COLLEGE Turf is the venue for the match of the round in the Hamilton and District Cricket Association A grade match of the round, as College hosts Pigeon Ponds in a vital round 12 encounter.

This meeting between the second-placed team visitors and third-placed Eagles is a feature game each season and this will be no different.

Both teams are coming off strong victories last round, with the Pigeons also claiming a win last Sunday against Casterton District to secure its grip on second place.

Due to the wet weather that plagued the nation early in the summer, the round six game between Ponds and Casterton had been postponed due to unavailable venue on the original date for the match.

Hamish Bailey is the backbone of the Eagles’ batting order, but with finals fast approaching he needs the rest of the top six to stand alongside him to post targets that are unreachable.

With Bailey being the only Eagle to pass 200 runs so far this season, the team needs Charles Murrie, Heath Schmidt and Jack Austin to make of the starts they are getting.

As reigning premier, College hasn’t been as dominant this summer as it was last season when the fixture was all one-day matches due to COVID.

The batsmen have had to adapt to the longer two-day format which hasn’t been played for three seasons, but it appears to suit the Pigeon Ponds line up with Simon Close atop the competition run getters list by 80 runs.

This game is always close each summer and the next two weeks appear to be no different, as the winner of the toss is expected to bat first on a wicket that has come to be known as ‘Heater’s Highway’, such is the batsman friendly nature of the strip.

St Andrew’s v Hamilton

CLEM Young Oval hosts this match between two rivals of the association, as Hamilton looks to drag itself from the bottom of the ladder with victory against St Andrew’s.

Both teams can still reach the final four, but they each must win these last three games of the season to do so.

Hamilton sits seventh with a win to its credit, as the side has struggled to regain the form that saw it finish third last summer, while the Drews are fifth with two wins.

The bowling attacks of each team have performed well again this season, but it has been the batsmen who have struggled to find form.

Brendan Huf is again near the top of the run getters list for the competition as the evergreen veteran exudes his class, seemingly every time he walks to the middle for St Andrew’s.

James Guthrig seems to be the only top order batsmen to be giving Huf the support he needs, but even his form has been sporadic although he seems to be making runs now.

Hamilton needs Tobi Cook to play the innings required to kick start his summer in this match if the side is to maintain its finals hopes.

Hamilton captain, Simon Sharrock, has borne the bulk of the scoring for the Blues with a fine century before the Christmas break and another half century to his credit, and he will have to reproduce this form in this game.

Anthony Read made his long-awaited return to the game last round and the veteran will be much better for the hit out, as he attacks his old club with bat and ball.

Both teams are far from being at full strength, but the match should hold all the enthusiasm of past matches between these two great clubs.

Grampians v Casterton District

GRAMPIANS sits atop the premiership ladder but has given away the huge lead it enjoyed over the chasing pack by losing its first match of the summer last weekend to College, at the same venue as the round 12 clash, Dunkeld Turf.

Normally the Pumas are unstoppable at their home ground, but the side didn’t bat well against the Eagles last weekend and suffered the consequences.

The bowlers had done the hard work in stifling conditions two weeks ago by restricting the Eagles to only 210 but come day two, the batsmen suffered their first loss of form as a unit and were dismissed for only 117 in reply.

Casterton District is coming off the bye for the two-day game format, but the team did have a hit against Pigeon Ponds in a catch up game last Sunday.

Rick Killey returns to the side for this match, but Matt Killey was not named, but the all-rounder addition should bolster the team with both bat and ball as they seek to displace the Pumas from its lofty spot.

Carey Megaw is making opposition teams take notice of his bowling and batting and with the new ball he and Jacob Edwards will be keen to make early inroads in what may be a shaky Pumas top order.