CITY Colts captain Matt Stephen is a man who relishes a challenge and that is exactly what he is expecting this Saturday in the final Twenty20 round of the Bathurst District Cricket Association first grade season.
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If play goes ahead in spite of some heavy downpours, Colts will face Centennials Bulls at the Sportsground.
While a look at the ladder might suggest Bulls – an outfit with just one win after nine rounds – are struggling, Stephen feels the side is a very real threat.
It is easy to see why he thinks that too – Ryan Gurney hit 103 in the first weekend of Twenty20 action, last Saturday Joel Gurney had knocks of 45 and 49, while in the field Bulls skipper Andrew Brown has a host of bowlers he can throw the ball.
“I can’t wait and I think that they are just starting to hit their straps to be fair. They’ve had a team that has come together – they didn’t know each other a lot of them and now they are playing for each other and it’s good to see,” Stephen said.
“I think beating them will be very, very difficult on Saturday.”
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Though City Colts are a team which has long held the reputation of boasting naturally aggressive batsmen, they have not done it easy in the short-format.
Stephen admits getting Colts’ “best team on the park hasn’t been easy”, while the very nature of Twenty20 means one mistake can turn a result.
“In our game against Redbacks the other day, we thought we’d scored plenty of runs to win that game. Nine out of 10 times we should have won,” he said. “But Ben Orme teed off, we gave him a life and that’s cricket.”
Still, Stephen has enjoyed the addition of Twenty20 games to the Bathurst season.
“I really enjoy the format, it can let other people shine, people who’s natural game is to score rapidly,” he said.
“You’ve got to think really hard when you’re bowling, you can’t just come in and bowl a stock ball and hope a batter is going to get out, because he will pump you over the fence.”
Saturday’s match is set to begin at 12.30pm.
