Cricket: Have-a-go South run out of steam

The South Island fell 33 runs short in a brave effort to score the 368 needed to win their four-day cricket match against the North Island at Hagley Oval in Christchurch yesterday.

Despite the best efforts of Mark Richardson, who scored an excellent 108, his eighth first-class century, South were dismissed for 335 in the second over of the 15 scheduled in the last hour of play.

Otago batsman Richardson said it was always going to be a tough assignment to reach such a high total in a fourth innings, but felt it was attainable when "Wizzy [Warren Wisneski] was out there smacking it everywhere.

"I felt we still had a bit of work to do, but if we batted the overs out we could still make the score."

Richardson and Canterbury's Wisneski put on 75 in 99 minutes for the seventh wicket to get South to within 76 runs of their target.

Wisneski hit 48 with six fours and two sixes before his innings was ended by a brilliant, diving finger-tip catch in the covers by Mathew Sinclair off the bowling of Michael Mason.

North captain Blair Pocock had finally taken the new ball the previous over, the 110th of the innings, after being compelled to give his spinners a greater workload than anticipated.

His pace bowling trio Mason (ankle), Aaron Barnes (back) and Kerry Walmsley (groin) had all suffered or aggravated injuries.

Richardson was run out by an underarm throw when going for a quick single with South on 320, ending a sterling innings which lasted 279 balls and more than six hours.

South's ninth wicket fell the next ball, with No 10 David Sewell caught behind off Walmsley.

Earlier, Richardson and 19-year-old Jarrod Englefield, resuming with South on 91 for three, extended their fourth-wicket partnership to 138, with the latter's attractive 75 in 189 minutes marking his highest first-class score.

They stayed together until immediately after lunch and Englefield's departure, caught in the slips off Walmsley, was quickly followed by Aaron Redmond being run out without scoring.

It was a debut to forget for Redmond, who completed a pair and had no reward with his legspinners.

* Over at Lincoln, Chris Silverwood, who has been called to South Africa as a back-up for the England cricket team, produced a fine farewell performance for England A against the BIL Academy.

England A won the limited overs match by two wickets after beating the same opposition by six wickets at the same venue yesterday.

Put into bat by the tourists, the Academy were dismissed for 200- one ball short of their allotted 50 overs. The total might have been higher but for the miserly bowling of Silverwood, whose 10 overs cost just 19 runs.

England A then found themselves in strife at 156 for eight, but Silverwood, with 38 from 27 balls, steered his side to victory in the 49th over.

England A's next match is a four-day fixture against the North Island starting in Lincoln on Monday.

- NZPA