Prestwich Sport
Flowers piles the pressure on Milnrow
5:26pm Tuesday 27th July 2010
UNSWORTH professional Calvin Flowers believes Milnrow could crack under the tag of being favourites in Sunday’s Wood Cup final at Walsden CC.
The Pole Laners are bidding to win the Central Lancashire League’s premier cup competition for the first time in their history and, even though they are underdogs, their South African professional is confident of success.
“It is special to get to the final but we have to treat it as just another game of cricket,” said 25-year-old Flowers. “We have to enjoy it because it might not happen again. Milnrow are probably the favourites but I just see that as them having all the pressure heaped on them.
“I think they have relied too heavily on their top four all season and if we can get them out cheaply, their lower order has not really been exposed much this season. I think they could be vulnerable.
“It is going to be a good game and I want to make sure I perform personally and give my team the best possible chance of winning.”
Flowers, who spent two years playing in the Worcestershire County League as an amateur seven years ago before returning home to play first class cricket for KwaZulu-Natal, is impressed with the progress of the younger players at Unsworth and hopes they can shine in the final.
“Chris Long and Andy Gregoriou are both 17-year-old and are opening the batting,” said Flowers. “I would go as far as to say they are the best opening partnership in the league.
“They get us off to some excellent starts and it is the middle order that has been a bit inconsistent.
“Jonathan O’Brien is another youngster and he opens the bowling. He is pretty quick and puts the ball into good areas.
“The team spirit in the camp is getting better and it would be great to win the Wood Cup for the first time.”
Flowers, who has made key contributions with both bat and ball in his side’s run to the final, added: “I am slowly getting to grips with the conditions over here – as my stats show.
“I think I have done okay this season because pitches over here are much slower and the conditions play more of a role.
“But I am enjoying it and it would be special to win the Wood Cup.”