The Captain's Blog - 3rd Edition

Each week we go behind the scenes to find out what the captains think about up coming games, their team performance in the latest games and stand out players.

The Captains’ Blog will be updated regularly throughout the season so make sure you log on regularly to get all the latest updates and news from inside the changing rooms and out on the pitch.

Richard Jones

Captain - Auckland Aces

We didn’t have our best week to be fair. Wellington got off to a good start in the first session on the first day and we were a bit behind the eight ball. We fought back to get the game back onto an even keel.

We batted reasonably well with Martin Guptill doing well and we lost our first wicket at 130. However we couldn’t make the most of it in the first innings. In the second we were 350 down but I was still reasonably confident with our strong batting line up. It was disappointing that we had a good start but couldn’t capitalise on that.

We had a few players away. Obviously the birth of Gareth’s first child was a pretty special moment last week. Reese Young and Tarun Nethula were part of the New Zealand invitation team to play Pakistan, but to be honest a number of teams were missing players. We had Martin Guptill and Scott Styris back to play.

Young Jonathan Bassett-Graham made his debut with us. Our two top class keepers, Young and Hopkins, were away so it gave this young guy the opportunity to step up. He did really well and scored a few runs.

This week we face Canterbury at QEII Park in Christchurch. We are really looking forward to the game and getting some points on the board.

Kruger van Wyk

Captain -Canterbury Wizards

We are really pleased with our good win against a team which in the past has been tough to beat. It was a South Island derby and it was good to come up trumps.

We had a number of stand out performances against Otago. With the bat Peter Fulton did very well. And with the ball Shane Bond and Chris Martin brought a lot of skill and experience. Andrew Ellis, Leighton Burtt and Corey Anderson also did well. All in all it was a good team performance and they stepped up when they needed to.

I also want to say congratulations to Peter Fulton who was selected for the BLACKCAPS squad to play Pakistan in this Test Series.

This week we are at home again, this time at QEII Park. We are up against Auckland. It’s always a good game against them, so we are looking forward to it.

Jamie How

Captain - Central Stags

We played the Northern Knights last week in Whangarei and it was a tough game. We came away with a disappointing result. Northern were able to adapt to the conditions a lot better than us and ultimately won the match.

Going from a flat natured wicket in Napier to a lively wicket in Whangarei was quite tough and we fell a bit short. It was fantastic for McGlashan to break a new record, saying that it wasn’t so enjoyable for us being on the receiving end.

The highlight of the week was having BLACKCAP Ross Taylor back in the side. Not only is he a great player he is also a great guy and the boys really enjoyed having him around.

We will next have Taylor back for the HRV Cup in January hopefully along with Jacob Oram and Graham Napier which will add a bit of strength to our team.

Next up we face Otago at Nelson Park in Napier. We look forward to playing on home conditions and working towards a better performance.

James Marshall

Captain - Northern Knights

It has been a great start to the season for the Knights, first beating Otago then beating Central Stags, with one day to go in the second round. Because of this we are firmly placed at the top of the table which is good because in recent years we haven’t been that consistent and have been chasing the pack.

We were up in Whangarei last week which a lot of players hold close to their hearts. A number of the boys are from Northland and it has a really strong cricketing community up there. We always enjoy heading up to Whangarei and sometimes we even get a chance to go fishing.

Peter McGlashan did very well with the gloves. The Central batsmen kept nicking the ball, and Peter took 12 catches in the match which was helped by our bowlers.

Another stand out performer, and my man of the match, would have to be Graeme Aldridge. He had his 32nd birthday on Sunday, so I think that was a good omen and it helped him get 11 wickets during the match.

Next up we face Wellington. We are really looking forward to that and we enjoy beating them. In previous years we haven’t been successful, however the boys are quite fired up about this one and we want to continue on our winning ways.

Craig Cumming

Captain - Otago Volts

Although we had a disappointing loss against Canterbury, there has been a feeling of improvement from our first game. We’ve talked nicely about improving but now it’s about putting our performances on the board and I believe we can do it against the Central Stags.

Stand out performers in last round’s game would have to be Sam Wells and Leighton Morgan. Wells got a five wicket bag in the first innings and backed it up with 70 runs, while Morgan has scored three 50s in a row over the last two games. He’s very deserving of his opportunities.

This week we play Central in Napier. I think every round, every game the teams are very similar. We’ve all got good players. Central have a good batting order and play a positive brand of cricket, so it will be a good game for us.

Matthew Bell

Captain - Wellington Firebirds

We had a good result against Auckland at home at the Basin Reserve and managed to get the first innings and outright points. It was great to get the first win under the belt and it’s given the players confidence. Hopefully we can continue the momentum through the rest of the season.

There were three stand out performances against Auckland. First would have to be Cameron Merchant. He scored his maiden First Class ton. It was good to see him get that as he got so close, getting 99, against Canterbury the week before. Josh Brodie was also excellent with the bat making 100 in the first innings.

With the bowling Jeetan Patel led the way. He bowled 70 overs and took 7/170. But everyone contributed well – it was a good team effort.

Next up we face Northern Knights who have just won their last two games. They managed to bowl Otago and Central out for less that 100 runs in the first innings, so our batsmen are going to have their work cut out for them. They got one up over us last season, so we are looking forward to the game.

Also this week we have young wicketkeeper Joe Austin-Smellie debuting for the Firebirds. Chris Nevin is and his wife are expecting twins, so he’s taken some time off to be with his family. It will be great fun for Joe.