Eden Park, the ugh, not so garden of Eden. Anyway, it hosted a big weekend of whack whack cricket which unfortunately was rained on. A few games were abandoned but there was still plenty of cricket played so here goes.

Game Sitch (Situation for those who aren't very cool)

Auckland couldn't get their big weekend off to a winning start as they fell to Wellington. The Firebirds chased down Auckland's 174, with one of the best T20 players Brad Hodge hitting 84 off 42, ouch. Colin Munro was the only notable performer for the Aces with 52 off 24.
Saturday = rain. Both Auckland vs Central Districts and Wellington vs Northern Districts were canned.
Wellington again chased down a total, getting CD's 145 with relative ease only 2 wickets down. George Worker hit 58 off 50 but it wasn't nearly enough with Michael Pollard (44 off 38), Stephen Murdoch (61 off 35) and Mr Hodge (38 off 19) swinging their bats to good effect.
Christchurch decided to get in on the act hosting Canterbury vs Otago. The Volts defended their 143, just, with the Kings knocking 142. Ryan ten Doeschate hit 63 off 36 while Henry Nicholls hit 56 off 47 for the Kings.
To wrap things up Auckland completely made me look dumb, loosing to Northern Districts. The Knights defended 158 with Auckland only able to hit 147. Dean Brownlie the top dog here with 57 off 33

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Give Him A Good Dinner

Fantastic to see Brad Hodge still doing the rounds. Anytime you get to watch him bat, enjoy it because he's been dining at the T20 table for a while. 84, with seven 4's and six 6's? Brutal, as well as a slick 38 ... he deserves some fush n chups.
Matt Henry was good with the new ball for the Kings against the Volts. 4 overs, 3/19 @ 4.75. It wasn't enough to help the Kings to victory, so Henry deserves something. Maybe a creamy mayo cheeseburger.

Observations From The Observatory

Well my prediction about Auckland was proven unworthy this weekend. They've got the talent on paper, they were at home but managed to grab 2 losses. Not sure why, but their bowlers are struggling to contain teams while their batting line up is summed up by Colin de Grandhomme who is the man at getting 20's.
It's awesome to see the imports come in and have an impact on the tournament, but in a way it kind of highlights where our talent situation is at. The likes of Brad Hodge and Ryan ten Doeschate make it look so bloody easy - we can either bow down and admire them, or ask questions about our local lad's quality.
The Knights simply know how to perform at this level. They're 8 points clear at the top with a beastly run rate advantage. Can they be toppled?