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East Christchurch-Shirley achieved its first objective by heading High School Old Boys on the first innings when the final Canterbury club cricket championship round began on Saturday.

By finishing the day 10 runs ahead of Old Boys with seven wickets in hand, East-Shirley is at least assured of sharing the WestpacTrust Trophy with holder Riccarton.

While Riccarton, the bye team, was helpless to defend its prize, East-Shirley established a perfect platform to press on for the victory it needs next Saturday to become outright senior champion for the first time since 1943.

It emerged dominant from a strange day. Only 212 runs were scored off the bat in 390min.

East-Shirley was in difficulties for a time, but a profitable partnership between Marcel McKenzie and Craig Gibb saw it through. McKenzie reached his half-century with nine fours. Gibb also chose the right balls to hit. Their stand produced 68 invaluable runs.

Old Boys scored only 75 runs for four wickets in 150min before lunch against a determined attack, and it was not much better in the afternoon.

Admittedly, the pitch had occasional bounce and scoring was difficult. Old Boys, however, committed suicide with three run-outs.

Five-wicket bag for Anderson

The best batsman was 19-year-old Rob Miller, who was in for 158min and, very occasionally, hit some delightful shots. The left-arm spin bowler, Carl Anderson, returned remarkable figures of five for 22 off 20.5 overs.

None of the other games could affect the championship outcome, and no first-innings leads were achieved.

Lancaster Park-Woolston is poised to overtake Sydenham at Sydenham Park, Old Collegians should comfortably head St Albans at Elmwood Park, and Burnside-West needs a hefty last-wicket partnership to overtake Marist at Warren Park.

Kieran White, Sydenham's opening batsman, produced an individual highlight by batting through his team's innings.

White reached his century in 233min from 203 balls with nine fours.

But he only just made it; his last two team-mates had gone within four more balls.

In contrast to White's lone hand, Anthony Timpson and Jim Hindson shared a century stand for Park-Woolston's first wicket. Timpson, completing a fine all-round display, scored his 50 from 71 balls, and Hindson reached his from 100 balls before a recession set in near stumps.

Old Collegians enjoyed their highest opening partnership of the season and, although the innings then collapsed, medium-pacers David Cartwright and Warren Wisneski broke the St Albans batting in the final session.

James Ussher and Danny McCarthy together scored 93 for the first wicket and Mark Rountree joined Ussher to put on 62 in 61min. Old Collegians then lost seven wickets for 31 runs against the testing St Albans attack led by left-arm medium-pacer Matthew Gower.

On a lively pitch with an inconsistent bounce which made wicketkeeping difficult, Cartwright and Wisneski bowled with fine control to put Old Collegians in a strong position.

Ogilvie gives top all-round display

It was a day of useful starts but no big scores at Warren Park. Marist's Darron Reekers did best, his 49 runs coming from as many balls. With Paul McCarthy, Reekers added 74 runs for the fourth wicket.

Their efforts were overshadowed by Burnside-West medium-pacer Campbell Ogilvie, whose seven-wicket bag was his best in senior cricket. His last 20.5 overs were consecutive, he gained immediate revenge after Reekers hit him for six, and there was a flurry of wickets at the end.

Ogilvie also topped Burnside-West's batting with 38, after the five players above him were dismissed between 14 and 26. The destroyer was leg-spinner Ashley Ross, who ignored some brief rough treatment by Ogilvie to include him in a five-wicket bag.

Short scoreboard

High School Old Boys 117 (Carl Anderson 5-22) met East-Shirley 127-3 (Marcel McKenzie 58no)

Old Collegians 208-9 dec met St Albans 89-7

Sydenham 199 (Kieran White 101no) met Lancaster Park-Woolston 144-4 (Anthony Timpson 52, Jim Hindson 51)

Marist 199 (Campbell Ogilvie 7-61) met Burnside-West-University 165-9 (Ashley Ross 5-36)

Riccarton bye.