Mitch Swain says Gunnedah will secure a War Veterans Cup final spot by beating Armidale at Wolseley Park on Sunday, when the side resumes their search for redemption.
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Gunnedah are motivated by the disappointment of missing out on last season’s final after a last-round away loss to Inverell.
With two games remaining, Gunnedah are second on the ladder – one point behind reigning champions Narrabri.
Swain said a home final awaited Gunnedah if they beat Armidale and then downed Inverell away in the last round on February 10. Narrabri have a bye this weekend.
There’s definitely an expectation from us that we go one better this year and make the final.
- Mitchell Swain
Gunnedah produced a big effort in their bid to win last season’s Cup, with the town’s top players answering the selection call. That enthusiasm has flowed over to this campaign.
Swain said: “We were very disappointed about last year and how the end of that unfolded.
“There’s definitely an expectation from us that we go one better this year and make the final – and then reassess it.
“But it starts this weekend. And Armidale, if they manage to get a side together, they’ll certainly be pretty competitive. They still have some reasonable cricketers up in that area.”
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Swain said Gunnedah would field a near full-strength side on Sunday and would go into the match confident, as “we’ve got blokes scoring runs and taking wickets and in a bit of form”.
“We’ll have a couple out through shift work at the mines [Kyle Gallen and Ben Haire],” he added. “So we won’t quite be a full strength, but we'll be reasonably close [to full strength].”
Swain said Brad Jenkinson was still recovering from a shoulder injury and would not bowl, but would be used as a specialist batsman.
