A Dunedin softball club was defaulted for allegedly showing dissent to an umpire during a premier men's game on Saturday but is considering appealing its punishment.
The Cardinals were trailing the Dodgers 3-2 at Ellis Park on Saturday when umpire Dowie Sutton called the game off and awarded the points to the Dodgers.
The Cardinals club had 48hr after the game to decide whether to lodge an appeal on the default.
Cardinals coach Glenn Forrester told the Otago Daily Times he believed the umpire had acted hastily in calling the game off in the top of the third inning.
Forrester claimed one of his batters, called out by Sutton on a third strike, had drawn a line in the turf to indicate where he felt the ball had pitched outside the strike zone.
"The umpire then ejected the player from the game, and I'm not aware there was any previous warning," Forrester said.
"Myself and my captain questioned the umpire and asked him to get the rulebook out.
"He told us to carry on with the game. We refused because we wanted to be shown the rule.
"He then canned the whole game."
Forrester said he was satisfied he and his captain had acted in an appropriate manner.
The Cardinals were considering whether to lodge a protest but were unsure whether the game could be replayed, either from scratch or from the point it ended.
Otago Softball boss Jill Johnson was aware of the incident and was waiting to see whether the Cardinals appealed their punishment.
"We'll have independent people to deal with any protest should one be lodged," Johnson said.
Ellis Park had wins against the Dodgers (9-3) and the Saints (7-6) in the two full games played on Saturday.
In the top-of-the-table clash between Ellis Park and the Saints, Ellis Park's Daniel Tarapi hit a key two-run homer to give his side the win.
Tarapi also hit a home run and batted 1.000 in the early game, with 14-year-old Tyrone Pelasio hitting 2-from-2.
Scott Cartwright slammed one over the fence for the Dodgers.
In provincial action yesterday, the Otago men regained the Bates Shield by beating Southland 8-1 in Dunedin.
Cartwright and Jeremy Tisdall belted home runs in the third inning, while Tim Howard also cleared the fence but had his run erased for missing home plate.
