Plunket Shield takes a break over the festive period and after offering the five best Ford Trophy players from the first stanza, now it's time to dive into the best longform cricketers from the first four games.

Canterbury had a big win vs Auckland in a top of the table battle, Otago and Central Districts had a draw and Northern Districts were too slick for Wellington who went through the first stanza of Plunket Shield with four losses.

All the home teams had a win in Plunket Shield's round three with Auckland winning in the big city, Central Districts winning in Napier and Northern Districts winning in Hamilton.

Central Districts were the only winners in the second round of Plunket Shield with a win against Wellington who are at the bottom of the ladder. Auckland’s draw with Northern Districts puts them at the top of the table while Otago and Canterbury’s draw puts them in the top half of the ladder.

Auckland, Canterbury and Otago had wins to start the Plunket Shield with Auckland and Otago snaring away wins against Central Districts and Wellington.