DESPITE still boasting arguably the strongest side in the Mitchell Cricket Council district on paper, Bathurst’s season will go on the line tomorrow against Orange as they try to cling on to their under 21s title.
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After a wash-out in round one against the Blue Mountains and a second round bye, the Bathurst team have only managed to complete one match so far this season, a rain-affected loss to Lithgow just before Christmas.
A loss to Orange at the Sportsground tomorrow would more or less put paid to their aspirations of a championship defence, something not lost on coach Scott Inwood.
“We have to win, simple as that. A loss would just about mean curtains for us,” he said.
“It has just been one of those seasons, we got on finally for a match against Lithgow and didn’t put it all together, so that’s why we’re in this situation.”
Inwood’s team boasts arguably more strength with the bat than with the ball, but given the complete lack of recent matches aside from the Lithgow match and an exhibition game against the touring South African Forrester’s Cricket Club last week, he is apprehensive.
“With bowling, it is one of those things where even without a lot of practice you can ease your way into it and pick up your form during a game,” he said.
“With the bat, if you’re out of form you only get one chance and you’re gone so batting to me is the harder of the skills to get right when you haven’t had a lot of match practice.
“Even in the South African match no-one really got any time in the middle, the bowling was a lot better than the batting. I just want the batsmen to spend time in the middle, I’ll be happy with 30s and 40s really. I’m not expecting big hundreds.
“Though they’d be nice,” he added.
The crux of the team’s batting line-up surrounds the likes of captain Josh Toole as well as Brendan Inwood and Joey Coughlan, all three of whom generally score rapidly.
The coach says he will be imploring them to take their time.
“I’ve been telling them to do that anyway, not just for this week, but it hasn’t worked yet,” he said.
“I just want them to get their eye in. Once a guy like ‘Tooley’ gets set after five or six overs he scores quickly anyway and is very hard to get out. Brendan is much the same.”
With the ball, Rugby Union quick Alex Miller is set to be one of his team’s focal points after an impressive performance against the Forrester’s team and with Tom Gransden likely to take his place in the attack, it is an area the coach has confidence in.
“Alex is one of those bowlers who can be a little bit on the expensive side but he has a lot of wicket-taking balls in him that make a huge difference,” he said.
“Orange should be a tough side, we beat them in Orange in the semi-final last season pretty comfortably but I imagine they will be tough to beat this time around.”
A final line-up is expected to be finalised this morning.
