Cricket: Spearman brightens dull day's play

Central Districts captain Craig Spearman provided the highlight of the first day of his team's championship match against Northern Districts in Napier yesterday.

The former New Zealand opener scored 83 to lead the home side to a modest first innings total of 195 from 69.1 overs.

Northern Districts completed a pedestrian day in the State-sponsored championship game at McLean Park in reaching 56 for two from 30 overs at stumps.

Spearman, the only Central batsman to show any great application, suppressed his normal aggressive approach to hold the innings together against a threatening Northern pace attack.

After surviving a confident appeal for caught behind on 16, he began watching wickets fall at the other end before being joined by teenager Jesse Ryder for the most productive partnership of the innings, 48 for the fifth wicket.

It was the most entertaining period of the day's play, but Spearman's dismissal 17 short of his second century of the championship brought a return to a painfully slow run rate.

Spearman's 50 came from 102 deliveries while the rest of his innings, with the assistance of Ryder, came at a run-a-ball rate. His innings included 14 boundaries.

Opener Peter Ingram's 10 off 58 balls and Glen Sulzberger's six off 44 (including 30 successive deliveries without scoring) reflected the Central batsmen's trouble in scoring off a Northern attack spearheaded by Ian Butler and Joseph Yovich.

No 9 Andrew Schwass showed the more recognised batsmen how to deal with the pacemen by pulling speedster Butler over the mid-wicket boundary and posting the second-highest score of 25.

Butler, who bothered all the Central batsmen with his pace, and Yovich were the best of the Northern bowlers, each claiming three wickets.

After the loss of two early wickets, Northern dug in.

Opener James Marshall was unbeaten on 26 from 97 deliveries at stumps. His third-wicket partner Michael Parlane had scored 10 off 51 balls.

- NZPA