Date: 30th July 2010
Skem Skipper In Defiant Mood
Skelmersdale are 58 points away from safety at the bottom of the First Division of the Bridging Finance NW Liverpool Competition - yet skipper Andy Molyneux believes that his side should not be underestimated.
The Scott Rees Park skipper has been encouraged by his side's recent performances and insists that his players will be fighting to the very end to pull off what would be one of league cricket's great escape acts. "We always knew it would be hard in this division this season and we'll be lucky to avoid the drop," said Molyneux. "But we're keeping our heads up. We lost important tosses at both Sefton Park and Wigan in the last fortnight, yet we had Robbie Houghton's team eight down when they won the game and we made Wigan battle for nearly thirty overs to score just over a hundred runs."
Molyneux is hoping that his side will take their improved form into tomorrow's game against Southport and Birkdale, who themselves collapsed from 97 for one to 115 all out last Saturday, and he is encouraged by the attitude shown by his players recently. "In one sense we've been affected by the departure of players like Mohammed Zahid and Andy Birks," he said. "On the other hand, the people I've got at the club now are the people who genuinely want to play for Skelmersdale. "Zahid was our professional and when we'd lost three points early in the season because of our slow over rate, I asked him to bowl off a shorter run-up and also at the stumps. He decided he'd be better off at Huyton, while Andy Birks has opted to play for Newburgh "I think some people have walked away simply because we haven't won games, while others have objected to playing in the second team. But if you're not prepared to prove you're worth a place, you shouldn't be in the first team to begin with."
"Now at least I've got a team which fights to the end of games rather than giving in. If we go down we'll have to play at the level we're capable of. At the moment, though, the mood is very positive."
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