2023/24
ROUND EIGHT
CENTRAL STAGS defeated OTAGO VOLTS by an innings and 40 runs
McLean Park, Napier
24-27 March 2024
POINTS IN THIS ROUND:
Wellington Firebirds: 8
Northern Districts: 7
Central Stags: 20
Otago Volts: 5
Canterbury: 17
Auckland Aces: 5
2023/24 FINAL POINTS TABLE
SELECTED MILESTONES
Greg Hay: Final appearance for Central Stags
Greg Hay: 7,000 first-class runs for Central Stags
Greg Hay: 18th first-class century (all for Central Stags)
Greg Hay: second highest score by any NZ batsman in his final first-class match (179, record is 180)
Dale Phillips: sixth first-class century
Will Clark: first-class career best bowling (3/54) and batting (66)
Tom Bruce: 5,000 first-class runs for Central Stags
Blair Tickner: first-class career best batting (46 not out)
Dane Cleaver: Most first-class dismissals in a Central Stags season (41)
Travis Muller: first-class career best batting (71)
Liam Dudding: first-class career best bowling (5/65)
Liam Dudding: second first-class bag
SNAPSHOT:
One of the Central Stags' greatest Plunket Shield batters and captains bowed out with a special innings, and a 20-pointer innings victory, as the Otago Volts ran into a team determined to grind them into the dirt.
Never one for distractions, Greg Hay had announced his impending retirement via a CD statement during his final innings, but it was no news, nor secret in the dressing room where the team had been gearing up to farewell their beloved red-ball captain in one last big match.
All images: MBUTCHER
But even his teammates couldn't quite believe how well that played out, while for the Otago Volts it was a dour ending not only to the summer, but to the tenure of their Head Coach, Dion Ebrahim.
DAY ONE
Having lost all four tosses in the four rounds before Christmas, Stags captain Greg Hay was on a roll now that the back four matches were here.
He won his fourth toss on the bounce when he met Dean Foxcroft, for the Otago Volts, out in the middle on a fine Napier morning.
The Stags were fresh off a shock loss to the Aces in the previous match here, with Jordan Sussex's six-wicket figures still ringing on the electronic scoreboard to remind them when they arrived.
But for one more result, the Stags would have been right in the frame to defend their national first-class title - that was now out of their reach.
Hay put the Volts into bat, with four seamers and two spinners but no Doug Bracewell, the fellow veteran's knee injured again.
That saw Liam Dudding step up again to open the bowling with Blair Tickner, and the duo would soon each be in the wickets column.
Young Jacob Cumming was caught behind off Dudding in the 10th over. Four balls later, Tickner had the other opener Thorne Parkes on his way, digging it in for Cleaver to get his second catch at 26/2.
Dudding got some delicious in-swing to arc into new man Foxcroft's stumps for an even bigger breakthrough, at 29/3, at the start of the next over.
Less than an hour in, and already the Volts sorely needed a partnership.
They got it, courtesy of Jamal Todd and Dale Phillips - the latter fresh off a knock of 127 in Otago's previous match, in Wellington.
The 25-year-old looked composed as he started work on another hundred in this match, taking his team through to 101/3 by lunch, and ultimately putting on 76 with Todd for the fourth wicket.
Stylish Todd fell during Josh Clarkson's first over after lunch, at 105/4.
By tea, Phillips was still there, with just seven runs needed now to reach a century in consecutive matches.
But he's lost a further two partners: Will Clark deceiving Luke Georgeson for a valuable cheap wicket, and Max Chu run out on 31 by the dangerous arm of Will Young at square leg - Young rocketing the ball straight to the keeper Dane Cleaver, ready to pounce as Chu went sprawling at 200/6.
Cleaver was all over the innings. He would end up with five catches, as well as finishing off that runout.
In the previous match, the keeper-batter and occasional BLACKCAP had broken the Stags' record for all-time first-class dismissals. Now he was on course to break the team's record for most wicketkeeping dismissals in a first-class season as well.
After tea, Phillips continued to enjoy the Hawke's Bay sunshine as he reached his sixth first-class century, off 157 balls, after four hours.
