Shield Season Opens

The Shield season has made an interesting start, with at least some of the players in Australia's Test squad making appearances and surprising results coming from what looks to be a group of teams even more flattened out than last season.

Home teams have held the ascendancy so far, with Queensland beating Victoria after a first day disaster, Western Australia beating the Shield holders Tasmania in a narrow squeak at the WACA and South Australia seemingly romping home against the perennial glamour side NSW, after just two days.

Andrew Robinson

The Tasmanian born Andrew Robinson had his best game for Queensland with a brace of fifties opening the innings and seven catches, including five in the second innings at slip. This followed an entertaining 66 batting at three in the Bulls corresponding Ryobi Cup win against the Bushrangers in a week of clearly his best state form. Ben Cutting continued his good with the ball from last season in the first innings and then after Steve Maggofin and Scott Walter had taken the first five, Cam Boyce finished off the southerners. Rob Quiney scored a hundred for the Vics as they submerged after NSW import Peter Forest set up the victory with a second innings ton. Test paceman Peter Siddle bowled with good rhythm and no luck in both innings. Scorecard

The Sandgropers enjoy a sweet
victory over the Tigers.

In Perth, the Sandgropers used their "get out of jail" card early in the season against a powerful Tasmanian side. The credentials of both sides were good, each able to boast three current or former Test players. The men in the yellow caps flopped on the first day, comfortably dismissed for under 200 with new skipper Marcus North out for only 5. He was one of four scalps for Luke Butterworth, who claimed four of the first five. Ben Hilfenhaus bowled well in his return after injury. The best batsmen currently playing in the Shield but yet to wear the Baggy Green, Adam Vogues, looked handsome in making 58. Tasmania got a lead but only thanks to a mid innings partnership between Butterworth and Tom Triffit, after Captain George Bailey and Ricky Ponting had looked good in their too short innings. The ex Newcastle grade player, Mick Hogan bagged five. Liam Davis and Vogues both made hundreds as Western Australia piled on the runs and set a massive target. Hilfenhaus repeated his Ashes form of last season with a lot of overs for little return. At 4-320 on the last afternoon with George Bailey (116) in full flight after big partnerships with Ponting (87) and Mark Cosgrove (50), the Tasmanians looked set to continue where the left off in the final last season against NSW. It was then that Mitchell Johnson produced a devastating three over spell to dismiss James Faulkner, Bailey and Triffit inside nine runs and the others mopped up for the 25 run win. Johnson, who had a match return of 1 and 1-63 to that point, did that dangerous thing only he can do and ended with 5-69 in the second and along with Adam Vogues, won the game for the West. Interestingly, Michael Beer only took three wickets for the match but he got Ponting twice. Scorecard

Peter George

In Adelaide, the Redbacks have set the match up for a win against NSW. After Michael Klinger and Dan Harris set the tone for the home side with a 161 opening stand, Dan Christian went ballistic on the second morning, savaging an unbeaten hundred from a NSW attack without Beau Casson. The talented left arm wrist spinner was struck down on the first day with an apparent re-occurrence of the heart rate problems which have plagued him in recent years and he will take no further part in the game. It has been reported that he collapsed in the sheds, resulting in hospitalisation. One short or not, NSW batted badly and players lost to South Africa already can't be blamed. Any side with Phil Hughes, Usman Khawaja, Simon Katich and the very promising Nick Maddinson in the top four must be expected to score runs on such a run happy pitch. With effectively only eleven wickets left for the match and 345 runs behind their situation looks grim. Former Australian paceman Peter George created the havoc with 5-28 and Christian did better than the Lyons, taking the other two. Scorecard