Three out with first three balls

WGP 16Feb15 - GOLDEN ARM: Hunterville's George Simpson took a clean-bowled hat-trick against Wanganui Intermediate with the first three balls of the game at Springvale Park on Saturday. PHOTO/SUP

One wonders what was on mind of the No5 batsman for Wanganui Intermediate (WIS) as he hastily strode on to Springvale Park in his team's Year 7-8 fixture against Hunterville School on Saturday.

Waiting for him was left-arm medium bowler George Simpson, who had just delivered the perfect opening to the team's 26-over match - having clean bowled three WIS batsmen with the game's first three balls.

Hunterville principal and self-confessed cricket tragic Stephen Lewis was umpiring at square leg. He knew what the Year 7 student had just done had at least never been achieved in international cricket - "including test, 50-over and T20 games going back to the 1800s".

"All three deliveries were full, slightly inswinging deliveries - clean bowling each batsmen," said Lewis.

Black Caps great Danny Morrison took New Zealand's first hat-trick in a one-day international by clean bowling three Indian batsmen straight in Napier in 1994. However, that was in the 48th over of the second innings.

At Springvale WIS were eventually dismissed for 72, with Simpson having two spells and claiming three more wickets to finish with six scalps for five runs from his five overs.

Hunterville went on to win by six wickets.

"George has been a mainstay of the Hunterville School 1st XI for the past 12 months, even as a Year 6 player, and has been playing hard-ball cricket for three years," said Lewis.