Phillips reaches his ton | MBUTCHER
Little did anyone know, then, that this effort would be dwarfed over the coming days - or that Phillips would take no further part in the match.
A concussion developed as he batted, and he was subbed out of the game on the second morning.
But all that lay ahead. For now, the sun shone, his boundaries flowed. Phillips reached 130* by the time the new ball was taken, although the Volts now with just two wickets remaining, after the young allrounder Clark had winkled out a couple more wickets.
Andrew Hazeldine (34 off 27 balls) got going in an aggressive ninth-wicket stand, the pair frustrating the Stags as they quickly slapped on 63 runs for the penultimate wicket.
Outgoing coach Dion Ebrahim was a sub fielder for his team | MBUTCHER
It ended when, after five boundaries and a six, Hazeldine pushed his luck once too oftem against Dudding, slamming a catching opportunity high and deep out to the uncapped Matt Rowe - the NZ U19 star making his first appearance in a Central Stags squad, and on the field as the sub fielder.
Rowe wrapped his long fingers around a good catch as his teammates ran, in unison, to the boundary to celebrate his first appearance on a Plunket Shield scorecard.
The Volts had breezed past the 300-mark by now, but it would be all over in a hurry - Phillips nicking behind off Tickner next over, the last man to go, at 309.
He finished on 144, off 210 balls while the Stags took all four bowling bonuses - which they needed to do if they were to stay on course to finish ahead of Canterbury in the rankings, such things mattering as it determines who plays who the following season.
The Volts took three batting points and by stumps they had their first wicket as well, Curtis Heaphy having fallen to a flamboyant, diving Chu catch off Jacob Duffy for no score.
That brought Hay to the middle at 1/1, joining Young to take the hosts through to 12/1 by stumps.
Hay would resume on three not out, and he was embarking on both the final, and one of the most impressive, batting feats of his career.
DAY TWO
No fewer than six times, the Central Stags and a sprinkling of spectators clapped Greg Hay on and off the field, as the retiring captain batted all day and crafted one heck of a farewell innings.
The 39-year-old had begun the day on three not out and, by the end of it, had his 18th first-class century.
Only Mathew Sinclair (the only other player to have played more than 100 first-class games for the team) had scored more tons for the team; and of more pressing importance to Hay, it meant a 52-run first innings lead, so far, over the Otago Volts.
And, at 361/5, he was still in.
Operating at first drop this season instead of his usual opening position - a move that signalled the team preparation for a changing of the guard, Hay was on 137 not out by the end of the day.
BLACKCAP Will Young had earlier provided him with the security of a partnership, accompanying him through the entire first session, as the Volts struggled to create opportunities with the ball.
Will Young | MBUTCHER
Young glided to 90 off just 113 balls, looking for all money as if a century of his own would be de rigeur.
But suddenly Travis Muller jagged one back at him. Young was surprised - having fended it off and set off for the run - to look up and see he had been given out LBW on 90. The second-wicket stand thus came to an halt at 153.
There was not much respite for the Volts, however: Brad Schmulian trotted out to join Hay for a century stand for the next wicket as well.
Brad Schmulian (left) celebrates his 50 with and Greg Hay | MBUTCHER
Destined to finish in the bottom two teams and extend the longest Plunket Shield title drought in the land, not much had been going the Volts' way in these closing days of the season.
After his second century in as many matches on the opening day, they had lost Phillips ahead of Day Two, with concussion. He was officially replaced by pace allrounder Jake Gibson, who would play as a batter only.
Schmulian and Hay put on 110 for the third wicket, busy Schmulian racing to a fifty off just 55 balls, with seven boundaries and a six.
He did not survive the session, however, after a rare calling mix-up with his skipper - Hay setting off for a tight single at 264/2, while Schmulian watched hesistantly. Hay was almost at the other end by the time Schmulian set off, and when he neared the other end, it was just in time to see Chu deftly gather the throw from Thorn Parkes and make a blind reverse shy at the sticks, which was successful.
Schmulian, on 58, could do nothing but walk off, kicking himself, while his bemused skipper looked on.
