Northerns not charmed by Boland replay

Although this will be denied by the UCB, the decision to replay the game after last weekend's Paarl pitch fiasco has not met with universal approval at SuperSport Centurion, the venue for the rescheduled four day game, the cost of which will now be paid for by Boland.

At this stage it is not known what penalties Boland have incurred for last weekend's abandoned match. Both sides had two points each. Under the playing conditions, however, Boland could be fined R10,000, but the UCB are expected to scrap what points either side earned.

Richard Harrison, the Northerns president, is, however, of the opinion that ``although not ideal, it is the second best option of what is an unscheduled match to accommodate a set of bad circumstances''.

The dates were accepted after consultation with the Northerns coach, Peter Kirsten, and the team. It appears, however, that next weekend's dates were the best on offer as the alternatives were unsatisfactory and clash with test matches as well.

One set of dates had Northerns playing Boland in a Standard Bank League match on December 4, a Friday, with the A Section match starting the next day. It would have also meant a day's break between playing that four-day game and the one against Western Province at Newlands and Boland's against Natal.

Other dates were in the week between Christmas and the New Year when the NCU are closed for the festive break.

``We have to look at this positively,'' Harrison said. ``We wanted full point from the game as well as all the bowling points, but the UCB turned that down when we had a meeting not too long after the game was abandoned. ``The side has to back itself to win the game and we are looking at collecting 18 points from it.''