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After carefully perusing the two teams selected for Cup Match this year, I have reached the conclusion that there is no way Somerset Cricket Club will lose the match.

In fact the odds lie heavily in their favour and I am confident the Cup will be heading west this year.

I would encourage all Somerset supporters to make their way to Wellington Oval to see what I predict will be an emphatic victory for our team.

The Somerset selectors should be commended for the superb job they've done in selecting the team.

It is a well-balanced side that has obviously been chosen with claiming all twenty St. Georges wickets in mind.

Varied attack

Captain Hasan Durham has a large and varied bowling attack to call upon. In Kevin Hurdle, Malachi Jones, Jacobi Robinson and Dean Stevens you have four good quick bowlers who all have different styles of bowling.

In fact Dean is a left arm bowler and therefore adds another dimension to the attack.

The three spinners include left arm slow bowlers Hasan and 'Sluggo' while colt Derek Brangman who plays his league cricket for the legendary Devonshire Recreation Club bowls off-spinners -again providing more variety.

Finally, in Janeiro Tucker you have a stock bowler who can take wickets and don't forget Stephen Outerbridge who has the uncanny knack of being able to bowl 'yorkers' at will.

While Somerset has selected a young, vibrant, athletic and exciting group of players, I'm sorry to say that the St. Georges team looks a tad worn-out and jaded to me.

Smith,Marshall

Veterans Clay Smith and Charlie Marshall are without doubt first class players but they are on their 'last legs' and will find it a struggle to complete two days in the scorching sun.

In a sense I feel sorry for them because it is a shame that two players who have had such fabulous Cup Match careers will have to go out losers.

On another note the St. George's bowling attack looks extremely thin with George O'Brien, Arthur Pitcher Jr., Delyonne Bordern and Rodney Trott being the only specialist bowlers.

Further the East End team is not balanced.

It is top heavy with batting.

The plan appears to be to hold on to the coveted Trophy by stacking the team with batsmen, a defensive tactic that I would like to assure all of my St. George's friends is not going to work.

Somerset is too strong in the bowling department.

The wicket at Wellington Oval has yielded results all season so the smart money is on Somerset.

Weather permitting it will be a memorable occasion for all Cup Match lovers and one can only conclude by quoting well-known cricket commentator Jim Woolridge "Be There!"[[In-content Ad]]

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