THE Hamilton and District Cricket Association A grade round 14 games will be completed today with finals spots hanging in the balance.

Casterton District v Hamilton

THE Maroons will be eyeing off a top two spot when they take to Island Park Turf with ball in hand this afternoon against Hamilton.

The Blues will resume their innings on 2-25, chasing 152 for victory, with Nic Cullinane and Hammish Shipcott at the crease when play starts.

Cullinane will be pivotal to the visitors’ chances of chasing down the target, along with Anthony Read and Isaac Shaw, while the Maroons bowlers will be searching for early wickets.

With the likes of Jacob Edwards, Logan Gibbs, Carey Megaw and Rick Killey all coming off a Melbourne Country Week campaign during the week, their energy levels could be diminished, but the group will need to battle hard against a Hamilton side which will be full of confidence after its round 13 win against Pigeon Ponds.

With Hamilton battling for pride and the Maroons chasing a top two spot, there is plenty to play for today.

Gorae-Portland v St Andrew’s

GO-PORTS is in a strong position to knock off second-placed St Andrew’s going into the second day’s play at Alexandra Park, with the home side needing 96 more runs to claim victory.

The Drews had a disastrous day one, getting bowled out for 116 inside 61 overs, and bowled 12 overs without any breakthroughs.

Both Zac Duncan and Finn Saurine will resume on 10-not-out, as the opening pair set about seeing off the new ball bowlers and guiding the team to victory.

Gorae-Portland needs to win to ensure the team can keep in touch with the top four, with the fifth-placed side no doubt looking for quick runs and getting to the target before the team considers whether to continue batting or a declaration could come with the Drews sent back to the crease as well.

Much of the responsibility will rest with the likes of Latham Wishart and Damian Logan, while Taine Morris and Russell Elton will also need to be at their best when thrown the ball.

The Drews could drop out of the top four if they lose and other results go against them, setting up an enthralling second day of play between the two sides.

Macarthur v College

THE Demons will be chasing a big total today against College at Macarthur Recreation Reserve, after the visitors posted 8-298 on day one.

Macarthur’s bowlers struggled to limit the runs, with three half centuries and a 48-run effort spreading the scoring responsibility, and the home side will be hoping to at least repeat that effort, with hopes of a top five batsmen reaching triple figures.

The Demons’ batting stocks are strong, and at home on the hard wicket, the likes of Ollie Wortley, Kyle Smitten, Charlie Summers and Jeremy Sheehan are all capable of finding the boundary regularly and scoring at a fast rate.

Jordy Anthony and Lachie Watt will be critical in the early overs for College, searching for wickets, while Adrian Burn’s ability to restrict scoring in the middle overs and apply pressure on the batsmen has seen him collect 19 A grade wickets so far this season.

College must win to keep its narrow finals hopes alive, while the Demons sit in eighth and will be hoping to spoil the party this afternoon by chasing down the runs and collecting a sixth win of the season.

Portland Colts v Grampians

GRAMPIANS is the other team hanging onto a glimmer of hope of playing finals, with the Pumas needing 235 runs against Portland Colts this afternoon to get the points.

Henty Park Turf will offer a bit for the bowlers, with the likes of Will Collins, Zach Burgess and Carl Joyce set to play important roles in the top order, with the team needing a little more than three runs per over to chase down the target.

Partnerships will be the key and keeping wickets in hand for late in the day, as Colts’ Luke Evans will lead the bowling attack with the new ball and has shown he can destroy batsmen’s confidence, collecting 6-32 from his 16.5 overs last round against Macarthur.

Colts sit in fourth spot and can’t afford to lower their colours against the visitors, with the visitors set to drop out of finals contention today if they can’t chase down the target.

Pigeon Ponds v Portland Tigers

PORTLAND Tigers will trek north to Pigeon Ponds Recreation Reserve for day two, knowing a mammoth task awaits the visitors.

Ponds were bowled out for 235 on day one after failing to bat out the day, with the Tigers forced to bat out nine overs before stumps.

It was a tricky period for the visitors, losing three wickets, with Llewellyn Oakley (19-not-out) and Paul Procter (10-not-out) resuming at the crease with the Tigers needing 188 more runs for victory.

Hamish McCrae grabbed all three wickets on day one and will no doubt be searching for a five-wicket haul, while he will need support from others at the other end to keep building the pressure in a game the home side will fancy itself to win this afternoon.

South Portland v Tyrendarra

THERE could be a few weary players taking to the field today, with South Portland’s Lachie Warburton, along with Tyrendarra’s Sam Wilson and Hamish Withers coming off a Melbourne Country Week campaign this week, as the Darras look to return to the winners list.

South Portland were bowled out for 126 on day one, and responded with its own impressive bowling display to leave the visitors vulnerable at 2-27 at the end of play at Cavalier Park.

Jake Wilson (nine-not-out) and Jordi Withers (five-not-out) will resume the innings and the visitors should chase down the total and bounce back with a win after falling to St Andrew’s in round 13.