Black Caps kit out beaming juniors
Black Caps put through tough net session
Cricket can be a tough game to learn when you’re young, and even tougher when an arsonist burns all your gear to a crisp.
So the juniors from Eastern Suburbs Cricket Club were understandably beaming on Thursday when their Black Cap heroes kitted them out with $5000 worth of bats, balls, pads, wickets, gloves and helmets to help replace what they lost in the Kiwi Self Storage fire last year.
The blaze that ripped through the Wellington storage centre in April destroyed almost $10 million worth of people’s possessions, including $30,000 of gear and uniforms belonging to the 30 teams that make up Eastern Suburbs’ junior grades.
To make matters worse, the gear was not insured. Without it, the current summer of cricket was in serious jeopardy for 320 primary school students.
But after a major fundraising effort that included financial help from three local trusts and ANZ Bank, which donated the $5000 of new gear, the club was able to get back on its feet.
As an added bonus, the junior players got to receive some of their new gear from Black Caps Ross Taylor, Martin Guptill, Kane Williamson, Grant Elliott and Luke Ronchi.
Meeting Williamson and having a selfie with him was an extra-special treat for 7-year-old Aston Burwell-Garrett, who was still buzzing about seeing his favourite player ‘‘smash a big six’’ to beat Australia in the Cricket World Cup game in Auckland a couple of weeks ago.
Having his gear destroyed by fire was a sad moment, Aston said. But he was happy the club had replaced it, so he could get back out on the field and hopefully win a trophy.
Williamson said it was fantastic to see the young cricketers bounce back after the horror of losing all their gear in the arson attack.
‘‘It’s great when you get some new gear. It always smells nice and new, and I’m sure they’ll really enjoy it and get a lot out of it.’’
The club also raised $10,000 from a quiz night attended by parents.
A brutal net session in the Wellington chill and some gentle barbs from a fast bowling giant left the Black Caps in no doubt about the gravity of Saturday’s occasion.
The countdown to the Cricket World Cup quarterfinal against West Indies neared the 24-hour mark as some of the home side nursed bumps and bruises, and the unfancied visitors continued to chip away with the verbals. This time it was West Indies bowling coach Curtly Ambrose marking out his run, alongside the great Richard Hadlee, who also reminded his compatriots that four years’ preparation could go awry in seven short hours if they weren’t switched on.
Said Ambrose: ‘‘They are the favourites to beat us and one of the favourites to win the World Cup. We are not. Obviously that extra pressure could take a toll if they are not strong enough mentally. Nothing to do with cricketing skills,’’ he said.
New Zealand didn’t need reminding, but just in case it was heartening to see what went on in 11degC morning temperatures at the Basin Reserve nets.
The perpetrators were an unlikely duo, batting coach Craig McMillan and strength and conditioning coach Chris Donaldson, holder of the New Zealand 200m record. He still demonstrated a need for speed, with artificial assistance.
Each wielding a ‘‘flicker’’, the plastic implement resembling a soup ladle that can fire the cricket ball down at Adam Milne pace, it was absorbing and edgy viewing.
Veteran allrounder Grant Elliott, who turns 36 on Saturday, bore the brunt. McMillan wore a cap, beanie and a face like thunder and showed no mercy, splitting the inside edge of Elliott’s bat, bouncing him at will then clocking him a painful blow above the right elbow. Elliott yelled in pain and that was stumps as he stalked out of the net for more indoor work with coach Mike Hesson.
Clearly the impending threat of slippery West Indies pace duo Jason Holder and Jerome Taylor, and the potential date with Dale Steyn and Morne Morkel in Auckland on Tuesday, saw things ramp up a notch.
‘‘Every training two days before, the guys try to get as much out of it as they can. It’s about getting ready and Friday is just a top up,’’ Elliott said. ‘‘Macca and Chris Donaldson do run in and try and really test you. It’s always a good challenge to get in there. You’re going to take a couple of knocks, nothing too serious.’’
Milne, cleared to play on Saturday after recovering from a shoulder injury, also copped some attention with bat in hand. He took a blow to the fingers, and one to the boot from Donaldson, showing that even a frontline fast bowler wasn’t excused. It was intense.
Captain Brendon McCullum and Ross Taylor were better to watch. A fearless McCullum went ballistic near the end of his session against the dual ladles, unfurling some vicious pull shots, while Taylor zinged nearly everything off the middle. The standard defence of ‘‘he’ll come good in the knockout rounds’’ continued with Tay- lor, who scratched to his first tournament half-century against Bangladesh. A one-day international average of 101.66 from eight innings at Westpac Stadium suggests he feels at home.
After lunch it was the eternal question: ‘‘Where’s Chris Gayle’’. Answer: ‘‘Um, don’t know’’.
The star West Indies batsman missed a second successive training as he battles a chronic back injury that required an injection on Wednesday. Team-mate Darren Sammy earlier insisted that Gayle would play, but there was a curious no response from Ambrose when Hadlee posed the same question.
It would be a huge surprise if Gayle didn’t front for the sudden death match, but what kind of state he’s in physically and mentally is another matter.
Ambrose likes his new ball pair of Holder and Taylor, the former with steep bounce and the latter with swing. If they can remove McCullum and expose the middle order, and deny Tim Southee and Trent Boult early wickets, then it’s game on. Nothing that happened in pool play matters now, Ambrose reminded us.
"If we play to our full potential and they play to their full potential, we have a chance of beating them. I’m confident.’’