Sudbury look to bounce back at home to Sawston & Babraham on Saturday as they continue to wait on overseas professional Rubin Hermann
The new season may only be a few games old but Darren Batch is hoping Sudbury’s strength in depth and character will shine through on Saturday to prevent them losing precious ground in the title race.
The Talbots host a Sawston & Babraham side (11am) with aspirations of their own to be crowned 2021 Read Brothers Ltd East Anglian Premier League champions.
But after Sudbury’s 26-run defeat at Great Witchingham last weekend, it is a game Adam Mansfield’s side will feel they can ill afford to lose.
Club captain Batch (inset) dismissed their being any added spice to the game though, in light of the Rams taking the 2020 competition’s play-off final spot with a victory at Friars Street in their final group match.
“No, I do not think so,” he said. “We beat them in the Suffolk (T20) Cup but both teams had fairly changed sides playing. I would not read too much into past games.”
He certainly feels they have a tough task on their hands though.
“It is going to be a tough game as they have got a very strong squad and recruited well in the off-season.
“They have won their first two and beat Frinton quite emphatically last weekend and they are a strong side so we will be expecting a tough game. But we will always back ourselves and know if we perform to the best of our abilities we can beat anyone in the league.”
With Northern Ireland-based South African CJ Van Der Walt having now left the club to return to play for Carrickfergus CC, Sudbury go into the match without the trump card of an overseas player.
They were still waiting this week on a visa application being processed for fellow South African Rubin Hermann, but he will then have to quarantine upon flying in from his homeland.
There was moves made by chairman Louis Brooks to attempt to recruit another sub-pro this week from closer to home to fill the gap, but it did not materialise into anything. However, Batch believes they have more than enough match winners to see them through.
“Of course we do,” he said, confirming they are otherwise at full strength this weekend.
And in Paddy Sadler, who has taken eight wickets across the opening two matches, adding a 4-57 at Great Witchingham, they have a change bowler who is right in form.
“He has started really well and that is great to see,” said Batch.
Adam Dellar, a winter recruit from lower-league Haverhill, also showed his worth as a mid-order batsman, ending one short of a half-century.
Reflecting on the defeat, which had seen them win the toss and elect to go into the field, Batch said: “It was disappointing really as I think we bowled well, though we let a couple of catches go down.
“It was one of those where you look back on and think if we saved 10 runs in the field and added 10 more with the bat the result could have been a different one. But it is one of those things where we did not do enough to win.”
Meanwhile, the club’s first ever girls’ match will take place on Sunday morning as the new under-11s host Chippenham.
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