Deep impact: Hungry Sharks eyeing surge to the top
GROWING depth has Geelong City confident it is a better team than last summer when the Sharks fell short in the GCA2 grand final.
Tipped by many as a flag favourite heading into this season, Geelong City did its hopes no harm by thumping Marshall by 128 runs on Saturday, bowling the Bears out for only 75.
New Sharks coach Scott Lindsay has come into the club with an emphasis on training hard, and fielding, both of which paid off in the opening day of action.
“We have been training very well and Scott has been really good in creating a match-like environment at training and we have a really deep squad this year,” skipper Jack Driver said.
“There are people playing in the twos who should be playing in the ones probably and there are people in the threes who should be playing twos, so it creates a real intensity that you need to prepare for the season.”
The depth was on display against Marshall, when the middle order of Alex Inglis (23) and Mitch McGlade (48) rallied around Driver (101 not out) to build a winning total.
He missed out on Saturday by making a duck, but allrounder Logan Taylor speaks to the deep batting line-up, having come in at nine against Marshall after batting at three for most of last season.
“(Those three players) are playing in the middle order but they are top-order batsmen,” Driver said.
“Our depth is good enough that we know if we are three or four (wickets down) we can dig ourselves out because we know that the batters coming in could easily be batting in the top-four.”
Driver said he was impressed by the work of Englishman James Leather on debut, after the fast bowler took 1-22 from eight overs and “was quick with the breeze”.
“He probably deserved more but he came back on late and got (a wicket), which was good to see,” he said.