Tom Bruce took over and helped the Stags reach 273/3 by tea. Hay's emotion-tinged century had been raised during the session off 236 balls, dotted with 11 boundaries, after five hours of work.
Bruce was quick into his work, rustling up 32 at almost run-a-ball pace , but he fell to spinner Ben Lockrose before the new ball, the reverse sweep miscue gobbled up by Gibson at 312/4 in the 80th over.
The Stags were eyeing up the full set of eight bonus points now, with plenty of time to get them if they kept their cool.
They achieved that mission before stumps. But the Volts also had some reward in the final session, thanks to Georgeson removing Dane Cleaver cheaply.
Hay, immutable, and Clarkson headed back into the sheds at the end of another picture-perfect Hawke's Bay day with an interim lead of 52, five wickets still in hand.
DAY THREE
After resuming at 361/5, Clarkson was an early loss, Muller picking up his second LBW.
There was still a chance for the Volts to fight their way back into this game, now - but Hay was having none of that. He batted, and batted, and batted some more.
The doughty skipper had put on a 153-stand with Young and 110-run stand with Schmulian the previous day, and 46 with Bruce.
Cleaver and Clarkson were bit players on this occasion, but Will Clark (above) helped Hay to a third century stand as they added 101 for the seventh wicket.
As someone who hardly ever removed his helmet (not even to celebrate a century), it must have been getting pretty soppy under that lid, at times.
Hay kept going until he finally gave in to a lavish reverse sweep that ended his marathon, 434-ball knock on 176.
Like a royal figure, he knelt at the crease for a moment's self-castigation, before leaving it for the last time as a batsman.
The Stags were now 484/8, but the Volts still had work in front of them to stem the damage.
Blair Tickner came in and clocked up a career-best unbeaten 46* in the tail - the elusive maiden 50 to be saved for another day - in a 95-run stand with Ajaz Patel.
Hay had no intention of declaring: he wanted an innings win. His side came to the party for a formidable collective total of 580 in 169.3 overs.
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By the end of the day, the Volts were already three down at 78/3, after 31 overs of their now all-important second dig, with both Muller and Jamal Todd yet to get off the mark.
DAY FOUR
The last afternoon of the season saw Liam Dudding haul in his second first-class bag, as the Stags wrapped up their perfect finish - the lean paceman taking career-best figures of 5/35, among eight for the match, on his home turf.
The Stags would simply not let the Volts get a look in, in this match.
Still, nightwatchman Muller fought valiantly for his career best 71 in a good all-round fight in this game, staying at his post for almost four and a half hours.
It frustrated Central a tad, this unexpected guise as an anchorman. But Dudding, Patel, Tickner and co. kept chipping away, until the Volts were all but shut out, at 170/6.
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Sub Jake Gibson came in to join Muller to try to hang around long enough to fend off the inevitable, and produced the last partnership of note (55), after Max Chu had added 66 in support of Muller (who did most of the work himself) for the previous wicket.
Tickner had blasted through Chu's woodwork, and now Dudding was homing in on the tail with his subtle movement.
After Dudding's bag, Tickner knocked over Jacob Duffy's stumps to seal the special victory by an innings and 40 runs.
It was a special match on an emotional day, but the last hurrah ended a frustrating overall season for the Stags who handed on the trophy to the Firebirds, becoming the nearly-men of 2023/24.
Had the Stags been successful in either of their previous nailbiters, Hay's Stags would have been celebrating back-to-back championship wins - and the captain would have become the first Stags skipper to lift the Plunket Shield three times.
But that's cricket.
A memorable last win in Napier was the consolation prize, an innings victory that lifted them above Canterbury on the table and into the top three placings, in the last summer of cap 242.
To one last standing ovation and guard of honour, Hay bowed out with 643 runs from 13 innings in his final season, at an excellent average of 49.46.
It also placed the oldest cricketer in the championship in the top three first-class runscorers for the summer nationwide, after Dale Phillips (Otago Volts) and Gareth Severin (Wellington Firebirds).
It was the end of an era.