ULTIMA-TUF v ST MARY’S-TYNTYNDER
AFTER returning to the winners’ list in emphatic fashion last weekend against RSL, Ultima-TUF will face a fair bigger test against St Mary’s-Tyntynder on Saturday.
It has been an up and down season for the Roodogs this year, with their best cricket capable of beating the best teams in the association and their worst cricket transforming them back into the team that went winless for several seasons on end.
The same can also be said of St Mary’s-Tyntynder’s season, although there is little doubt about their form at the moment, with the Bulldogs 3-0 in red ball cricket so far in 2025.
That they won just one match before Christmas, however, means there is no margin for error for St Mary’s-Tyntynder, who must continue to keep notching up wins if they are to be any chance of sneaking into the top four in three weeks’ time.
The returns of Corey Daniels and Jack Shannahan have made a significant difference to the Bulldogs with both bat and ball, along with Charlie King and Bailey Codling who have also been strong contributors at times.
There’s little doubt that St Mary’s-Tyntynder’s top end talent is as good as any teams and if they can just get their best team on the park more consistently, will continue to prove hard to beat.
The Roodogs on the other hand will need to repeat their performance with the bat that saw them amass 228 against the Blues last Saturday, with Kade Benfield and Kyle Symons both finding form.
If they, along with Jacob Hatcher and Lachlan Edwards can go big, then they might be in with a chance, but they will need to put up a score of 200 plus against a quality bowling attack to get it done.
WANDELLA v RSL
WITH five losses from their past six matches, RSL will be desperate to revive their flagging finals chances when they travel to Riverside park to face Wandella on Saturday.
While the Blues are mathematically still in the hunt, they also have a difficult run home, with St Mary’s-Tyntynder and Woorinen to follow Saturday’s must-win encounter against the Bombers.
Wandella on the other hand are in a finals fight of their own, with the home side sitting fourth on the ladder and at risk of falling from the finals if there was to be an upset this weekend.
The challenge for the Bombers lies with the bat, particularly their top order, who simply must start putting runs on the board if they are to be any chance of playing finals.
Although Wandella claimed an emphatic victory over Woorinen before their bye last Saturday, that win was largely thanks to their lower order, with their bottom five batters outscoring their five batters by seven runs that afternoon.
RSL unearthed another talented mid-season recruit during their loss to Ultima-TUF last Saturday, with Clem Miller opening the bowling and taking four wickets for the Blues.
Although RSL dismissed the Roodogs, their wickets also came at a cost, with loose bowling enabling the Ultima-TUF batters to score freely.
The Bombers on the other hand should have no such issues, with Peter Moore, Bohden McKnight, Ryan Barnes and Laing Waddingham all capable of not only bowling tight overs, but taking wickets as well.
