By Trevor Jackson
CRICKET in the Limestone Coast looks in doubt this weekend, with rain forecast for Saturday which could threaten Round 3 of the Barber Shield season.
Should all go ahead, the top two sides will face off at McCorquindale Park in the one-day fixture.
Penola hosts East Gambier, with both undefeated after two rounds of play.
The hosts enjoyed a solid day with the bat last week against Mil Lel, with Jack Mullan and Mark Smith both recording big half-centuries.
However, few others performed well with the bat on what appeared to be a good strip at Frew Park.
With the ball Penola struggled to contain the Mil Lel bats, but restricted them to 205 at the end of play.
Likewise East is in good tough with the bat, as they chased down a meagre 102 total against West Gambier at Scott Park last week.
Dion Stratford led the way with an unbeaten half-century, while with the ball Alex Hentschke has been in his usual devastating form.
It should provide an intriguing contest.
South Gambier comes off a good win over North Sportsman’s last round and hosts West Gambier at Blue Lake Sports Park.
South showed some good batting form last round, with Daniel Loupos leading the way in the opening slot.
His half-century put the Demons on track, with some good support through the middle order.
West began the season well against Mil Lel, with a close victory from a consistent batting effort.
In Round 2 they struggled against the Bulldogs, with no big scores and just a few starts for a total of 102 in just the 34th over.
It will certainly be another intriguing clash as both sides look to stake a claim on a top-four position.
Mil Lel heads back to Frew Park to host North and would be quietly confident of claiming the points.
While they did fall to the hard-hitting Penola last round, they also showed some resolve with the bat, as William Rowland smashed 81 runs off 100 deliveries.
It was not enough to claim the win, but with extra support at the top and middle orders, Mil Lel could well build a strong foundation to knock off the reigning champions.
The Tigers will need to dig deep after a win-less start to the season so far.
But of course they cannot be discounted in any fixture but will certainly have a tough day.
All games begin at 1pm, weather permitting.
