National Side season 60. Be part of it, again.

[boscorp]

World Cup
The fixtures have been set and the event starts 24/02/25. We are rated 9th.
Game 1 is Ireland on a dry wicket. We have won 27 OD encounters with a win rate of 58.7%
Game 2 is Kenya on a hard pitch. We have won 18 OD encounters with a win rate of 47.37%
Game 3 is Sri Lanka on an even wicket. We have won 19 OD encounters with a win rate of 46.34%
Game 4 is West Indies on a green wicket. We have won 15 OD encounters with a win rate of 37.5%
Game 5 is USA on an uneven pitch. We have won 28 OD encounters with a win rate of 66.67%
We have a full variety of wickets for our matches, no two the same and selecting the right mix of bowlers to take will be foremost on the selector's minds.

[boscorp]

SOD World Cup
Batsmen

Kerry Bragg - Jolly Boys Of Peckham
Mark Raath - Almost
Austin Clifford - Jolly Boys Of Peckham
Dean Cox - West Coast Eagles
Amos Gaskell - TheBezBrigade
Rudi Horan - Cocolocomotion
Gio Morcom - Mekerz Tanks
Lukas Pinot-Pietersen - Armstrong 13's
Meyrick Sewart - Snickets II CC

Bowlers

Josh Kennedy - Jared's XI
Johan Cormack - budgewoi bulldogs
Emmet McNamara - Brew Boys
Zander van der Sander - Wools Wanderers
Deon Telemachus - kato 11
Arthur Jackson - Jared's XI
Astra Zeneca - Jared's XI
Wendell Colreavy - Sgt Peppers
Dudley van Vollenhoven - Tobago Saucers

The squads have been locked in and the action is next week. We have some very strong opponents and it will be a tough week for us. Fortunately the players have been very well prepared by their respective clubs during the season to help ensure they are blessed well with form and experience. With an average form rating of 6.9 (just under reliable) we are hopeful of some great performances.
There is a good breakdown of the WC squads listed on the forum page for the World Cup Fantasy Competition.
Come along and see how we go next week.

[leaguegod]

good luck mate

[boscorp]

Ireland was our first match and after a disappointing tour last season we were determined to put some doubts to rest. The selectors decided to flex a bit for the first match. 6 elite bats including the keeper, 3 elite spinners and a couple of all rounders ensured some good ratings and we set up a good game plan to bowl first. Ireland won the toss and opted to bat, we grinned and took to the field. Confident in our spin attack our efforts were to contain the runs in the opening spells, Ireland managed to still get a few runs on the board but we did pressure them into losing both openers. Once the spin started we stalled the run rate and took full advantage of the dry wicket. 41 overs and we had Ireland all out for 132.
Chasing less than 3 an over there was little pressure and we were able to relax. Not so much for Horan on his debut however. The Irish attack was good and too good for the nervous opener who managed just 7 runs. Clifford got a decent 38 leaving it to Cox and Raath to finish the match just after drinks. Telemachus (4-26) was MOTM, Cox was close with his 47 not out and Zeneca (2-19) was 3rd best. Our best match ratings to date and a nice rr advantage to start the cup run.
We play Kenya next on a Hard surface. It'll be a difficult match and we will need a bit of luck to spill over from our last match. Our lads are keen to get into it.

[boscorp]

Kenya, we knew Kenya was going to be a difficult opponent and winning the toss was a godsend. 2 quick wickets in the 2nd and 3rd overs had us reeling as we quickly realized this pitch was harder to play than we expected. Thankfully Morcom and Bragg paired up with a good (105 run) partnership to have us at 3-127 by drinks. we continued on to be all out for 273. We'd played well but was it enough?
We took to the field and Kenya started their reply. A wicket in the 8th and Kenya were 1-55 after 10 overs matching the RRR. We knuckled down with the fielding and by drinks it was 3-116. The wickets weren't coming easily and the run rate was too close. All we could do was keep the pressure on the runs and hope for the best. Persistence from our bowlers eventually paid off and the wickets fell. All out for 251 was their score.
Colreavy (5-37 was MOTM and Morcom got a point for his 98 runs.
Next up we play Sri Lanka on an even. This will be another hard match.

