ROUND 4 – SATURDAY, JANUARY 15
SWAN HILL v NYAH DISTRICT
NYAH District will be looking to solidify a top-four spot when they face off against Swan Hill at the Showgrounds on Saturday afternoon.
The Demons find themselves sitting third on the ladder – and a win against the bottom-of-the-ladder Swans will further strengthen their finals credentials.
Swan Hill struggled with both bat and ball in their two regular season games prior to the break, having taken just three wickets across both games – and scoring just 69 and 84 runs. You won’t win beat many teams with numbers like those and the Swans must improve markedly if they even want to be considered competitive through the second half of the season.
The Swans bowlers must find a way to hit their line and length on a more consistent basis and not bowl as many loose deliveries as they have been.
While their bowling attack must shoulder some of the blame for their poor start, so must their batting, especially their middle order, with disastrous batting collapses on both occasions. Against RSL, the Swans lost six wickets for just two runs and then followed it up against Wandella by losing 5 for 13 a week later.
The Demons have had no such problems so far in 2021-22, especially with the bat, having put up two scores of 150+ from their first two games. Justin Toomey has been in sensational form with the willow, while Mitch Grinham at the top of the order continues to develop with every game.
With the form Nyah District have showed at the crease – and playing on the batsman friendly Showgrounds pitch – it’s hard to see the Demons losing this one.
Tip – Nyah District to win comfortably.
RSL v WOORINEN
LADDER leaders RSL will host reigning premiers Woorinen at North Park in what shapes as being the match of the round.
RSL have taken all before them since the completion of the T20 competition, with dominant wins over lesser competition in Swan Hill and Ultima-TUF. Despite having a much tougher draw, Woorinen have been far less convincing, with a disappointing loss to St Mary’s-Tyntynder and a hard-fought win over Nyah District, which went down to the final over of the game.
Come 6pm Saturday evening, we will all have a far better read on both teams, as both clubs appear evenly matched with both bat and ball.
The Blues’ batting has long been their strength, especially with a line-up containing Ryan Hinton, Brenton Caldwell and Stuart Patterson. As if those three didn’t pose a big enough threat to opposition bowling attacks, RSL have also added another talented stroke player in Ben Hallam to the mix, with the former Mildura West player slotting in seamlessly at first drop.
On the other hand, Woorinen’s big strength has long been their bowling, with Guri Singh and Stefan Mangiameli rarely giving up too many loose balls to put away. Singh has been the star with the ball for the Tigers, taking six wickets from his two matches at an average of just six-and-a-half runs and will once again pose a significant threat to RSL.
The key for Woorinen will be to restrict RSL’s strong batting line-up to a target under 150. Do that and they will back themselves in to chase them down – but anything over that, especially on the slow North Park wicket, will pose a challenge for the Tigers.
Tip – RSL to continue their pre-Christmas winning form.
ULTIMA-TUF v ST MARY’S-TYNTYNDER
THE final game of round four will see Ultima-TUF take on the unbeaten St Mary’s-Tyntynder in a game where the Roodogs will be desperate to keep their finals hopes alive.
To say Ultima-TUF were disappointing in their only match pre-Christmas would be an understatement, with their much-lauded batting line-up being dismissed for just 81 against RSL. Captain Kade Benfield was the only batsman to reach double figures with 34 that day – however neither Ben Shepherd or Mitch Seton-Stewart played and both are expected to return on Saturday.
The Roodogs won’t find Saturday any easier, with St Mary’s possessing the most dangerous bowling attack in the competition. The Saints bowled last year’s premiers Woorinen out for just 60 in their only game before the break, with Corey Daniels, Dom Violi, Nathaniel Holmes-Brown and Charlie King all getting among the wickets.
King has been the biggest surprise packet this season and has continued his development into a reliable first change bowler. His big strength has been his ability to keep things tight from one end, which has made life easier for his wicket taking teammates Daniels and Violi.
It’s not just with the ball where the Saints can hurt you though, with their aggressive batting line-up being able to take a game away from any opposition in an instant. Bailey Codling, Jack Shannahan, Corey Daniels and Jake Foster are all aggressive stroke players – and if they are allowed to play their shots, then it could mean a big chase for the Roodogs.
