Sprinklers butt in

NATASHA MARTIN/Fairfax NZ

CAMEO: Celtic's Glenn Matthews is tries to work a delivery to the on-side, but gets caught at square-leg from the bowling of Timaru captain Hayden Butler for 25 during Celtic's 60-run win in the South Canterbury senior twenty20 cricket final at Aorangi Oval last night.

Relevant offers

Timaru captain Hayden Butler said "it is a shame we have to talk about sprinklers" after his team's 60-run loss to Celtic in the senior Twenty20 cricket final at Aorangi Oval last night.

Celtic's 189 for five batting first was overshadowed by two incidents during the innings break which changed the spirit in which the match was played.

Timaru were penalised one over in their run-chase after the umpires deemed they had started their final bowling over outside the 75-minute time allocation.

While Butler and the rest of his players were protesting the decision, at 7pm, the automated sprinkler system surrounding the pitch block started without warning, with water being sprayed onto the playing pitch and surrounding block.

While the sprinklers were on for only a matter of seconds, Timaru players said the pitch had become damp and its condition had been altered during a match, which is considered a major indiscretion in cricket.

South Canterbury Cricket officials said human error from the groundsman was the cause after the pitch had been watered at 7pm mid-week following other matches.

The match was delayed by 25 minutes to give the pitch time to dry.

Some Timaru players were keen to play on, while others felt they had been disadvantaged so much, the match should be abandoned and replayed at a later date.

But the umpires eventually led the players out to resume the game.

Butler said Celtic "were worthy champions and I take nothing away from them", but he said the situation reflected poorly on South Canterbury Cricket.

"If we had [refused to play] then cricket would have lost.

"After losing an over and then having that happen, it shows there is not a very professional setup – here we are finishing at 9pm.

"It is a shame we have to talk about sprinklers after a final, this is meant to be a showcase for cricket."

South Canterbury Cricket chief executive David Fisher said the matter was "unfortunate" and could be attributed to human error.

"I inspected the pitch at the innings break and there was minimal water on the playing surface itself.

"You could choose to focus on that incident or you could choose to look at the match as a whole and realise it did not affect the outcome of the game."

Celtic captain Craig Davies said he had no issue with the pitch from a playing perspective in the second innings.

"You're halfway through a game. It's the hardest track in the South Island. You can blame the water [for the loss]."

Timaru were bowled out for 129 in 15.2 overs.

- © Fairfax NZ News

Newest First

Oldest First