[boscorp]

Sri Lanka. This is the match that had our heads doing overtime. An even wicket is one we have very little experience on and i was unsure how it would play out. Sri Lanka won the toss and elected to bowl. That suited us fine as we were already geared up to bat first. Our top order batsmen played their role well and we reached drinks at 3-120. We had some wickets in hand and after a quick drink and discussion we were ready to continue. It wasn't easy and our middle order played pretty well to close the innings at 7-271. A decent score for any wicket but still within reach.
Our bowlers took to the challenge with a couple of early wickets but still had no real advantage by drinks with their score being 4-120. A solid partnership from Sri Lanka kept them well in the game till some late wickets from our spinners brought the game back to life, With over 70 runs needed in 10 overs and only their tail remaining we realised we had the match won. We won by 46 runs.
Telemachus stood out for MOTM with 79 runs and 2-49.
van der Sander got 1 pt for his 18no and 1-18 including 3 maidens from 9 overs.

West Indies on the green is next and they look well prepared.

[leaguegod]

qualifying before the final game is an amazing result! well done.

gives the team a chance to rest some of its best players while the other group are having to fight for spots

[boscorp]

West India. We had this marked as an important fixture and we got off to a lucky start winning the toss. Our plan was to bowl first, keep the score under 180 and cruise to a win. It wasn't like that but we got the win in the end.
We got an early wicket and then struggled a bit with the score. 4-135 was the tally at drinks. We were happy with 4 wickets but the RR was a bit high. Persistence paid off as we slowly took wickets and the final score was 234. Scoring runs was hard on the green wicket but our batsmen performed well on the day. We had some good depth in the batting and used that to our advantage in reaching our target, 8-235 was our response.
J Cormack (5-46 and 16 runs) earnt MOTM and E McNamara (2-48 and 54no) was close behind.
It was a surprise to find ourselves with 4 wins. USA next and we can prepare for an extra match.

[DEVI]

Good luck in semis winning 5 out of 5 is a great achievement.

[boscorp]

USA. We have a great record against USA and we went into the match as firm favorites with 4 wins. With the Finals in mind we decided on 6 bowlers in an effort to strengthen our batting for the next match. Winning the toss we opted to bat first. USA wasn't giving up easily and their bowling had enough zest to keep our scoring efforts at bay and under 4 an over. A ball short of an innings and we were all out for 191.
It was a defendable score and we set a field to confront their batsmen. We managed to keep USA under the run rate but the going was tough. 5-87 at drinks was about the time we realized we had the match and it wasn't long before the scoring stopped at 167 all out.
E McNamara (3-29) earnt 2 points. A great effort for his age and experience.
We play England next on an even wicket. We have a 45.95% win rate against England in OD matches.

[boscorp]

England. What a match! We were relaxed, confident and winning the toss gave us a warm feeling. That feeling was brief once our openers made it to the middle. The noise from the Pommy supporters was fierce and loud and their players looked on high alert. The home crowd took layers of our confidence and we got off to a nervous start. 2 wickets down and 36 runs after 10 overs had us in a pickle. Cox kept his head down along with Horan for a 70 run partnership before going to drinks at 3-105. We needed to up the run rate and had wickets in hand. Finally after 40 overs we had managed to get the rr up around 5 and were 5-196. We still had some good bats left and felt in the running. things went well briefly adding on around 60 runs in 7 overs. Then a hattrick took our last 3 wickets leaving us 2 overs short but with 262 runs.
1 for 7 after 3 overs was a great start but also a turning point. Donaire marched out matching the tempo of the boisterous singing from the crowd and all confidence from our opening bowlers quickly subsided. A lack of experience seemed to prevent them from overcoming their loss of concentration. Drinks came with the score at 2-138 and we had lost our advantage. We struggled and tried to stretch the game out but England were on top for the day. By the 48th over England had a 5 wicket victory.
Telemachus (75 runs and 1-53) got 2 pts
Cox (92 runs and 1 catch) 1point.

Thanks to all the players managers for their fine preparations. The players performed well and it was one of our strongest squads in a while and hopefully a sign of things to come. We have some good players coming into the new season.