by Lightning McQueen » Fri Mar 15, 2019 10:37 am
Grade 1 SEMI'S
Salisbury West (1) vs Craigmore (4)
Round 5 (Salisbury West) Salisbury West 174 (36.4) lost to Craigmore 6/178 (33)
Round 12 (Argana Park): Salisbury West 166 (61) & 8/149 (37) defeated Craigmore 131 (42)
I think we can look beyond the two clashes this season in a way as the round 5 match had no Dylan McIver or Justin Davies, the round 12 match seen the Blues mix their batting order up as they had to survive 9 overs on day one, they lost two wickets in doing so, the team line ups will be quite different for tomorrows semi.
Westies have always been Craigmore's nemisis until the last couple of years where these kids have grown together an become a force in Grade 1, infact the last time Westies beat the Blues on their home deck was in a semi in March 2017.
Davies collected 8/59 in their last clash this season, then Tyson Richard took 7/25 in Westies' 2nd innings, Dyl McIver will have an enormous amount of pressure on himself as when it all boils down, he needs to score runs for Craigmore to win, there are plenty of capable batsmen around him that need to hang around and chip in with their 30's and 40's but they must capitalise on the big open spaces of Sailsbury West.
Westies have a never-ending list of batting power, Anthony Lewendon has had a quiet season by his own standards and is due for something big, Ward has found some form at the right time of the season and then you have Davies, Willi, Trav and Kershaw all can post some big numbers, just two or three of these guys getting amongst it will make it hard for the Blues.
In essence, the Westie outfit seems far superior to the Blues and should win, given my links to Craigmore of course I'll be hoping they get the job done and hoping that Dyl can ton up as he is an absolute champion of a lad and competitor.
Eastern Park (2) vs Angle Vale (3)
Round 7 (Angle Vale): Eastern Park 7/185 (40) defeated Angle Vale 113 (29.5)
Round 14 (Dwight Reserve): Eastern Park 81 (33.4) lost to Angle Vale 9/180 (36)
Every now and then Eastern Park can produce an absolute stinker, that was last week as they were on cruise control and heading towards a home final, I'll take nothing away from Angle Vale though, they are a hard working team that is well balanced, they appeared to be out of the finals race not so long ago but have fought their way back into contention winning their last 3 two dayers including the controversial outright against the Gardens.
When you boast a team that could be mistaken for an association side you'd have to go in as favourites, Eastern Park has come of age and their window is well and truly open, with the likes of Tuckers, Benny and Woody in the batting list and a plethora of quality bowlers the Vale are going to have to be patient and bat out the day to win.
One concern for Eastern Park is their ability to score big against the stronger teams, Woody and Benny scored 72 & 133 respectively against Craigmore in round 3, neither have posted a half century against a top four side otherwise, the only other player that has is Tuckers who scored 79 against Angle Vale in December and 88 against Westies in round 11, it's time to play as a team and build partnerships as Justin Carman will bowl plenty of overs and will give them nothing, Mark Townley is a very under-rated bowler, chuck in the forever young Forrester and there's 50 of the 70 overs you're going to face.
The home side for mine, it would be great to see an Eastern Park vs Craigmore GF.
HOGG SHIELD DIVISION V WINNER 2018.