ROUND TWO • 2022/23
Cobham Oval, Whangarei
1 December 2022
(this match rescheduled from 30 November at Colin Maiden Park)
Auckland Aces lost to Otago Volts by six wickets
Bonus point win
Selected milestones
Ben Horne - 50th List A match (Auckland Aces)
Llew Johnson - maiden List A half century (Otago Volts)
After a delayed, lockdown-disrupted, rescheduled and yet ultimately triumphant 2021/22 season, Auckland Aces captain Robbie O'Donnell and his team would hardly have been fazed by the disrupted, rescheduled, delayed start to this season's title defence.
Been there, done that and got the one-day trophy to show for it.
Their much anticipated white-ball action began at last with their second-round fixture (their first round fixture will be played later this month), but from the outset, nothing went to plan.
O'Donnell was sent in by Volts counterpart Hamish Rutherford at a blustery Cobham Oval, the Aces' de facto home ground for this game after the issues with Colin Maiden Park in Auckland.
Will O'Donnell | PHOTOSPORT
Kingpin Jacob Duffy bowled veteran left-hander George Worker for a golden duck in the first over, quickly shutting down the tantalising spectacle of Worker and another vastly experienced practitioner in Martin Guptill operating in tandem.
Guptill (24) got a start, but became the ever-dangerous Duffy's second victim at 43/2. That roused first change Matt Bacon into making it three down, Mark Chapman dismissed cheaply - caught by that man Duffy - in the 14th.
Opening paceman Michael Rae's second spell delivered another big, cheap wicket in O'Donnell himself, Sean Solia departed off his next over; and, as showers twice sent the teams off for a short spell, the Aces found themselves five down.
PHOTOSPORT
Captain O'Donnell's younger brother Will had come in during the first over at first drop, and he was still holding the fort thourgh it all in a game that demanded a bit of patience.
He took his team past the 100-mark, and was on the cusp of a first-up fifty when the showers interrupted his concentration. He managed his composure to brush off the pesky interruptions, but did lose partner Ben Horne (24) soon after they got back on at 124/6.
The Volts already had one match under their belt, a hard loss to the Stags in Dunedin. Now they worked well together as a hunting pack. O'Donnell patiently kept chipping away, and squirted a two off young spinner Ben Lockrose to raise his half ton in the 36th.
After Horne's cameo, he'd had another 40 minutes of support from young Adi Ashok (22) before Lockrose swept in to go bang-bang and put himself on an unconverted hat-trick.
O'Donnell propped up the recovery throughout, finishing unbeaten on 76* as the Aces ran out of wickets in the 46th over. Duffy had meanwhile quickly followed up with his third wicket to net a tidy 3-30 in the conditions, while a runout brought the first innings to a close soon after.
So, the Volts needed their 188 runs at 3.76 per over on the big ground after lunch. Left-armer Ben Lister was on target straight away - his exocet in-swinger getting the luckless Rutherford caught behind for no score off the second ball of the chase.
No problem, said the Volts top order as young powerhouse Llew Johnson (below, PHOTOSPORT) and Dale Phillips began work on a solid second-wicket stand that put their side in cruise control.
Picking off the boundaries and supplementing with good running, they were soon steam-rolling away at a run-a-ball clip, making sure to stay ahead of the DLS par score in case of further rain.
Dominating the steady stand, Johnson galloped past his previous Ford Trophy best of 27 and, in his fourth match, notched his maiden List A and Ford Trophy half ton at a run-a-ball clip.
By drinks, the Volts had needed their last 102 runs at just 3.09, with an ocean of time to get them. Phillips had been more than chipping in, finding the rope and then some with his powerful pull strokes. The pair put the Volts' 100 on the board, and with it their century stand, in the 20th over.
He was by now catching up quick, and reached his own half ton off 62 balls. The Aces were watching the match simply melt away in front of them.
Johnson had a maiden century in sight, but came to grief on 81 (off just 80 balls, including eight boundaries and three sixes) when Will Somerville got him to shovel one to the safe hands of Guptill.
The knock will have given the youngster plenty of confidence nevertheless, and in the meantime the Volts were now just 40-odd runs away from a good win.
Young gun spinner Ashok made a late double strike in the 30th over, trapping Phillips on 69 and then new Dean Foxcroft with an action replay. But it was a lost cause, the Volts needing their last 19 runs with a fat 19 overs to get them.
They wrapped up their crunch first victory of the season with almost 15 overs to spare, meaning all five sides - other than the Aces - now had a bonus point win to their name, all sitting together with five points on the table.
