The bowlers really came out on top in this match and no batsmen ever really looked to be comfortably in, however long they spent at the crease, and many didn’t spend very long there at all.  So Billy Searle for North and Ben Holmes for the South were the penetrating bowlers who opened up the hearts of the two batting sides with some very effective pace bowling. 

Once both had done their initial task the result came down to a number of factors; could one or two batsmen hang on, could other bowlers apply sufficient ongoing pressure and could a fielding side apply the most pressure?  In each of these aspects South just came out on top, and thus cumulatively won by a comfortable margin in the end. 

Higgs (42) and Colgate (47) jointly scored more than the North team, but only after North had the South in deep trouble at 72 for 7 and 99 for 9.  But Colgate led an unbroken and doughty 10th wicket partnership of 67 with Beasant (12) to give South the psychological edge.  South were helped by 36 extras which is far too many in these early season low scoring matches.

Following a fast opening spell by Holmes, South further applied the pressure by fielding with a real energy and purpose which left the North with no room for error and very little chance to enjoy some easy runs to keep the scorecard ticking over.  The pressure told and regular wickets fell, but North couldn’t find their own version of the Colgate/Beasant partnership to save them.