Otago held Northern off to claim a nine run victory in their Twenty20 match at the Provincial A tournament in Lincoln.
Largely thanks to a crisp 57 from opener Ryan Duffy, Otago ended the first innings 156 for seven. It would prove to be enough as they restricted Northern to 147 for seven.
It was a frustrating run chase for Northern ,with six of the top seven making healthy starts at the crease, but failing to go on.
Tamati Clarke top-scored with a steady 38, but was unable to play anchor role right through, as Sam Wells had him caught in the sixteenth over.
Mini partnerships continued to be made, but Otago seemed to strike just when Northern looked to be getting on top.
Sam Blakely played his part for the southerners, picking up three scalps in his three overs for 25.
Earlier, opener Ryan Duffy had made his half-century off 34 balls to set up a great platform for his side.
Contributions from Mark Craig (29) and Sam Wells (18) somewhat capitalised on Duffy’s start, but late wickets restricted them to below the 170 they might have once hoped for.
In the end though it proved enough to give them the points, helping them draw level with Northern in third overall. A win tomorrow may get them a podium finish.
