Naturally Geoffrey Toyana is claiming that the bizhub Highveld Lions’ final round-robin match in the Ram Slam T20 challenge tonight is “just another game”.
It’s a small lie on Toyana’s part, but one that is based on trying to take the pressure off his side, who have seen their lead on the log standings disappear in a week. The Lions face a realistic scenario that could see them having to travel for a play-off game on Wednesday when, for so much of the competition, a home final looked like being a “sure thing”.
The Lions face the KZN Dolphins at the Wanderers this evening knowing that in order to host the final – always a lucrative match for the union – they will need to arrest the slide that has seen them slip to second place on the table. The equation for them is quite simple – win and the final takes place at the Wanderers on April 7. Lose, and possibly pack the bags for a trip either to Centurion or Port Elizabeth.
“It’s just another game for us even though we’re under a bit of pressure now,” Toyana said. “We know what we have to do and things are still in our own hands.”
Their destiny is very much in their own hands, although last week the Lions allowed two gilt-edged opportunities to secure top spot – and thereby remove all tension from today’s encounter from the equation – to slip when they lost from winning positions in Centurion and in East London, ironically to the sides who they are likely to face in the play-off or final next week.
Mentally that won’t be good for them. The Titans, who last season finished strongly and then came to the Wanderers to win the final, have again chased them down and as the round-robin phase concludes, are playing the best cricket in the competition. While they sit back to watch this evening’s drama unfold, at the back of everyone’s mind will be the fact that Matthew Maynard’s men have a host of potential match-winners in their ranks, which will be further supplemented by the availability of AB de Villiers for the rest of the competition. The Titans are favourites to retain their crown.
“I think it’s the nature of T20 cricket where momentum plays such a big role,” Toyana explained. “We started out really well and then had two bad games last week where we lost by a few runs, although in saying that both were tight games. “So there’s no panic in the camp. We know if we have a good game, we’re in the final and that’s what we’re looking forward to.”
The Dolphins have had a wretched time of it, missing key players through injuries and again had a couple of matches abandoned due to inclement weather (which seems to follow them around). Given what’s at stake for the top three sides, they won’t want to be soft on the Lions this evening.
Tonight’s match is all about the home team though. If they can display somewhere close to the kind of form which they showed in the early stages of the competition – and get back some of that momentum – they should win. The big test for the Lions, though, is a mental one. With so much at stake for them in a season in which they’ve played such excellent cricket but only have a shared trophy, and two runners-up spots to show for their efforts, they will be desperate tonight. Desperation can work two ways, Toyana must hope it works the right way for his side.
In tonight’s other fixture, the Chevrolet Warriors travel to Cape Town to face the Cape Cobras. - The Star