A senior club cricketer was timed out on Saturday, the rarest of dismissals in cricket, although the captain of the opposing team said yesterday in hindsight his side maybe should not have appealed.
Taieri batsman Baden Wilton was dismissed timed out after he took too long to come to the crease in a match against Kaikorai at Bishopscourt.
Kaikorai bowler David Webb, who was also captaining the side, had just taken a hat trick and Wilton was not ready to come in to bat.
Webb said Wilton took an age to come to the crease and the team decided to appeal for timed out when he was well past the allotted time.
Under the rules of cricket, a player has three minutes to get to the pitch and take guard after the fall of a wicket.
Wilton took more than four minutes to get to the crease, and showed no urgency, Webb said.
The umpires, Lindsay Neilson and Gavin Shaw, had no option but to give Wilton out.
Webb said yesterday, in hindsight perhaps the side should not have appealed.
"But in the heat of the battle anything can happen," Webb said.
"Any senior cricketer playing at a decent level should know the rules."
He said the sides had had some hard battles over the years and there was plenty of animosity between the teams.
Taieri club captain Ben Kidston, who was playing in the game, said he thought common sense would have prevailed, especially after the quick loss of wickets because of the hat trick, and the appeal would be withdrawn.
The Taieri club would not take the matter any further, he said, and he predicted the next match between the two sides would have plenty of spice.
Kaikorai won the match by 134 runs.
