aiming to go one better this year," Phillips said.
The last time Kaipara qualified to contest the week-long championship finals tournament in April, against the top six club sides, one from each major New Zealand cricket association, at Cornwall Cricket Club in Auckland, was in 1998.
"There are two of us from that team still playing, myself and Brett Hood ... we came fourth at that tournament. It's has been a while since we have made it through," Phillips said.
The skipper is confident his side has the ability to do well in the competition this year, with a good all-round bowling attack.
"I think bowling is definitely this team's strength with the likes of Tauseef Satti, Matt Taylor, Kevin Forde, myself and Mike O'Flaherty who adds a bit of spin to the attack ... as well as as our fielding. I think whether we bowl first or second we will be trying to get them out cheaply.
"We also need one or two of our batsmen to get some decent runs."
Kaipara will be without key scorers Brad Wilson and James Marshall who are away with the Northern Knights, so Phillips said the onus would be on senior players such as Satti and Hood to lead by example.
The Kaipara wicket was a bit of an unknown, as it has not been played on since November, however, Kaipara and City, who also qualified for the playoffs, will get the chance to test the conditions today when they go head-to-head in a 55-over match.
Last weekend, the first day of the second round of the premier-grade, two-day competition was washed out, so the second day was changed to a 55-over game, Phillips said.
"I can't really tell you much about the wicket at this stage, but after today we will know, it will be a good warm-up for City and us," the skipper said.
After finishing second in the Lion Red Premier One Day Competition, City was the other Northland side to qualify for the national club championship playoffs.
Tomorrow, they go up against Weymouth, who finished first in the Counties one dayer, ahead of Pukekohe Metro.
A near full-strength City side will head to Weymouth for the match, and captain Rory Darkins was quietly confident of producing a good result.
"We are full strength, although we are missing Joey Yovich who is playing for the Northern Knights.
"We have a good team on paper but it's just a matter of transferring that onto the pitch," Darkins said. City last made the finals of in 2008, a goal Darkins is keen to repeat this year. Both games start at 10.30am.