North Otago won its U-Bix Cup match against Ashburton at Centennial Park, Oamaru this weekend.
The local side played extremely well on both days and never looked like losing.
Ashburton won the toss and elected to bat on a wicket that looked full of runs.
However, the North Otago bowlers performed brilliantly and shortly before lunch had Ashburton on the defensive. They were supported by some good work in the field which saw some fine catches and tidy ground fielding.
Opener Struan Scott and Tony Clarke were the only batsmen to put up any resistance and Ashburton were all out shortly after lunch for 160.
North Otago lost an early wicket then batted confidently for the rest of their innings.
David Reid, Nigel Cartwright and Kel Mansfield were in particularly good form playing shots to all parts of the ground.
Cartwright hit five sixes in his innings including one huge hit over mid-wicket which landed well back on the roof of the grandstand. North Otago were dismissed just before the close of play with a handy lead of 56 runs and points for a first innings win.
Ashburton started their second innings hesitantly but the North Otago fieldsmen let them off the hook to a certain extent when they dropped a number of straight forward catches.
Ashburton took advantage of these errors and managed to score 232 for seven declared and presenting the home side with a target of 177 for the outright win.
Ashley Ross and captain Dennis Mably batted well for Ashburton while David Cartwright finished with excellent figures of five for 43.
North Otago started slowly and after 112 minutes of play were lost due to rain, it looked as though they would run out of time.
However, Nigel Cartwright made light work of the run chase scoring an attractive 72 not out in just 73 balls and North Otago won with five overs remaining.
Cartwright was well supported by Mansfield and Mike Willets who scored 35 and 36 respectively.
Mike Wilson also looked good until he seemed to loose concentration and hit an easy catch to mid-wicket.
North Otago's task was made easier by the rain which made both the ball and ground slippery resulting in a number of dropped catches and mis-fields.
Despite this North Otago thoroughly deserved their outright win which puts them in a good position on the points table in the U-Bix competition.
Short Scorecard(s)
Representative - U-Bix Cup - Zone Series
Ashburton County vs North Otago at Centennial Park Oval, Oamaru
Ashburton County 160 ( S. Scott 48, T. Clarke 35, G. Jenkins 15, C. Bell 12, P.D. Bleach 6-65, T. Patton 2-22 ) & 232-7dec ( A. Ross 64, D. Mably 46, C. Bell 25, A. Robertson 23, G. Jenkins 23, T. Clarke 13, D.A. Cartwright 5-43, P.D. Bleach 2-59 )
North Otago 216 ( N.D. Cartwright 47, D.W. Reid 45, K.J. Mansfield 36, G. Pitches 18, M. Willetts 15, M. Wilson 12, D.A. Cartwright 11, Mably 5-45, Stagg 2-68 ) & 179-5 ( N.D. Cartwright 72no, M. Willetts 36no, K.J. Mansfield 35, M. Wilson 23, Mably 3-85, Stagg 2-28 )
North Otago won by 5 wickets
Full scorecard for the match