Snedden bags five wickets

Press, 29 March 1980, Page 60

Snedden bags five wickets

PA Auckland Martin Snedden. the young New Zealand seamer, may very well have bowled his way into the full New Zealand side when playing against Derrick Robins’ XI at Eden Park yesterday. At the very least he is knocking loudly on the selectors’ door.

With a vibrant displav of the seamer’s art Snedden took five wickets for 41 front 25 overs during the Robins’ XI first innings of 223, and then went to work as the nightwatchman as Young New Zealand tip-toed through to 22 for one wicket.

After a rather frantic start --Robertson opened with three overs which' cost 25 runs and brought one wicket —Robin’s batsmen were faced with a battle on a pitch which gave the seamers just enough encouragement. Bill Athey survived for 32, with the kind of existence that • keeps raffle-sellers in business, and just before lunch Snedden struck two heavy blows, having Chris Cowdrey caught and then bowling Chris Maynard, who offered not a stroke to a ball that snarled back at him.

Slow, and with a little luck, Patel and Barnett, battled ■ clear against Gillespie and Robertson, Patel growing more and more confident of stroke, so much so that Matthew Toynbee, the Young New Zealand captain thought it prudent to post a

deep cover-point on the boundary to contain Patel’s superb driving in that direction.

Snedden broke the stand at 161 for six, and then the main question was whether Patel — who lost Jack Richards at 175 for seven — would score his century. He did it in the grand manner, taking 14 in three balls from Gillespie, including a majestic wedgeshot of a six to the sight screen, and then reaching his century with his fifteenth four.

I DERRICK ROBINS' XI First innings K. Sharp c and b Robertson 5 C. W. Athey run out 32 R. G. Williams c Smith b Snedden .. g D. N. Patel c GiUespia b Crowe 105 C. S. Cowdrey c Gillespie b Snedden g C. W. Maynard b Snedden O K. J. Barnett c Smith b Snedden 36 C. J. Richards c Smith b Snedden 5 A. C. Piggott b Crowe . 7 N. G. Cook st Smith b Brown 4 W. G. Merrv not out .. 0 Extras (b2, lb 6, nb7) .. 15 Total .. 223 Fall: 21, 32, 57. 89, 89, 161 1175. 218. 223. | Bowling.—G. J. Robertson. 20, '5. 73, 1; M. C. Snedden. 25. 10, 41, 5; S. Gillespie, 19, 5, 67, 0: V. R. Brown, 11, 3, 13, 1; M. D. i Crowe, 4. 1, 14. 2. YOUNG N.Z. First innings I. A. Rutherford c Richards b Merry 12 M. D. Crowe not out .. 7 M. C. Snedden not out .. 1 i Extras (lb2) .. .. 2 Total (for 1 wicket) 22 i Fall: 18. i Bowling.—W. G. Merry, 6,1,: 8. 1; A. C. Piggott, 5,2, 12, 0;l N. G. Cook, 1,1, 0. 0.