Hawke Cup

Otago Country put together a dismal performance in its first Hawke Cup outing of the season, losing outright to Southland at Queens Park, in Invercargill yesterday.

South Canterbury beat North Otago by 10 wickets yesterday in a two-day Hawke Cup qualification match at Whitestone Contracting stadium.

The first Hawke Cup elimination game will be played in Oamaru this weekend when the home side meets South Canterbury in a two-day match.

The party is over for Otago Country and the onus goes on the side to hold on to the Hawke Cup in its first defence at Alexandra this weekend.

Honours were shared when rain halted play on the first day of the three-day Hawke Cup challenge between holder North Otago and Otago Country yesterday.

One part of Otago will be joyous and another will be desolate after the Hawke Cup cricket match in Oamaru this weekend. North Otago, in the first defence of its inaugural tenure, faces Otago Country in an intriguing battle of the heartland. Our regional correspondents, Terry O'Neill and Rhys Chamberlain, check in with the two camps.

It is the biggest match in Otago Country's calendar this weekend as it tries to prise provincial cricket's biggest prize from North Otago's hands.

Otago Country has won the right to play North Otago in Oamaru this weekend in a Hawke Cup challenge after an appeal from Southland was thrown out.

Otago Country earned valuable first innings points in its penultimate zone six Hawke Cup elimination game against North Otago at Whitestone Contracting stadium over the weekend.

Both North Otago and Mid Canterbury have made changes from the teams that played first-round games - both against South Canterbury - for their clash in Oamaru this weekend.