Craig M Smith

Grant Billcliff marked his elevation to the North Otago captaincy with a commanding performance in the Hawke Cup cricket match against Central Otago at the weekend.

North Otago all but assured themselves of a cup challenge late next month by crushing Central by an innings and 137 runs in less than four sessions at Alexandra's Molyneux Park.

Billcliff top-scored with 59 as North Otago posted an imposing first innings total of 297 for eight before declaring.

He followed that up with four cheap wickets in Central Otago's paltry reply of 89, before unleashing fast bowlers Neil Rushton and David Sewell as the home team were asked to follow on.

Central slumped to 71 all out in their second innings, handing North Otago 12 points for the outright win. North Otago comfortably lead the southern zone and are perfectly placed to go on to challenge for the Hawke Cup in Hamilton.

Billcliff said the result was obviously pleasing but North Otago were still seeking improvement.

"The guys are feeling pretty confident, for sure. To wrap up the game as easily as we did was great," he said last night. "But we haven't really been tested yet this season, and we all know we've got to keep working hard. It's so important that we maintain our intensity and keep trying to perform."

Billcliff raised his half century off 87 balls in 83 minutes, stroking nine boundaries on a friendly batting pitch.

Opener Duncan Drew (49), Chris Cunningham (41) and Rushton (25) all chipped in with useful runs as North Otago declared for the fifth consecutive time this summer.

Left-arm paceman Sewell, back in North Otago whites after a lengthy absence, promptly removed both Central Otago openers before Billcliff (four for 22) and Craig Smith (two for 16) ripped into the middle order.

Central's second innings was shattered by both Rushton and Sewell, who bowled in tandem and removed the first eight batsmen for single figures. Only one Central batsman passed 20 during the weekend.

North Otago will have a session in the nets on Wednesday before breaking for Christmas and New Year. They can steal a Hawke Cup challenge by winning or drawing their final match against Southland in Invercargill on January 5 and 6.

Albion paceman Jason Jones has returned to the squad and may lead the attack against Southland in the likely absence of Sewell and Rushton, who are expected to be called up for Otago duties.

Short Scorecard(s)

Representative - Hawke Cup - Zone Series

North Otago vs Central Otago at Molyneux Park, Alexandra
North Otago 297 ( G.J. Billcliff 59, D.J. Drew 49, C.K. Cunningham 41, N.W. Rushton 33, C.A. Smith 25no, M. Wilson 18, S.A. Simpson 18, D.G. Sewell 12no, Conlan 3-88, Harvey 2-55 )
Central Otago 89 ( M. Adair 31, L. Breen 11, J. Conlan 11no, G.J. Billcliff 4-22, C.A. Smith 2-16, D.G. Sewell 2-30 ) & 71 ( J. Conlan 14, N.W. Rushton 5-27, D.G. Sewell 3-16 )
North Otago won by an innings and 137 runs
Full scorecard for the match

Player Pages:
Grant Billcliff | Chris Cunningham | Duncan Drew | Jason Jones | Neil Rushton | David Sewell | Craig M Smith |