THINGS got a little hairy for Wodonga in their semi-final win over Lavington last weekend, but captain Mason Brown believes the only way to go is up.
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The Panthers’ run chase fell short by just six runs last weekend, and Brown knows his side was perhaps a little bit lucky to be getting ready to face Corowa in this weekend’s preliminary final.
A vintage performance from veteran Leigh Collins was arguably the difference, with the Provincial premiership player adding 38 runs as the tail wagged, before claiming an important five wicket haul to keep Wodonga’s nose in front.
Brown said the Bulldogs had let several chances go by the wayside, but was optimistic his team could learn from their errors.
“Lavington are always good competition, with it being their first year in the comp they were out to prove a point and they made it a very tough game,” he said.
“Their last partnership put on a lot of runs, we had our chances but didn’t take them all – credit to Lavington for making the game close.
“That said, a win is always positive.
“The biggest thing we’ll take out of that is that we know how much better we can be, we’ve just got to keep working and fix those little mistakes.”
Collins concurred, saying the team needed to focus on things that worked.
The experienced paceman also praised fellow speedster Charlie Jackson, with Collins saying the younger of the pair was unlucky not to have more than one wicket.
“It was a great game, I was the lucky one getting wickets,” he said.
“Charlie Jackson and I had a good spell together, he was probably unlucky not to have a couple more.”
With more than his fair share of finals experience under his belt, Collins said the Bulldogs ought to be wary of Corowa.
“The key will be to stick to the basics, Corowa are going to be very tough to beat,” he said.
“They’ve got guys coming into form for finals and have a point to prove coming into the comp from the WDCA.
“They’re better than their record, we’d put them as the danger side in the finals.
“We’ll have to play well, play with consistency.”
It’s a similar story for Yackandandah, who face minor premiers Dederang in the other preliminary final after losing to Corowa.
Captain Andrew Lockett said getting star batsman Andrew Creamer out early would be crucial – as it always is against Dederang.
“Getting that momentum is going to be key,” he said.
