EAST Gambier sits at the bottom of the Mount Gambier and District Cricket Association Barber Shield ladder with a winless record and that is unlikely to change when it hosts South Gambier in a one day clash for Round 6 this weekend.
The Bulldogs have found the going tough in the opening half of the season and this clash against the Demons will not be easy.
East will be undermanned and without captain Dion Stratford and Alex Hentschke due to their state commitments.
The duo – along with North players Josh Fidler, Nick McInerney and Matthew McInerney – head to Western Australia to play in the Australian Country Cricket Championships for the South Australian Outbacks.
Stratford’s ability to make runs with the bat and his contribution in the field as wicket keeper will be tough to replace and that is not taking into account his leadership role.
The loss of Hentschke will also leave a big hole in the Bulldogs’ line-up.
Despite having a slow start to the season Hentschke is a quick bowler who is renowned for his ability to take wickets.
He is also a handy batsman.
When these two sides clashed earlier in the season the format was a two-day game, which could see each team take a different approach to the shorter match tomorrow.
East faced the full 80 overs in Round 3 and six batsmen reached double figures.
Handy bowler Ashley Dumigan managed 40 runs, while Peter Kerr put together an unbeaten 41.
The Bulldogs finished the day with 6/202 and would have felt some-what safe coming into South’s batting innings.
However, the Demons did not allow East to get complacent and came out firing from the first ball.
Opening batsmen Camron Jorgenson and Sam Phelan reached the 20s before they were dismissed.
Their wickets only opened up more opportunity, with Dylan Clough padding up and put on a fine display.
Clough’s confidence was obvious, but he struggled to find a partner to work with.
Three ducks and 10 from Dane Pople later, he was paired with Robbie Drenthen.
The duo powered their way to an 86-run partnership, which saw Clough reach his century.
Drenthen scored close, finishing on 78 before he was caught out.
Due to the impressive work rate of both Clough and Drenthen South finished with a credible score of 267.
While the Demons were unstoppable, East still took positives from the game.
The Bulldogs’ Nathan Gore had a big impact with the ball – taking five wickets – and he will hope to continue that dominance this weekend.
It will be crucial East get off to a great start and show confidence early in the game.
South will be tough to beat, but if East want its first win of the season bad enough it could cause an upset in the hot conditions.
