Tuesday 5 December 2017

Unbeaten Aces back home to face Canterbury

The Auckland Aces are looking to retain their spot at the top of the Ford Trophy table when they meet Canterbury at Eden Park Outer Oval tomorrow.

Speedster Lockie Ferguson returns to the Aces line-up for the match after being away on Test Match duty in Wellington.

“Any skipper would be stoked to have Lockie at his disposal,” says Auckland Aces Captain Craig Cachopa.

“He offers us the obvious pace and bounce but also has plenty of experience bowling at this level which is invaluable.”

After a convincing five-wicket win over the Central Stags, the Aces return home to play a Canterbury side expected to include Ben Stokes.

However, the Aces are preparing for more than just one man come Wednesday.

“The whole Canterbury side will be hurting after losing first up to the Volts. Ben Stokes is a class player and it will be interesting to see how he goes but there’s ten others out there so our focus can’t be on just one man,” says Cachopa.

Aces Coach Mark O’Donnell is happy with his team’s transition into white ball cricket but knows they can’t afford to rest on their laurels.

“It’s just one game, it’s done. Now we move onto the next challenge and that’s getting a win against Canterbury,” O’Donnell says.

“The young guys in the side are stepping up. It’s not always the same individuals who are being relied on which is pleasing from a coach’s point of view.”

MATCH DETAILS:

Auckland Aces v Canterbury
Wednesday 6 December
Eden Park Outer Oval
11am

Auckland Aces

Craig Cachopa (c)
Michael Barry
Mark Chapman
Lockie Ferguson
Michael Guptill-Bunce
Ben Horne
Mitchell McClenaghan
Matt McEwan
Colin Munro
Tarun Nethula
Robbie O’Donnell
Glenn Phillips

ends

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