SECOND ROUND OF CRICKET Northern hoping for improved batting

Press, Volume CXIII, Issue 33417, 26 December 1973, Page 16

SECOND ROUND OF CRICKET Northern hoping for improved batting

In recent years, Northern Districts has been criticised for its weak bowling. But the team manager, Mr N. D. Wilson, believes it has been the batting that has let the side down.

“If we can score runs in the next three days, we should have a good chance of beating Canterbury,” Mr Wilson said yesterday.

He was commenting on Northern’s chances against Canterbury in the Plunket Shield cricket match which begins at Lancaster Park this morning.

“Strong enough” "Our bowling has been criticised as only mediocre; the fact is that we have not been able to score enough runs. I think the bowling is strong enough to get Canterbury out,’’ Mr Wilson said. If Northern were to win the match outright, it would be the northern side’s first since January 1971. Ironically, that success was against Canterbury at Seddon Park, Hamilton, when Northern scored 261 runs in 233 minutes and won by three wickets. Mr Wilson said that the batting was disappointing in Dunedin last week when

Northern was beaten by eight wickets. “I am hoping for better things," he added. The same 12 players who were in Dunedin have been named for the Canterbury match. Both teams will name their twelfth men this morning.

Canterbury has been forced to make two changes, because of the injuries suffered by C. L. Bull and P. G. Coman. They have been replaced - by V. Pollard and B. G. Hadlee. The teams are:

Canterbury: K. Thomson (captain), C. R. Dickel, R. M. Gearry, Pollard, Hadlee, K. S. Chambers, C. W. Aldridge, C. M. L. Kirk, K. I. Ferries, N. M. Parker. P. E. Wallace, R. W. Newton.

Northern: B. Dunning (captain), J. G. Gibson. J. Warrington, G. Taylor, A. D. G. Roberts, R, W. Fulton, D. P. Lloyd, L. S.

Mountain, C. Dickeson. E. K. Gillet, H. Unka. J. White. Otago, which beat Northern by eight wickets, will field a stronger batting side ■for its second game, against Auckland at Dunedin. Anderson returns R. W. Anderson, the former New Zealand representative, who scored centuries in each innings for Southland in its successful defence of the Hawke Cup against Central Otago recently, is almost certain to play after missing the Northern game. The stylish right-hand batsman injured a finger when batting in the second innings against Central Otago and was forced to withdraw from Otago’s first Plunket Shield game.