Woorinen v Wandella
THE loser of tomorrow’s clash between Woorinen and Wandella faces elimination from Kookaburra Cup finals calculations.
And it’s not just the Cup ladder where points will be vital, with Woorinen sitting in fourth and Wandella fifth on the overall table.
The Tigers have been one of the form batting teams over the first five rounds, twice surpassing 250 in an innings.
But they will face their biggest test to date against the league’s most dangerous bowling attack, which features Peter Moore, Ryan Barnes and Bohden and Ethan McKnight.
The Bombers were below their best last Saturday against St Mary’s-Tyntynder, but the finger of blame was pointed at their batting line-up, which posted a meagre total of 109 to defend.
Woorinen’s bowling attack can also be dangerous on their day, with Smit Patel (nine wickets) and Darren Rushton (seven) among the league’s top 10 wicket takers this season.
But the Tigers have only managed to bowl one side out in their first four matches, despite having played the bottom three teams.
Barham Koondrook v Murrabit
BARHAM Koondrook and Murrabit will go head-to-head for the first time since last season’s Northern District Cricket Association grand final.
While Murrabit won on that occasion, the Raiders have been the more impressive so far this season, having beaten Wandella and pushed perennial finalists Nyah District and St Mary’s-Tyntynder.
Their six-wicket win over RSL last Saturday will give Barham Koondrook plenty of confidence heading into tomorrow’s match.
After a slow start, Murrabit have also turned the corner with two consecutive wins.
Toby Gray has been a key reason for the Blues’ good form, amassing 170 runs at an average of 56.67 this season, while Kade Watts, Tim Millard and former Raider Leigh Sobotnicki have provided solid support.
Tomorrow will be Sobotnicki’s first game against his old club, and with plenty of history between the two teams, there’s sure to be no love lost.
Ultima-TUF v Swan Hill
THE winless streak of either Ultima-TUF or Swan Hill will come to an end tomorrow at the Alan Garden Reserve.
The two clubs are anchored to bottom of the ladder after five rounds.
Swan Hill can consider themselves a bit unlucky, having been in winning positions against St Mary’s-Tyntynder, Woorinen and Murrabit, where their inability to clean up the tail with the ball has let their opposition off the hook.
While Lachlan Edwards (186 runs at 46.5), Jacob Hatcher (99 runs at 19.8) and Ammar Khalid (98 runs at 24.5) have performed well at the top of the order, the big issue for the Swans lies with their middle and lower order.
There’s no denying that Ultima-TUF have been disappointing to this point.
Not only have the Roodogs not had a win but that they haven’t even been close.
The one positive is that they do have several talented cricketers with plenty of natural ability – it’s just a question of getting the best out of them.
