Otago still two years away: Coggan

Mike Coggan.
Mike Coggan.
Bowl once. Bat twice.

It is not a great habit for a first-class team.

Otago has almost mastered the art of the follow-on.

The Volts have slumped to six consecutive losses in the Plunket Shield this summer.

Four of those defeats have been by an innings, which means they have literally bowled once and batted twice in those games.

Despite the fruitless battle to be competitive, Otago Cricket Association chief executive Mike Coggan has expressed faith in the coaching staff and believes better results are around the corner.

And by around the corner, he means in two years' time when the side can recover from some high-profile departures.

It is a wee while to wait. But then again it has has been 31 years since the Volts won the first-class tournament. Their struggles are not new.

''In some ways Rome wasn't build in a day,'' Coggan responded when asked about the Volts' poor form.

''We are going through a rebuilding or a transition-type period and we knew it was going to be tough.

''But cutting to the chase, everyone is feeling disappointed. That goes without saying when you've had some pretty heavy defeats.

''But our focus has to be on the long term.''

Otago had a lean season last summer as well. The Volts had two wins but they were more than offset by the seven losses.

The post-season review suggested the team culture needed improvement. But Coggan said significant progress has been made on that score.

''The feedback from the players, regardless of the results, suggests it is as good as it has even been. So we know we can build from there; we've just got to keep working on the performances.''

Black Caps all-rounder Jimmy Neesham was seemingly not prepared to wait for improvements in the culture. He popped up in Wellington and has been outspoken about the environment at the Firebirds.

Black Cap test left-armer Neil Wagner transferred to Northern Districts, while long-serving wicketkeeper Derek de Boorder accepted a job in banking and made himself unavailable.

Former captain Rob Nicol retired and Neil Broom has retired from first-class cricket to concentrate on white-ball cricket.

That was a huge challenge to Otago's depth but the Volts recruited just one player from outside the region this summer in wicketkeeper-batsman Mitch Renwick and he has struggled to make an impact with the bat.

Recruitment is an area in which the association needs to put more energy. But Coggan said it was not as easy as just making a phone call.

''We need to work with New Zealand Cricket to ensure all the best players are playing ... and currently you could question whether that is the case,'' he said.

''We also have a responsibility to support our best home-grown players and you are seeing the likes of Nathan Smith show he has what it takes across all three formats.

''But we have to determine which players have a strong future. Where we possibly have gaps then we really have to work hard to find a way of recruiting the best players in New Zealand.''

Right now there seem to be quite a few gaps.

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