Reds win last game, flee NZ 

The Reds NZ tour has finished  on a high note with a tense and incident-packed win over Takapuna District. After a two hour early-morning drive up from Hamilton, the team arrived at Auckland’s Onewa Domain to learn that the council had not prepared a wicket due to staff shortages. Paranoid elements of the touring party suspected an evil plot to force the game onto an artifiicial surface, upon learning that Takapuna, a Premier Grade club with 17 sides, had drawn their XI from their Grade 1A one-day and T20 sides who play on synthetic pitches.

 Dave “Tweedly Tweet”  Cooper was having no bar of another game on synthetic after Hamilton. Employing dark arts learned from his old school groundsman, Rockin’ Robin got the roller going without a key and within half an hour had resurrected the most recent pitch on the centre block into a very acceptable track for a match now reduced to 45 overs a side.

The intrigue deepened when Takapuna’’s umpire failed to arrive, and his ageing father who had never umpired a senior game in his life stood in for him. How did he go? Let’s just say that any sporting debt that Australia still owes NZ  from the Chappell underarm incident was well  and truly discharged  in this game.

Kahn and Whittock began in lively fashion before a philosophical Kahn was ruled caught behind off the thighpad. Hobbs joined Whittock and the pair produced their best batting of the tour to rattle the score along to 1-75 after 20 overs. Just as we dared to dream of a total of 200, Whittock fell to keeper-turned-legspinner Pahade via a brilliant one-handed  running catch by Mills on the mid-wicket boundary.  Pahade struck again without addition to snare Hobbs caught-and-bowled. When ex-South Yarra ring-in Jimmy Watson, filling in for the injured Croft, ran himself out on a drive straight to cover, Reds’ mood was much more sombre at 4-76. Booth  was bowled to make it 5-94,  then a bemused Panda was fired out caught behind on a ball that hit the top of the pad. Or was it LBW? No-one on the field seemed to know, but the LBW looked impossible from the sidelines, so the scorers  went for caught. The Ninja followed, LBW to a ball that both batsmen thought was missing leg stump by a lot, and when Thomas was caught for a studious 13, Reds were a miserable 8-114 and into the last 10 overs.  

Fortunately the tail wagged in style.  Rich Lovett held it together with 11no, just missing out on his first six when he hoisted a high full toss over square leg. Rockin Robin  helped add 12 valuable runs before Pahade bowled him. Then Cletus came in at no.11 and batted like a no.3, adding a further 28 with Rich in the last seven overs, and finishing with a booming four over mid-wicket on the last ball. At 9-154, the curry and rice that Takapuna served for lunch tasted very good.

Rockin Robin and Cletus quickly had Takapuna in trouble with both openers back in the clubhouse at 2-10. Big hitter Daymon was lucky on 4 that a stumping appeal off Cletus went to the one man in North Auckland who thought that he was not out. Dayton  celebrated with a six and a loud  Yeah the next ball, provoking some wry responses,  before Blobbsy held a good catch at deep point – 3-32. The Ninja came on and bowled the talented left-hander Mills, then Jimmy Watson received some gentle  catching practice at cover to make it 6-46.

It seemed all over but Takapuna no.7 Chris Lines had other ideas, sweeping the Ninja and driving the quicks beautifully. Pahade and Gaurav edged to Kahn with rash swings  – 8-78 – but Lines found a willing partner in keeper Saillapan. The two went on the attack and there was a distinct unease in the Reds camp as the score climbed quickly to 8-110. Then Saillapan chanced his arm once too often and dragged Rockin Robin straight into the paws of the Panda at mid-on. Booth trapped Siddarth in front with his straight one and that was the ball game. Lines won the Reds cap for his superb unbeaten 42.  Rich Lovett took the jacket of shame for missing the pre-match photo because he was on the NatureWalk behind the clubhouse.