Wellington cricket umpire Evan Watkin came across some of the old virtues of cricket during his recent exchange trip to South Africa, and enjoyed the experience.

Watkin was this year's New Zealand umpire to travel to South Africa on the annual umpire exchange and stood in first class games at Centurion and at Newlands in Cape Town.

"The players there certainly give umpires and each other great respect. Players applauded the half centuries and centuries of opposing players and it is a sad fact of New Zealand cricket that that sort of thing never happens.

"They play really tough, but good, cricket and very rarely question umpiring decisions.

"New Zealand players have been going overboard by questioning things too much," he said.

The trip was an outstanding opportunity for Watkin who had not travelled overseas before.

Flying into Johannesburg at the start of his trip he stood at Centurion Park near Pretoria with Brian Jerling, who was the exchange umpire in New Zealand earlier in the summer.

Jerling stood in the CricInfo Women's World Cup and in a Shell Cup and Shell Trophy game in Christchurch.

Watkin's game was between Northerns and Easterns, both teams from the Transvaal region. The country's top players had just left for the West Indies but Rudi Steyn was wicket-keeper for one of the sides.

Steyn was in Wellington during the 1994/95 South African tour and recalled the tied one-day match in Wellington in which the umpires added four runs onto Mark Douglas' score which meant he scored a century after the innings ended.

"Centurion was a lovely venue. It had a grandstand at one end of the ground but an even bigger bank than the Basin Reserve," he said.

However, a slow over rate on one day of the game denied Watkin the chance to watch Super 12 rugby being played at Ellis Park.

From Centurion, Watkin travelled to Cape Town where the country's top side Western Province was to play Free State at Newlands.

"Western Province beat them outright but the game had a bizarre ending.

"The last Free State batsman was a player Nico Pretorius who had injured his hamstring and he came out with a runner. He played a shot and set off down the wicket for a run. He got halfway and someone called out to him to go back. However, he carried out and made his ground at the other end.

"But the Western Province wicket-keeper called for the ball and appealed for the run out and Pretorius was given out. He looked at me and said 'Am I really out?' and I told him he was.

"The injured player cannot leave his ground and he did. Ian Howell, who came here as South Africa's exchange umpire last year, had to give him out," Watkin said.

Newlands had been a wonderful ground to umpire on and Watkin will have long memories of it.

"To stand at square leg and look at Table Mountain was an awesome backdrop," he said.

The whole experience had been enlightening.

Not only was he operating in a foreign environment but he was dealing with different players at different venues. He felt the standard of play was slightly better than the Shell Trophy, possibly attributable to the fact there were 11 first class teams compared with New Zealand's six.

"I would like to see our teams playing on their pitches. The bowlers had to work hard, I think some of our players get it just a little too easy," he said.

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