The Lakers slipped to second on the ladder with the defeat, with the side's batsmen struggling during last Saturday's run chase.  

The team slumped to 8-86 and captain Mark Ulcigrai said his side must improve their batting against a quality bowling lineup this week. 

"Last week was disappointing, but I could sense it had been coming for a little while," Ulcigrai said. "It's good it came in a round game and not the semi-finals.

"I thought we got ourselves out with poor shot selection. It was disappointing to watch it happen one after the other.

"Guys need to build an innings, getting yourself set to score some big runs. The other biggest thing is we can't lose wickets frequently, it gives the other side momentum and puts us under pressure."

With Oak Flats facing fourth-placed Kookas on Saturday, and Shellharbour sitting in third place, there is every possibility the round 14 matches will be repeated in week one of the finals. 

For Ulcigrai, that makes this week's match even more important.

"To get a win and get that winning feeling back would help us if we do play Shellharbour in the semis. Funny things happen in semi-finals, it's typically about who turns up on the day, but some momentum heading into the semis would be great.

The final match of the round will see The Rail take on Kiama/Gerringong, with both teams already eliminated from finals contention. 

Saturday March 9 1pm: THE RAIL v KIAMA/GERRINGONG at Croome Cricket Oval, SHELLHARBOUR v LAKE ILLAWARRA at Tom Willoughby Oval, KOOKAS v OAK FLATS at Oakleigh Park.