Cannock recall Bloomer for trip
Cannock skipper Liam Hickey will recall Greg Bloomer for Saturday's trip to Coventry as they bid to rediscover their winning touch.
Cannock skipper Liam Hickey will recall Greg Bloomer for Saturday's trip to Coventry as they bid to rediscover their winning touch.
The abandonment of last weekend's game with Shrewsbury at least ended their run of two straight defeats, but they were forced to settle for seven points from the encounter.
Hickey is confident his mid-table side stand a good chance of success against 10th-placed Coventry and he confirmed Bloomer's 89 for the seconds had earned him another chance in the first team.
"He was initially in the first team but I decided to let him gain some form and he has done that almost immediately," Hickey commented.
"I'm looking forward to playing them and putting on a strong performance because I've heard that they've been struggling slightly."
With the mid-season point fast approaching their season could still go either way with just six points separating them and third-placed Stratford, while ninth-placed Attock are just 15 points adrift.
Hickey added: "A win could put us back into the top three, depending on other results obviously.
"A winning draw would be okay but ideally I'd like the win.
"All the teams are packed into those few places so it is important at this time not to take your foot off the gas."
Old Hill coach Steve Derham is seeking a positive response to last weekend's double blow at Attock.
The Haden Hill side lost their unbeaten record and top spot in division one as they crashed to a nine-wicket defeat.
With testing fixtures against Harborne and Bromsgrove to come over the next two weeks, Derham is hoping the reverse will prove to be nothing more than a minor blip.
He said: "We are obviously dispappointed but we are determined to bounce back.
"Results like that can re-focus everyone and send out a message that there is still a lot of hard work to be done. Hopefully that will be the case.
"We play Harborne on Saturday and then we have to play Bromsgrove, who are playing very well at the moment, so we will need to be at our best."
Nathan Round (30), Amir Farooque (27 not out) and Paul Vinas (16) provided the only resistance as Old Hill were shot out for 91 last weekend.
Halesowen skipper Mark Fisher is looking forward to being able to call on his first-choice XI for the first time this season against Dorridge on Saturday
Off spinner Kish Patel returns to contention while wicketkeeper-batsman Ben Cox is back from Worcestershire's academy.
Foster said: "They are good players that make a big difference.
His team currently stand ninth after last weekend's game with Harborne was abandoned without a ball being bowled.
Fisher insists the next month will dictate the direction of their season.
He said: "The next four or five weeks will determine whether we are vying for promotion, relegation or be in mid-table.
"We looked at the league at the start of the season and aimed for the top four. The team we will have on Saturday is the team we were hoping to use.
"This team is the first week this season that I will have been able to put the team out.
"If we can get a positive result then we can definitely push on for the top four."
