JOHANNESBURG – Cape Cobras coach Ashwell Prince is hoping their two-week break will inspire a change in fortunes when they return to Momentum One-Day Cup action against the Knights at the Recreation Ground in Oudtshoorn on Saturday.
The hosts have not played a game since February 22 when defeat to the same opponents saw them slip to the bottom of the table.
Now they return for the final three games with plenty of work to do, although they still have fate in their own hands in terms of semi-final qualification.
The Cobras’ eight-point total is just two behind the play-off spots, while they are three points adrift of the Warriors in third spot.
“We've had a couple of weeks off and maybe not at a bad time for us because we were going through a bad patch in terms of results,” Prince, whose side has two wins from seven games, said. “We had a warm-up match earlier in the week to get the guys back into the groove and that went really well.
“The next week or two that's coming up is quite important for us because it's all must win games.”
The Cobras’ eight-point total is just two behind the play-off spots, while they are three points adrift of the Warriors in third spot. Photo: Gerhard Duraan/BackpagePix
After facing the fifth-placed Knights in the South Western Districts region, they will travel to defending champions the Titans, currently fourth, before ending the phase of the round-robin action with a trip to the Warriors.
“We have had a good few results in the matches that we've played in Oudtshoorn in the last couple of years, so it's been a good ground for us,” Prince adds. “We've had some positive results there so we're looking forward to that.
“The squad has been hit by some call-ups to the national team which is always a positive. We’re really happy for Janneman (Malan) and Kyle (Verreynne). That does leave a big hole, but it also presents opportunities to others in the squad.”
For the Knights, they too understand that the stakes are high in pursuit of the top four.
🏏 It's our final #MODC home game
🐍 World Sports Betting Cape Cobras vs ⚔ VKB Knights
🗓 Saturday, 7 March
🏟 Recreation Ground, Oudtshoorn
⌚ 10:00AM #MODC #StrengthInDiversity #NewAttitude #SameTradition #COBvKNI pic.twitter.com/DBB5Sl5Nu8
— COBRAS CRICKET (@CobrasCricket) March 3, 2020
JP Triegaardt has stepped in to take charge on an interim basis until the end of the season following the stepping down of Alan Kruger as head coach.
The new man knows what they have to do this weekend. ”We had a really good win in our last game and hopefully we can jump on to that momentum without getting too far ahead of ourselves,” he said.
“Basically, we’re just focusing on what we need to do and not really worried about what other teams are doing.
“Eventually if we do get through to play-offs and stuff like that, those things will look after themselves. But we’re really taking it game by game for now.”