2024/25
ROUND TWO
NORTHERN DISTRICTS defeated AUCKLAND ACES by 179 runs
Seddon Park, Hamilton
19-22 November 2024
POINTS IN THIS ROUND:
Northern Districts: 18
Auckland Aces: 4
Central Stags: 2
Canterbury: 20 (maximum points achieved)
Otago Volts: 7
Wellington Firebirds: 7
SELECTED MILESTONES
Siddhesh (Sid) Dixit: Auckland Aces and first-class debut
Scott Kuggeleijn: 13th first-class five-wicket bag (11th for ND)
Scott Kuggeleijn: 250 first-class wickets for ND
Jeet Raval: 21st first-class century (fifth for ND)
SNAPSHOT:
With all the prematch fanfare focussed on Kane Williamson's first Plunket Shield appearance since 2019 (joining Tim Southee and Neil Wagner in already strong squad), Northern Districts stayed unbeaten, and stretched their Plunket Shield national lead as captain Jeet Raval led from the front again.
This time ND was at home, despatching the Auckland Aces, but it was looking like business as usual as they won the key battles and moments with bat and ball in Hamilton in the ongoing quest to break their long first-class title drought.
DAY ONE
Kane Williamson was called into the ND squad for the first time in a few seasons as he looked to prepare for the upcoming BLACKCAPS Test Series against England.
All images: PHOTOSPORT
On his way back from a groin injury that had kept him from participating in the BLACKCAPS' recent history-making 3-Test sweep of India in India, naturally it was the talking point of the competition as play got underway in the second round.
Auckland captain Sean Solia sent in the hosts, and by the end of the day Wlliamson had chalked up yet another first-class half century.
He got started before lunch, ND having been 100/3 at the first interval - after early success for seamers Solia, Jordan Sussex and Danu Ferns.
So, Williamson had a great opportunity to bat for time in the middle, but it wasn't perhaps as much as he would have preferred.
He marched on to top-score in Northern's first innings with a calm 60, gathered across three hours in all.
But the hosts were also all out in 85.5 overs, on a fairly tepid first day, picking up just two of the four batting points for their tally of 268.
Late-blooming pace weapon Sussex (3/53) got the big wicket, trapping the BLACKCAPS star to make the scoreboard read 182/5.
He and Ferns (3/62) did most of the damage as the Auckland Aces got all four bowling points, and then had a wee turn with the bat themselves before stumps, 24 without loss at the end of the day's play.
DAY TWO
Scott Kuggeleijn's 13th first-five-wicket bag (11th for ND, having also taken one each for the Wellington Firebirds and New Zealand A) was the highlight of a weather-shortened day that saw the Auckland Aces bowled out for just 150 in 53.4 overs.
In an attack alongside Wagner and Southee, the experienced paceman relished the task of clinching first-innings honours, his destructive 5/43 making sure that ND held a handy 118-run lead on the first dig.
Northern then added a further 61 runs for no loss in their second innings, before play was called for the day.
ND had grabbed the full four bowling points from their first innings, while the Aces missed out on any batting bonuses.
Allrounder Simon Keene had top-scored down the order for the visitors with 60, on a day where the changeable weather had proved a nuisance.
DAY THREE
The match was moving along at speed, the fourth innings at Hamilton's Seddon Park getting started by the end of the penultimate day.
On what was another stop-start, rain-smattered affair, ND's highlight was an unbeaten century from their captain, Jeet Raval.
Raval is getting ever closer to the magic milestone of 10,000 first-class career runs, and shrugged off the weather distractions to top-score with an unbeaten 120* off just 144 deliveries, in his side's second innings.
Fellow opener Henry Cooper anchored him with a patient half century (52) in their opening partnership of 117.
Raval's century was his 21st in first-class cricket (all teams), and his fifth for Northern, and it put himself in a position to declare at 252/5, after just 56.5 overs.
Samrath Singh bowls for the Aces
By stumps, which was after 7PM on the late-finishing day, the Aces had already lost two wickets, at the hands of allrounder Brett Hampton.
The visitors would be poised to resume at 53/2, captain Sean Solia reaching 23* and nightwatcher Jordan Sussex yet to get off the mark ovenight, requiring a further 318 runs to get to 371 on the last day, while ND needed eight wickets.
Game on.
DAY FOUR
Sussex did a good job of hanging about as a nightwatcher, ultimately batting for almost an hour and a half for his 18 runs.
He'd lost overnight cobber Solia (31) earlyish in the morning, both of them ultimately falling to Kuggeleijn who went on to take nine for the match.
Again, the Auckland Aces collectively struggled against the experience and calibre of the ND attack, Kuggeleijn in the thick of it again with 4/44 off his 16 overs and Wagner his useful ally with 3/54.
Meanwhile, Southee and allrounder Brett Hampton kept the squeeze on, no top or middle order partnerships allowed to flourish.
By the time the handy allrounders Bevon-John Jacobs and Simon Keene (below) were managing to build something of a stand for the seventh wicket, the Aces were in a tight corner.
Southee swooped in for Keene, and by lunch the writing was on the wall at 156/7.
The end came quickly in the middle session, Wagner putting the finishing touches on a good victory with the final wicket, the Aces dismissed for 191 in just 56 overs.
The only sobering note for unbeaten Northern was that they had now learned they had been deducted one point as a penalty for a slow over rate in their previous win, in Round One.
