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Bay of Plenty Take First Innings Points From Waikato Valley in Fergus Hickey Action

Century for Blair McKenzie

Bay of Plenty ended their ND Fergus Hickey Rosebowl (two-day matches) campaign that kicked off in November 2018, when they ground out first innings points against Waikato Valley, during the weekend (2-3 March 2019).

Waikato Valley elected to bat first after winning the coin toss at St Paul’s Collegiate in Hamilton, on a track that looked to be a batsman’s paradise. “Our boys did some solid toil with the ball on the first day, on a pitch that offered very little for the bowlers and a outfield where beating the infield meant a boundary” said Bay of Plenty Coach Charles Williams

Valley number four Chris Swanson (153) and Girvacques De Jagar (100) made good use of the conditions, to post a century apiece. The home side set the Bay team a very big target, to grab first innings points, when they declared at 365 for the loss of five wickets.

“Our bowlers tried a lot of different plans. Tim Pringle and Henry Collier bowled well for long periods without much luck, with all the seamers trying very hard without reward in very hot conditions”.

Bay of Plenty openers Peter Drysdale and Henry Collier got the visitors away to a outstanding start, to blunt the Waikato Valley bowling attack – with Collier the first to go for 56 with 102 runs on the board. “Both openers showed incredible discipline to pass the half century mark, with Drysdale looking to bring up another representative century, before being removed for 96 (off 200 balls)”.

Enter Blair McKenzie, who hammered 104 at a little less than a run a ball. “Blair was immense in his first two-day representative encounter. He looked at ease at the crease and scored one of the classiest centuries I have seen from a Bay of Plenty batsman”.

At 299/4, when McKenzie was dismissed, the Bay side looked well on track for first innings points from the match. The introduction of the second new ball changed the games momentum, with four wickets falling, before Dan Smith (12no) and Taylor Bettelheim (4no) hung tough, to take their side to first innings points.

The Bay of Plenty Senior Men’s team can be well pleased with their 2018/19 representative campaign, with just a solitary stain of defeat on their ledger card. On the way, they annexed the Howell Family Trophy against Hawkes Bay, won the ND Twenty 20 title with a five-game unbeaten record - with their only loss against Hamilton in the Fergus Hickey Rosebowl competition.

ND Fergus Hickey Rosebowl 2-3 March 2019 @St Paul’s Collegiate, Hamilton

Waikato Valley 365/5 (CJ Swanson 153, G De Jager 100; Chris Atkinson 2/76)

Bay of Plenty 368/8 (Blair McKenzie 104, Peter Drysdale 96, Henry Collier 56, Sean Davey 35, Fergus Lellman 24; J Gibson 3/94)

Result: Bay of Plenty took first innings points