With Ultima-TUF possessing a young and inexperienced bowling attack, this could well be on the cards – as should a Saints victory.
Tip – St Mary’s-Tyntynder to post a big score – and defend it comfortably.
ROUND 5 – SUNDAY, JANUARY 16
WOORINEN v ULTIMA-TUF
WOORINEN and Ultima-TUF will kick off the SHDCA’s first double header weekend in years when they meet at Woorinen on Sunday afternoon.
Both the Tigers and Roodogs will be desperate for a win to keep their Kookaburra Cup Final hopes alive, with both teams heading into the weekend with one loss to their name already in the competition.
Guri Singh holds the key for the Tigers, with the star all-rounder having a great start to the season, particularly through the T20 competition. If Woorinen can find a couple of teammates to build a partnership with Singh, they will be very hard to beat.
Mitch Uhlhorn shows a lot of potential as a top-order batsman of the future – and may just be the player to fill that void, while Marcus Mangiameli, Glenn Violi and skipper Jason Mangiameli are also very capable of going big if given time at the crease.
Ultima-TUF on the other hand have a young and developing bowling attack – and while they will no doubt back themselves in to take the required 10 wickets, their main aim really should be trying to limit the number of loose balls bowled.
The Roodogs will back themselves in to chase any score that’s put in front of them – as evidenced by their performances in the T20 competition earlier this season – but anything over 150 will be a difficult chase at Woorinen.
In what’s likely to be a very even contest, the team that takes their opportunities and wins the big moments will be the one to earn the six points.
Tip – Woorinen to get the job done in a nail biter.
ST MARY’S-TYNTYNDER v SWAN HILL
IN what can only be described as a battle of David versus Goliath, St Mary’s-Tyntynder and Swan Hill will face off at the Ken Harrison Reserve for both teams’ second game of the weekend.
The Swans have been completely outplayed in their two regular season games so far – and that’s unlikely to change when facing a side who is yet to lose in season 2021-22.
There can be no doubt that St Mary’s great strength to date has been their bowling – but if they can start to click with the bat, then they’ll be almost unbeatable. The Saints have plenty of talent that can all swing the willow, but they just need to perform on a more consistent basis.
Riley Daniels is underrated at the top of the order and is the sort of opening batsman St Mary’s-Tyntynder can build an innings around. If he can bat for a long period of time and continue to rotate the strike to the likes of Bailey Codling, Corey Daniels and Jack Shannahan, then the Saints could easily post a massive score.
Swan Hill just have to keep things as simple as possible – which includes bowling to your fields and pitching the ball up. In a number of games this season, the Swans have simply bowled far too short and, against good batsmen such as St Mary’s, poor bowling will get punished.
Andrew Clark, Sebastian Linssen and Cal Noonan are all capable of producing tight spells of bowling, but it’s their fourth and fifth bowlers that are the worry – and exactly how expensive they will be.
Tip – St Mary’s-Tyntynder in a percentage boosting win.
WANDELLA v RSL
WANDELLA will be playing their first match of 2022 when they host RSL at Riverside Park on Sunday.
The Bombers will come into Sunday’s game fresh, having enjoyed the bye on Saturday – while RSL will have already played against last season’s premiers Woorinen the day prior.
It will be interesting to see just how the Blues’ ageing list pulls up having played 80 overs already for the weekend, with fresh legs, especially on a warm afternoon, likely to be a factor later in the day.
RSL have given no indication that they won’t be up for the fight however, as evidenced by two dominant wins prior to Christmas. Their batting is second to none and their bowling is always hard to attack in the limited over formats – and although they rarely blast teams out, they do have the capacity to strangle a side with tight bowling and smart field placings.
The Bombers showed glimpses of their combined talent before the break, but if they want to mount a serious challenge in their first season in the SHDCA, they need to start to finding their best form and fast.
Ryan Barnes and his ability to swing the new rock will pose a significant challenge for the Blues, while Logan Keighran and Toby Gray have also shown they can be a threat at times with the ball.
Laine Gibbons will take a lot of confidence from his unbeaten half century three weeks ago and if he can reproduce that form, then Wandella will be in it up to their eyeballs.
The challenge for the home side will be putting a defendable score on the board – and against the strong RSL batting line-up – anything less than 160 won’t be enough.
Tip – RSL to win, but not by much.
