It was a great moment for North Otago cricket, about 7.54pm yesterday, when number nine batsman Peter Crombie spooned the ball back over the head of the Ashburton wicketkeeper Geoff Wright to give North Otago an outright win over Ashburton County.
Only four balls remained to be bowled in the Cyclone Hawke Cup elimination match played at Centennial Park.
If the local side was to have a special hero it would be all rounder Peter Cook who, with innings of 65 not out and 58 not out and the bowling figures of 4 for 40 and 3 for 54, played a key part in the deserved success.
Hard hitting batsmen Lindsay Robertson hit 10 fours in the first innings to make 61 while Norm McKenzie in his first representative game of the season played a vital role in North Otago's second innings with a well compiled 53 featuring in a match winning 68 run fifth wicket partnership with Cook.
Shane Curle called in at short notice to take over behind the stumps did an admirable job taking a brilliant catch to dismiss Ashburton opening bat, Mark Price the Glamorganshire professional diving wide to his right.
Curle took two other catches in the innings and one excellent stumping off the bowling of Chris Taylor to send Geoff Stephenson on his way.
Peter Brown played a courageous innings in the second spell when after being felled by a delivery from Murray Holmes stayed at the crease and featured in some slick running between the wickets to add 43 for the opening partnership with Bruce McGregor, a combination which combines equally well in the winter season as five eights in Maheno the top senior team last season.
The Ashburton innings was marred to some extent by some undisciplined batting with a number of batsmen getting into the 20s and 30s but not progressing any further.
Whether it was the pressure tactics of the North Otago batsmen or merely poor concentration and application that cause it probably matters little but five catches put to ground and two midfield's which created boundaries made North Otago's chance of reaching the target a little easier.
Murray Holmes and Mark Price were the best of the Ashburton bowlers with left arm spinner Price taking 6 for 88 in the match and Holmes better known as the Mid Canterbury rugby fullback taking 3 for 76 in the first innings.
Ashburton won the toss on Saturday morning and elected to bat and although they lost Price with the total at 24, Bryan Moses and Dennis Mabley took the score along to 73 and both batsmen looked in excellent touch.
But then Cook struck.
Moses driving on the on side was brilliantly caught centimetres from the turf at mid on and then two balls later in the same over he clean bowled Peter Burton without scoring to have Ashburton 73 for 3.
The very next over saw Ashburton slump even further when Chris Taylor found the edge of Jeff Spicer's bat and Curle behind the stumps did the rest.
Sixteen runs later Denis Mabley, the Ashburton skipper who looked to be the danger man of the upper order became Graeme Pitches' first victim in representative cricket.
Steve Rennie and Geoff Stephenson combined to add a further 38 runs for the sixth wicket but then four further wickets fell for the addition of only 25 runs.
At 153 for 9 Ashburton looked to be gone but a resolute last wicket stand of 38 between Lindsay Stoddart and Geoff Wright gave the innings some substance.
Strike bowlers Peter Crombie and Ian Chapman took a wicket each while apart from Cook's bag of four Taylor took 2 for 60 and Pitches 2 for 35.
North Otago started its first innings ominously when off the second ball of the second over Peter Brown gave a catch to Price off Holme's bowling. Bruce McGregor went with the total at 32 but Bob Wilson and Lindsay Robertson added 64 for the third wicket before Wilson holed out to Wright off Price's bowling.
Robertson was eventually dismissed for 61 with the total at 129 but then Cook assumed control and with Taylor and an eager kindred spirit rattled on 62 before Taylor was out with the scores tied on 101. Curle and Cook added a further 19 runs before the declaration came shortly before noon on the second day.
Ashburton lost is first three wickets in aggregating only 35 runs but Mabley and Spicer added the neat 100 for the fourth wicket to swing the game back Ashburton's way.
In the lower order Stephenson (23), Holmes (15) and Wright (17 not out) carried the total through to 209 before the declaration came at tea leaving North Otago the task of scoring 191 to win in 95 minutes and 20 overs.
McGregor and Brown rattled on 43 before Brown was dismissed caught behind trying to cut.
Eight runs later North Otago lost two vital wickets. Lindsay Robertson was adjudged to be leg before in what appeared to be a marginal decision on the front foot well down the pitch and he was joined by McGregor who fell victim to also to the Wright - Stoddart combination.
Bob Wilson who because of a tendon injury batted through to 89 before he went for 13 just as the 20 overs were to begin with North Otago needing more than six runs per over to take the outright.
Some sensible batting from McKenzie and Cook gradually swung the game back North Otago's way with the local side requiring 34 runs for the outright with seven overs remaining.
McKenzie went in the 14th over leg before to Price. Taylor joined Cook who in the preceding over had waded into Peter Burton whose last over cost 14 runs.
Taylor was finally out for 2 with the total at 175, 16 runs short of the target.
Only four overs and one ball remained. Shane Curle joined Cook and added seven vital runs before he was run out backing up for a sharp single when he was sent back falling short of his ground.
Cook took a four off the 19th over to leave two runs required and then with four balls remaining to be bowled Crombie swung and lobbed the ball back over 'keepers head for the winning runs.
Short Scorecard(s)
Representative - Cyclone Hawke Cup - Zone Series
Ashburton County vs North Otago at Centennial Park Oval, Oamaru
Ashburton County 191 ( D. Mably 38, B. Moses 30, S. Rennie 24, G. Stephenson 21, G. Wright 21no, L. Stoddart 21, M. Price 14, P. Cook 4-40, G. Pitches 2-35, C. Taylor 2-60 ) & 209-8dec ( J. Spicer 56, D. Mably 45, G. Stephenson 23, B. Moses 19, G. Wright 17no, M. Holmes 15, P. Crombie 3-19, P. Cook 3-34 )
North Otago 210-5dec ( P. Cook 65no, L. Robertson 61, R.S. Wilson 37, C. Taylor 19, M. Price 3-29, M. Holmes 3-76 ) & 191-7 ( P. Cook 58no, N.W. McKenzie 53, P. Brown 26, B. McGregor 16, R.S. Wilson 13, M. Price 3-58, L. Stoddart 2-29 )
North Otago won by 2 wickets
Full scorecard for the match