The bad news is there is a list of Otago batsman putting their hands up to be replaced.
Otago lost eight second-innings wickets for 26 runs in a mad hour to rival some of the worst cricket it has played this summer.
The Volts were 89 for two and well-placed to push on and dictate terms in their Plunket Shield match against Central Districts which concludes at the Queenstown Events Centre today.
But in a dramatic turnaround the home side folded to be all out for 115 in 36.5 overs. Not all is lost, though. Central was seven for one at stumps and still needs 192 runs with nine second-innings wickets in hand.
Anything is possible but that was cold comfort for Otago coach Vaughn Johnson who was furious with his side's woeful batting display.
"It has only just happened and I can't really get my head around it," Johnson said shortly after stumps had been called.
"To be 80-odd for two and to be bowled out for 115 is just not acceptable. At the end of the day people have to put their hands up and take responsibility for a poor performance with the bat.
"Two hundred-odd out there won't be easy but it is the batting collapse which concerns me the most and players not being able to occupy the crease."
With no play possible on the Friday, and both sides in desperate need of the12 points on offer for an outright win, declarations were always likely.
Otago declared its first innings at 281 for eight an hour before stumps on Saturday, and Central Districts returned the favour, declaring at 198 for six to concede a first-innings lead of 83 runs.
That left the onus with Otago to set up a run chase and it picked up the challenge initially but quickly lost conviction with the rapid departure of its top five and the rest of the stragglers soon after.
Left-arm spinner and new cap Daniel Wrightman took three for nine and Zimbabwean international Kyle Jarvis also claimed three wickets.
But it was former Otago player Kieran Noema-Barnett who made the early telling blows. He nicked out Michael Bracewell for a bright innings of 37 and then got Sam Wells in the same over.
The wickets fell rapidly thereafter. Jimmy Neesham and Neil Wagner threw their wickets away with a combination of poor execution and even worse thinking.
Mark Craig was, perhaps, unfortunate to be given out caught behind but the rest were stretched for excuses.
Central had resumed at 10 for two and slumped to 79 for five.
Kruger van Wyk gave a tough opportunity on 38 but the diminutive wicketkeeper-batsman went on to score an undefeated 72 from 109 deliveries to help set up his side's declaration.
On Saturday, Cumming and Wells offered some hope for Otago's beleaguered top order.
Cumming's patient knock of 125 (adjusted down from 129 overnight) was the first Plunket Shield century for Otago this season.
Runs were not easy to come by on a slow surface and there was little value for shots on the damp outfield.
Consequently, his hundred featured just the three boundaries and took five hours.
He had good support from Wells with the pair combining in a fourth-wicket stand of 102.
Wells was able to play with more freedom and fluency than Cumming, but on 55 he lost concentration and nicked out to the part-time spin of How.
Neesham (24 from 15) and Craig (26 not out from 22) rattled on some quick runs before the declaration, and Warren McSkimming and Wagner grabbed a wicket apiece to seized the initiative at stumps on day two.
Meanwhile, Plunket Shield front-runner Northern Districts is set to extend its lead after finishing the third day of its match against Canterbury on the verge of victory, APNZ reported.
ND went into the second half of the competition with a 14-point lead over second-placed Auckland, and that lead is looking likely to lengthen after three days of action. ND requires a further four wickets in Rangiora with Canterbury still trailing by 299 runs, while Auckland has a fight on its hands to avoid defeat against Wellington.
Auckland has only four wickets in hand at Colin Maiden Park and still needs 83 runs to make the visiting side bat again, after Wellington opener Josh Brodie scored a maiden double century to help his side to a commanding first-innings lead.
