Cricket North: Riverside, Westbury and Launceston aim to rule the ladder

Similar perhaps in a sense to the PGA tournament on a Saturday, we could look back on this Saturday as a pivotal moment in Cricket North's Greater North ambitions.

Cricket North sides have claimed the top five Greater Northern Cup positions with fifth-placed South Launceston on the bye. In the month ahead, Cricket North sides will jostle against each other for the play-offs as Burnie and Sheffield loom off the finals pack.

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While the finality of those play-off spots will not be known this weekend, it should go a way to shaping them.

After four wins from four starts in recent times, the Lions certainly do seem to be roaring, especially away from home where their ledger stands at three wins and a loss.

"Mowbray are a good side and they recruited well in the off-season, they've probably been the biggest improvers with their recruiting," Launceston coach Andy Gower said.

"It's another week for us, we've got to control what we can control and keep playing good cricket."

The Greater Northern Cup ladder leaders will reintroduce Tom Gray and Charlie Eastoe back into the line-up while Ben Fraser is unavailable. Eastoe's addition to the middle-order bolsters a batting unit which is only bettered by South Launceston for runs scored in the GNC.

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Against the "yardstick of the competition", Mowbray are searching internally rather than externally as they bounce back from defeat.

While the lower-order squeaked the Eagles past Devonport, the dose could not be replicated against Sheffield. While the Eagles' brains-trust are aware of the ailment, finding the solution has been somewhat problematic.

In the opening five games of the GNC, the Eagles top four combined for a hundred runs on just two occasions albeit round 2 was a bye.

"We haven't had someone at the top of the order be prepared to bat through the innings so we can put a score on the board," Mowbray captain Luke Scott said.

"It's leaving too much work up for the lower-order ... I think expecting them to get runs every week is not going to lead to us winning too many games.

"We just need to bat for longer periods of time."

After being the competition yardstick, Riverside are hoping to remedy their issues ahead of meeting an undefeated Westbury.

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The Blues stumbled against Ulverstone before they were played off the wicket against Burnie to make their final month critical with a bye still to come. While the margins of defeat differed, Riverside's allowed their coastal opponents a release of the pressure which had defined their early form.

"We just had no partnerships with the bat or the ball and we were unable to in the game and were just outplayed," coach Lyndon Stubbs said.

"That goes for the ball as well, we might have had a guy bowl two or three good overs but the guy at the other end would go for runs ... so that's the key word for us this week."

Aidan O'Connor will miss with Alex Tubb, Ben Walker and Kaidyn Apted all under consideration for selection.

An unbeaten Westbury are unlikely to change their formula heading as they welcome to the Blues to Ingamells Oval.

"Everyone did their certain role really well and the better that works the more comfortable players can be, you can know your role really profoundly so it's definitely nice to have," Westbury captain Daniel Murfet said.

Wicketkeeper James Tyson is unavailable and will be replaced by batter Matthew Allen.

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