Wests captain Zach Churchill says his team hopes to make the most of their good fortune after claiming a comprehensive double-bonus point win over Corrimal on Saturday.
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On a day where all of Cricket Illawarra's other first grade games were called off due to poor weather, Wests made the most of their opportunity at Ziems Oval.
Corrimal captain Zac Harding won the toss and elected to bat first, but was left to rue the decision after the hosts were rolled for 88. Jake O'Connell and Lyndon Coward picked up three wickets each for the Devils.
In reply, Wests were rewarded for being aggressive from the outset, chasing down the target in the 24th over with five wickets to spare to obtain the win and two bonus points.
"There was a bit of confusion at the end because we were trying to get the double bonus point. We thought there was one over less than what we actually had, so we probably lost a few more wickets than we needed to," Churchill said.
"I was pretty happy with the bowling performance and the effort in the field as well. Fielding is definitely where we've lacked in recent years, so to be on top of that is good. It was a very good performance.
"They chose to bat, I was going to bowl anyway, and the field was quite thick at Ziems. I thought we applied the pressure really well and stuck to our plans, and I can't fault any of the bowlers."
Churchill said the victory was the perfect way to kick off their campaign.
"When we heard we were getting on, we knew it was a really good opportunity when everyone wasn't playing, because you can pick up those extra points. And to get two bonus points with that win was huge, so we're stoked," the captain said.
"I'm not sure it's the fairest way to do it, I'm not sure whether they should look at splitting points for the teams that don't play. It's happened to us in recent years as well, where other teams get on and we didn't. It goes both ways I guess, but we were very fortunate to play on Saturday."
South Coast Cricket was also gearing up for their much-anticipated return to the field on Saturday.
However, rain wreaked havoc in that competition too, with all first grade games called off on the weekend.
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Joshua Bartlett
A sporting fanatic who is keen to promote all codes in the Illawarra and abroad. Mercury's chief football reporter.
A sporting fanatic who is keen to promote all codes in the Illawarra and abroad. Mercury's chief football reporter.
