There is winning your first Plunket Shield game of the season.
Then there is crushing Canterbury by nine wickets with a day remaining.
The Otago Volts produced something special in Alexandra, restricting Canterbury to just 324 runs over their two innings and putting together a composed second innings to finish before lunch yesterday.
Openers Jacob Cumming and Dale Phillips moved things along quickly at Molyneux Park. The pair were chasing 101 runs at the start of the day and took little time to eat away at the deficit.
They both caressed some nice shots to the boundary before Cumming (45) was trapped lbw by Michael Rippon.
Phillips (70 not out) carried on with captain Dean Foxcroft (14 not out) to see the Volts home.
The Volts started Saturday with the bat and carried through to finish on 188.
But they were strong again in the field on the seamer-friendly wicket and it was again all-rounder Luke Georgeson who struck first.
He dismissed Chad Bowes for five and, just as he did in the first innings, Georgeson grabbed the scalp of Cole McConchie with his next ball. The Canterbury captain suffered a rare king pair with a golden duck in both innings.
It meant seven wickets for Georgeson’s tally for the game, but it was Jacob Duffy who dominated the second innings, taking four for 36.
He took the wickets of Leo Carter (17), Rhys Mariu (1), Mitch Hay (35) and Michael Rae (1).
Duffy also delivered the ball that led to Rippon’s run out for 26.
Rippon took off after firing his shot towards Foxcroft and got halfway down the wicket when he had to scramble back, only to watch wicketkeeper Max Chu break the stumps.
That put Canterbury in real trouble and the Volts on the front foot.
Ben Lockrose trapped both Black Cap Ish Sodhi (25) and Sean Davey (8) lbw.
Lockrose was economical with his 18-over spell producing six maidens on his way to take two for 29.
Angus McKenzie was Canterbury’s only real shining light, finishing not out on 42 to top-score for his side.
Canterbury
First innings 144
Otago
First innings 188
Canterbury Second innings
C Bowes c Chu b Georgeson 5
R Mariu b Duffy 1
C McConchie c McKay b Georgeson 0
L Carter c Chu b Duffy 17
M Hay c McKay b Duffy 35
M Rippon run out 26
Z Foulkes c Johnson b McKay 7
I Sodhi lbw b Lockrose 25
A McKenzie not out 42
S Davey lbw b Lockrose 8
M Rae b Duffy 1
Extras (2b, 6lb, 4w, 1nb) 13
Total (all out, 68.1overs) 180
Fall: 1-5, 2-5, 3-8, 4-55, 5-70, 6-84, 7-115, 8-140, 9-151.
Bowling: J Duffy 19.1-5-36-4, L Georgeson 9-2-23-2, T Muller 11-2-50-0, J McKay 9-2-28-1, B Lockrose 18-6-29-2, D Foxcroft 2-0-6-0.
Otago Second innnings
J Cumming lbw b Rippon 45
D Phillips not out 70
D Foxcroft not out 14
Extras (1b, 1lb, 1w, 6nb) 9
Total (for 1wkt, 30.2 overs) 138
Fall: 1-102.
Bowling: S Davey 7-0-20-0, Z Foulkes 4-2-9-0, M Rae 8.2-0-45-0, I Sodhi 6-0-31-0, M Rippon 5-1-31-1
Result: Otago won by nine wickets.
In the other games, the Wellington Firebirds trail the Central Stags by 217 runs with seven wickets in hand as they head into the final day. The Stags declared at 572 for nine after Brad Schmulian’s top score of 186.
The Stags have the Firebirds at 60 for three.
The Auckland Aces need 347 runs to beat Northern Districts today.
The Aces struggled to get going with the bat in their first innings finishing all out for 158. They were 77 for three at stumps yesterday.
— Hawke’s Bay beat South Canterbury (zone 4 winners) by eight wickets to retain the Hawke Cup. Jayden Lennox took 10 for 113 across his two innings for Hawke’s Bay.
