DARWIN EAGLES
The Eagles will cast a watchful eye over this evening's clash between PINTs and Waratah at DXC, as they prepare to take on the Greens in their opening T20 fixture next Tuesday night. There were some good signs against a quality Nightcliff in Round 1, with all bowlers summoned to the crease conjuring at least one wicket and some promising strokeplay from their top order. It may take some time for Darwin to regenerate this season; a new coach in Darren Treumer and a focus on developing their local youth could net some interesting results. Will Pilkington looks to be one to benefit from taking part in last year's NT T20 League side, starting his campaign strongly with three wickets and an unbeaten cameo in the lower order on Saturday at The Nest. One thing is for sure, with Treumer in charge and the experienced Daniel Kerber as captain, the Eagles will have a consistent crack. This was ably demonstrated after having their top and middle order decimated by spin to leave their innings in tatters at 5/89, Darwin still fought all the way to make a respectable 156. Good early signs from a rebuilding team; will we see the fruits of that labour in this competition? Only time will tell.
WHAT TO EXPECT:
Some grinding cricket anchored around their experienced batsmen. Jacob Dickman and Mitchell Jamieson (Footscray, VIC) both know that if they can combine new ball aggression with batting through the Power Play, the Eagles will be sitting pretty and can grind out some big scores against what one would suspect to be a bevy of opposition spinners. Captain Daniel Kerber will be critical in this department, as there will be a lot of prospective rawness to navigate throughout the Darwin batting order in these conditions. Expect an injection of local spin to complement star import Smit Raval (Blacktown, NSW), as he will have opposition sticks on high alert from the get-go. Kris Denby could also be a difficult customer to get hold of in this format. The Eagles made the semi-finals in this format last year with a similar brand of cricket, only going down to eventual champions Waratah by 18 runs. It'll be a harder ask this time around, but you can definitely expect some freedom and youth to provide a glimpse towards the club's future.
PLAYER TO WATCH:
With Dickman being a known quality product up top, there's an element of mystery shrouding NSW leggie Smit Raval. He comes to Darwin off the back of some impressive performances in Sydney over the past few years, culminating in a couple of Toyota Second XI appearances and a Marsh Sheffield Shield squad selection last season. The Eagles will know his output could have a massive impact on their fortunes, and he will also be able to contribute some handy runs with the willow throughout the middle order. If Raval bowls well and finds some form in this competition, Darwin have enough quality surrounding him to pose a significant threat. Will be interesting to watch whether opposing batsmen take him on or sit on him across his four overs. One suspects that irrespective of what approach they take, Raval is good enough to do some damage either way.