Saturday’s opening round of the Swan Hill & District Cricket Association will see the top four teams from last year lock horns in what shapes as a damp start with the threat of overnight rain on Friday.
The match of the round in what shapes as a highly competitive start to the season will be at the Ken Harrison Reserve, with last year’s runner’s up St Mary’s-Tyntynder to host Woorinen in a semi-final rematch.
Both batting line-up’s will have a very different look to the last time they met, with the Bulldogs almost unrecognisable after the departures of leading run scorers Jonty Chaproniere, Charlie King and the injured Jack Shannahan.
Woorinen on the other hand will be without both opening batsmen from their nine-wicket semi-final defeat, with South African pair Connor Fletcher and Wade October not returning.
History tells us St Mary’s-Tyntynder went on to record a crushing victory that day, although they are also aware of the threat the Tigers pose, with Woorinen bowling the Bulldogs out for just 93 in round 16 last season, before chasing down the target in just 16 overs.
Darren Rushton was the hero for the Tigers that day, with the star all-rounder taking seven wickets and blasting an unbeaten 55 off just 27 balls.
It was that display that has St Mary’s-Tyntynder captain Nathaniel Holmes-Brown wary ahead of Saturday’s opening round, with the Bulldogs skipper looking forward to getting out on the park.
“Woorinen first up is always a tough test to start your year off with, last year they were a real danger team towards the end of the season and tomorrow will be a great test for us,” Holmes-Brown told The Guardian this week.
“With a few of our main players from last year departing, it will be a really good test to see how far our young kids have come and how far everyone else has taken their game into the future.
“Darren Rushton had an unbelievable season last year and he was a key reason as to why they beat us late last season.
“If we can nullify his influence with both the bat and ball, that will go a long way towards us getting the points tomorrow, but in saying that they also have plenty of other weapons as well.
“‘Morpy’ (Dean Morpeth) is still a massive danger and everyone knows what he’s capable of and then Guri (Singh) with the ball is always hard to face.”
Although the Tigers recorded a strong win in round 16 last year, their overall record against the Bulldogs hasn’t been great over recent seasons, with Morpeth expecting another tough contest against last year’s runner’s up despite their weakened batting line-up.
“It’s always an interesting battle against them, (St Mary’s-Tyntynder) we don’t have a great record against them, so it’s going to be important to get the runs on the board early,” Morpeth said.
“I’ll be intrigued to see their line up, I wish Jonty (Chaproniere) the best over in Adelaide, he’s a super cricketer and hugely talented, but I won’t be disappointed to not see him playing for them tomorrow.
“If they have all their players, they will be tough to beat because their talent is amazing, but our focus is on making sure we’re consistent with what we do early in the season.
“We have to get the basics right early in the season, if you’re chasing your tail and chasing wins late, it can be really difficult.”
There’s little doubt Woorinen will have the edge with the bat, but the battle with the ball should belong to the Bulldogs, with Holmes-Brown to be joined by underrated opener Robin Sebastian, with support from off-spinner Austin McKerrow and youngsters Hugh Thompson and Rylan Barnes.
Although the Tigers will be without Mitch Uhlhorn, it’s the absence of Shannahan that could potentially alter the course of Saturday’s match, with the Bulldogs not only missing his talent with the bat, but also his ability to bowl tight through the middle overs.
“‘Shotsy’ (Shannahan) is huge for our team and is one of our better bats when he’s on, but more importantly he also provides those crucial overs in the middle of an innings,” Holmes-Brown said.
“He can soak up those eight overs for not many runs and always grabs a few wickets, he’ll be a big loss for us and we’ll have to find another avenue with the ball.
“We didn’t have Robin much last year though so he’ll be like a new recruit in many regards.”
