THE cancellation of the weekend’s ISA Cricket hasn’t helped St Stanislaus’ College in their division one battle for a finals spot.
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Like many other cricket competitions across NSW on Saturday, the ISA round was called off due to the extreme heat, denying Stannies a match against St Pius X.
Stannies currently sit fifth in the competition, just a single point away from Central Coast Grammar School, and with only two matches left to go before finals, time is not on their side.
The good news for Stannies is that their last two matches will be against opponents they have bested before.
It’s been a tough season so far for the Bathurst school but coach Tony Fisher said finals are definitely on the agenda.
:”We’ve got St Andrews and Central Coast and they’re the two teams that we’ve beaten this season. If we win both those games then we’re in,” he said.
"If we don’t, and only win one, then we’d need other results to fall our way, but by winning both we will get in.”
Stannies’ latest match was their February 4 home victory over Central Coast – a result which has proved crucial in keeping the finals dream alive after the weekend’s cancelled round.
The Bathurst team put themselves in a strong position after bowling Central Coast out for 117 but had a shaky chase.
They managed to hunt down the total but not before losing eight wickets along the way.
“We’ve had our moments this season. Last game was probably the first time since round three where we’ve fielded a full strength team. We’ve struggled with having players often out with other commitments or injuries,” Fisher said.
“When we beat Central Coast in our last game we didn’t have Luke [Powell] there, as he was at the NSW Country Carnival in Cowra, and it was great to get the win without him. He’s handy to have, but he’s not the whole team, and it was good to see our guys stepping up.
“I’ve got a lot of faith in the boys. They’ve shown this season that they can score the runs and bowl teams out for low scores.”
Stannies finish with two away matches, first against St Andrews before travelling to take on Central Coast once more.
A similar finals hunt is also underway for All Saints’ College in the division two competition.
All Saints are also in fifth, currently on 19 points, and may require other results to go their way if they’re to catch St Gregory’s Campbelltown on 27.
The Bathurst school finish their regular season with a home match against Oakhill College before making the trip to face Oxley College.