Thursday 11 March 2010

A nerveless maiden first class century by talented teenager Chris Lynn has put a silver lining on an otherwise clouded day for the XXXX GOLD Queensland Bulls in their Weet-Bix Sheffield Shield clash at the Gabba.

With wickets tumbling and the real prospect of being on the wrong end of a two-day result, the 19-year-old Lynn took everything the Retravision Warriors could throw at him as the Bulls limped to stumps in their second innings at 6-209, effectively 6-29 after following on.

Unless something astonishing happens tomorrow, the Bulls will be off to Melbourne on Monday to do battle with arch rivals Victoria at the MCG in the Weet-Bix Sheffield Shield Final starting on Wednesday.

But Lynn’s impressive unbeaten knock of 116 not out has given the home side the faintest, slightest glimmer that all is not completely lost.

The wiry right-hander became the fourth youngest player to score a first class century for Queensland, emulating the likes of Andrew Symonds, Martin Love and Jimmy Maher to score a ton while still in their teens.

Symonds was 19 yrs and 193 days, Love (who scored two tons in the space of a month in 19993-94) was 19 yrs and 278 days, Maher was 19 years and 329 days while Lynn’s milestone came at 19 yrs and 335 days.

Queensland has never won a first class game after following on, the fate that befell them today when the Warriors gleefully rumbled through their line-up to dismiss the Bulls for just 106 in their first innings and then punched a gaping hole in their second innings.

With a lead of 180, Warriors captain Marcus North could have been forgiven for toying with the idea of having another bat himself, with the First Test against New Zealand next week.

But he backed his attack to complete a quick kill and when the Bulls slumped again to 3-91 at tea and then 5-119, he appeared well vindicated until the patient Lynn began to flourish.

Display a confident back foot game, the youngster unleashed some crisp drives and neatly avoided spending too long in the “nervous 90s” as a four took him to 96 before he danced down the track to hit North for a towering six to reach triple figures.

He had earlier hit a four to bring up the 100 for Queensland and his maiden first class half century which came off just 63 balls including 12 cleanly struck fours.

Wicket-keeper Chris Hartley, the team’s leading runs-scorer, missed out again but his 12 runs meant he passed Richie Robinson to move into second spot for the most Shield runs scored by a wicket-keeper in a season.

The Warriors ex-Queensland duo of Steve Magoffin (3-22) and Ben Edmondson (3-41) and impressive rookie Nathan Coulter-Nile (3-11) did the damage in the Queensland first innings.

Magoffin then followed up with some excellent seam bowling to record the outstanding figures of 3-15 from 16 overs in the Bulls second innings.