Cricket: Effort proves wide of mark for Bay side

Nine batsmen in the single digits, including six ducks, and gifting 34 wides to the opposition in bowling.

It doesn't matter how strong a team looks on paper they will need a miracle to eke out a victory on the foundation of such damning statistics.

"Quite simply we have only ourselves to blame and during our debrief it was good to see that all the players admitted responsibility for the defeat," the coach of the Hawke's Bay senior women's representative team, Bob Morgan, said after they received a 92-run flogging in Palmerston North on Sunday in their first match of the 2012-13 summer.

"On paper we should have beaten Manawatu and went into the game favourites but as you would have seen many times teams that look good on paper get upset by the underdogs," Morgan said as the Bay side's run of losses continued at Manawaroa Park.

"Initially poor fielding, some poor field settings by some bowlers, along with an awful 34 wides being bowled saw us needing 188 to win when we should have only been chasing 100 to 120."

Morgan said the women were guilty of poor shot selections although two sensational catches from the Manawatu side, which included Central Districts Hinds Eimear Richardson (also an Irish international) and teenage seamer Hannah Rowe, saw them "comprehensively and quite rightly defeated".

"No excuses, we played badly and the result is a fair reflection of how we played," he said.

The Bay side have several schoolgirls who are preparing for exams but, ultimately, it's again another ill-prepared side as Hinds coach Mike Shrimpton heads into another domestic season late this month looking for quality players.

Opener Kelly Rangi top scored with 47 runs while fellow ex-CD batsman Aroha Northover added 12 runs at No4.

Although wicket-less, former White Fern bowler Abby Burrows was the pick of the bowlers with 0-17 from eight overs, including a maiden.

Left-armer Maneka Singh took 3-21 from 6.1 overs after returning from an injury lay-off since last playing in a warm-up match against England in Christchurch early this year.

Jess Bennett took 1-14 from 4 overs, Sarah Cowan 1-27 from 6 overs, Sonya Thompson 1-27 from 8 and Rosemary Mair 1-26 from 7.