Walter can’t carry Marshall alone, declares captain

MARSHALL captain Kal Dubbeldam has called on his charges to lighten the load on boom recruit Corey Walter as the Bears gear up for a crunch clash against Murgheboluc.

Walter has proved a revelation at his new club — belting 253 runs at an average of 63.25 in four matches — but Dubbeldam concedes the former Collendina star has had little support from his teammates.

In the last clash with Tor- quay, Walter was the only batsman in the Bears’ top order to fire, making 63 as they crashed to a 62-run defeat.

“We were fairly disappointed,” Dubbeldam said.

“We’ve been a little bit off for the start of the season, really. I don’t think we’re playing as well as we would’ve liked.

“The bowling has been relatively good, but with the batting, we’ve got Corey firing with the bat but we need more people to contribute around him.”

Registering scores of 74, 29, 87 and 63, Walter’s sublime form has even exceeded the expectations of Dubbeldam.

“I’ve been surprised,” Dubbeldam said.

“I’ve got a few mates down on the Bellarine that said he was pretty handy, but I didn’t know how well he was going to go straight away.

“It’s been seven years since he played on turf and he’s come in and done it with ease. He’s got more to give as well.

“He’s been getting starts — 60s and 70s — but I’m expecting a real big score from him soon.”

Walter’s feats have been even more remarkable, given he has carried a side strain since the pre-season.

“He was a bit dodgy batting in the first few weeks and he wasn’t able to bowl, so his best is yet to come,” Dubbeldam said.

“He hasn’t even bowled a ball in a game. He’s got two strings to his bow and he’s only going to get better.”

Dubbeldam revealed he hopes to throw the ball to Walter in the coming weeks, with the all-rounder slowly returning to full fitness.

“He’s been vitally important for us with the bat, so we haven’t pushed him too hard,” Dubbeldam said.

“We’ve got a decent bowling group and we’ve been getting by, so we’re just trying to give him more time.

“He’ll bowl 10-20 overs a game in the middle, slowing it down. But he swings it, so I’d been keen to chuck it to him early to give him a chance to do something with it.

“I honestly haven’t seen him bowl at all.”

Jake Dubbeldam (fishing trip) and Cameron Fletcher (quad) will return for the Bears, who will be under pressure to perform with the bat.

“We’ve obviously spoken about it, and while we’re a young group, we’ve played enough cricket and we all know it’s more about clicking as a batting group,” Dubbeldam said.

“There’s five new blokes in the batting line-up, but it won’t take too long. The guys have been working hard and we’ve been doing effort sessions and some of the boys have been training three times a week doing extra batting sessions, so the time will come.”