BRIGHT PLAY

Otago Daily Times, Issue 26350, 3 January 1947, Page 6

BRIGHT PLAY

WELLINGTON’S SOUND POSITION CAVE BOWLS BRILLIANTLY (P.A.) WELLINGTON, Jan. 2. A burst of good bowling by the Wanganui colt H. B. Cave, followed by some of the brightest batting seen at the Basin Reserve for years with C. S. Dempster, former international, as the star, saw Wellington place itself in a strong position in the Plunket Shield match against Canterbury today on an apparently easy wicket but with the ball coming through low at times. Canterbury was dismissed for 145 runs, Cave finishing with six wickets for 44 runs, an excellent performance for a player in only his second season of Plunket Shield cricket. With Dempster showing much of his old brilliance and Crawford giving a a sparkling display, Wellington consolidated its grip on the game by scoring 211 for five wickets in its second innings at stumps. The wicket rolled out easy for the afternoon play. The gate was the largest for a single day for many years, totalling £246 and bringing the aggregate for the two days to £490. Canterbury’s innings represented an uphill fight against an attack, the main inspiration of which was Cave. Small, though over inclined to swish at some off deliveries, made several good drives. Smith and Scott also played attractively, but the game swung steadily against Canterbury, the bowlers triumphing over the batsmen. Cave’s bowling lifted him into the forefront of the medium-fast group in interprovincial cricket. He demonstrated that on a wicket with any sort of response in it he can maintain his hostility for long periods, making the utmost use of his great reach. The fact that many short deliveries from Cave 'came through low contributed largely to the problem he presented to the Canterbury batsmen, curtailing some of their scoring shots and forcing them to adopt a cautious attitude. Later in. the day, when the wicket rolled out perfectly, anything short of length was ruthlessly dealt with by Dempster, Crawford and Menzies. With a lead of 98 runs Wellington opened its second innings badly. McVicar being caught in the slips off the third ball. Tindill and Ongley went cheaply, but Menzies. Dempster and Crawford delighted the crowd with some of the best cricket seen here for years. At stumps. Wellington’s position, with two days’ play left, appeared a strong one. Scores: — WELLINGTON First Innings .. .. 1 243 Second Innings Tindill, b Scott 12 McVicar, c Park, b Scott .. 0 Menzies, c Small, b Parks ~ .. 40 Ongley, lbw, b Scott 0 Dempster, not out 89 Crawford, lbw, b Burtt 54 Meech, not out 4 Extras 12 Total for five wickets .. 211 CANTERBURY First Innings Cromb, c and b O’Neill .... 9 Anderson, c O’Neill, b Cave .. *6 Pollitt, b Cave 10 Burtt, c Meech, b Cave 7 Small, b Cave 45 Park, lbw, b Matheson 9 Shand, c Tindill, b Cave .. .. 0 Smith, b Wilson 16 Scott, b O’Neill 21 Burgess, b Cave 10 Britton, not out 2 Extras .. 10 Total .145 Bowling Analysis.—O’Neill, two for 47; Wilson, one for 21; Cave, six for 44; Matheson, one for 22; Crawford, none for none.