In bright and sunny conditions, the visitors won the toss and decided to bat, and having made 21 runs from just the first three overs, were enjoying the early Gloucester hospitality. The Nambucca smiles were to be short-lived, as Andrew Webeck, in his first senior representative game for Gloucester, clean bowled the dangerous Bryan Cowan for nine, and very next ball had Rod Chaseling beaten for pace and trapped LBW. Daryll Crossingham survived the hat-trick, but batting was tough, Mick Fraser generating good pace and movement down the hill and Gloucester skipper Nathan Middlebrook teasing the batsmen with his flight and spin.

Nambucca seemed to have steadied, the score moving to 2-47, when disaster struck: Crossingham throwing his wicket away, his ill-fated attempt to hit Middlebrook out of the ground instead ending-up well caught by Brett Radford at deep mid off. Fraser and Middlebrook then destroyed the Nambucca middle order, claiming four wickets in the next three overs, and at 7-53 after just 13 overs, the Nambucca boys were wondering what had hit them. John Rowe led a mini-comeback, adding 63 with Mark Bryan for the eighth wicket, but when Bryan was bowled by Stacey Groves, the end was near, Nambucca ending-up with a modest 117, Rowe defiant but partnerless on 41 not out. Mick Fraser led the local attack and finished with the outstanding figures of 5-7 off 7 overs, with Webeck and Middlebrook finishing with 2 wickets each.