26 November, 2024

Takapuna batters plunder old rival’s attack

Good knock… Michael Sclanders hit 56 for Takapuna before being bowled by Shore’s Rory Bessell.
Picture: Roger Brittenden

The Takapuna Cricket Club premier side took the spoils on the first day of a local derby with old rivals North Shore at Onewa Domain last Saturday, setting a first-innings target of 292 in the two-day Hedley Howarth match.
Takapuna took the game to Shore, with several batsmen scoring at a rate of more than a run a ball.
Opener Benjamin Beecroft got Takapuna off to a cracking start, hitting 83 off 75 balls.
Down the order, Michael Sclanders – an Auckland Aces player – was equally quick-scoring with 56 off 55 balls.
Cam Neal then scored a century – 102 runs off 79 – in the top Takapuna batting performance of the day.
Takapuna declared at 292 for 8, putting Shore in to bat for around an hour.
At stumps, Shore were 54 for 1 after 14.5 overs, with a lot of work to do on the second day, which is played tomorrow (23 November, starting at 11 am).
Shore and Takapuna went into the match both needing a win after mixed starts to the season. Shore lost both its first two matches, while Takapuna has won one and lost one.
Takapuna’s heavy hitting augurs well for the Auckland T20 competition, which starts next month, with Takapuna playing Howick away on 11 December.

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