GREENOCK face a tough away match against West of Scotland at Hamilton Crescent in Glasgow this Saturday.
However, the team will take confidence from the good form from last weekend which brought victories against Glasgow Accies in the league and also Dunfermline and Carnegie in the quarter-final of the Cricket Scotland Challenge Cup.
West dropped down from the Western Premiership One at the end of last season but could make a quick return to the top league if their Saturday form this season is maintained.
However, Greenock will be keen to put a dent in that ambition when the teams meet at the famous Glasgow ground.
In the first half of the league programme when the sides met at Glenpark in May, it was West who came out on top after a well-contested match in which both sides scored more than 200 runs.
Greenock will welcome the return of Aussie amateur Will Jenkins after an absence of two Saturdays and will hope that his back injury has improved sufficiently to allow him to bowl some overs. As an all-rounder, however, Jenkins will have an important role to play as a batsman. He was top-scorer with 43 runs against West earlier in the season.
And if Callum Henry can play another long innings and be supported by others in the side, then Greenock have every chance of providing an upset. Henry’s run-scoring places him at the top of the Western Premiership Two batting statistics. He has scored 403 league runs, which includes three undefeated centuries, and has an average of 134.3. His century last Saturday against Glasgow Accies, 111 not out, was his highest score so far.
Greenock’s XI shows three changes from last week. Apart from Jenkins, into the side come Shailesh Prabhu and Sehmat Pandher, while the players making way are Greg McDougall, Ewan Stewart and Harry Briggs.
The West side is currently in second-top spot having completed seven matches. Only one game has been lost which was to third-placed Stirling County at the end of June. A key player is Larvet Masunda, the club’s 33-year-old Zimbabwean professional. He is a left-handed batsman and wicket-keeper. In the match at Glenpark earlier in the season he top-scored for the West team with 51 runs and took three catches behind the stumps.
West also have former Shropshire County player Joe Carrasco who fills an important middle order batting position. The side also has a number of useful bowlers and a pace attack often led this season by John Oliver and Oscar Shepperson and with the likes of the experienced Dave McNulty and also Calum Dutia available as change bowlers.
The match will start at noon. The Greenock team will be: A Sanghera (Capt), Mu Ahmadzai, CS Calder, F Dinarkheil, CJ Henry (Wk), W Jenkins, N Kadyan, CS Pandher, SS Pandher, SS Prabhu, SS Sanghera. 12th: Mo Anwar
Glenpark XI: Greenock’s 2nd XI Glenpark are at home to Ardrossan on Saturday at noon. The North Ayrshire side are currently stuck at the bottom of the Western Championship Three league table with just one win from six matches completed. Glenpark, meanwhile, are second-top, with four wins from five matches.
The team will be: M Ahmad (Capt), Ma Ahmadzai, Z Dilsoz, R Kumar, K Leema, M Mansoor, U Mansoor, A Nair, H Safi, DC Sharma, M Zeeshan. 12th Man: R Safi
Hillend XI: Greenock’s Hillend XI travel to play Stenhousemuir at The Tryst on Sunday afternoon. The side have a 100 per cent record in the West District Sunday League Division Two having played two and won two. Stenhousemuir have played just one Sunday League match in which they narrowly defeated Irvine Spartans.
Meanwhile, the Hillend XI were well beaten in their Midweek League match in Glasgow against Crow Road. Batting first, they were all out for the lowly total of 57. Crow Road then scored 63 for 3 with just four overs remaining to win the match.
Greenock Cricket Club is sponsored by Cleaning Supplies 4U
