BCA 2023: Golden Point under pressure to keep season alive | Ballarat Cricket Association firsts teams

The Pointies meet Brown Hill this weekend in a match that could see them either return to the top four or be resigned to lower-table obscurity.

The reigning premiers sit six points off fourth-placed East Ballarat - which has the bye - and only six points clear of Brown Hill, in seventh.

A Pointies win, coupled with a Napoleons-Sebastopol victory over Mt Clear, would see them leapfrog the Hawks due to their superior percentage. But, recent batting woes leave a major obstacle in front of any potential rise.

Golden Point was dismissed for 63 against Naps-Sebas last weekend - a Luke Corden double hattrick the catalyst for a 9-38 collapse.

Brown Hill enters as somewhat of an unknown prospect, having had a bye last weekend, and with finals aspirations itself, a win is just as important.

The Bulls are on a three-match losing streak but are no easy beats, having dismissed Wendouree for 147 before the holidays; Tom Bourke-Finn finishing with five wickets.

Golden Point and Brown Hill are yet to meet this season.

At Napoleons, Mt Clear returns for its first game after the break, looking to continue its form with the bat.

The Mounties posted 271 runs last time on the back of Matt Goonan and Tom Le Lievre half-centuries.

Mt Clear and Naps-Sebas played out a draw in a rain-effected two-day match earlier this season.

Meanwhile, the season's two frontrunners have their chance to draw further away when they take on the competition's winless sides.

Ladder-leader Darley is back at home against Ballarat-Redan, while Wendouree hosts Buninyong.

Playing their first game of the year, the Two Swords meet a Darley side at the peak of its powers, having dismissed Buninyong for 70.

Life gets no easier for the Bunnies with Wendouree out to extend a seven-match unbeaten run.

BROWN HILL V GOLDEN POINT

Brown Hill : Tom Bourke-Finn(c), Ryan Knowles, Jason Knowles, Hamish Irvin, Kento Dobell, Fraser Hunt, Jaxon Thomas, Nathan Porter, Shashi Fernando, Akila Lakshan, Prabath Priyankara

Golden Point: Joshua Pegg(c), Joshua White, Andrew Falkner, Andrew Warrick, Simon Ogilvie, Daniel McDonald, Jack Bambury, Lukas Pegg, Leo Turnbull-Gent, Manjula De Zoysa, Lachlan Herring

WENDOUREE V BUNINYONG

Wendouree: Ryan Simmonds(c), Thomas Godson, Heath Pyke, Mathew Begbie, Tom Batters, Brandon Weatherson, Tristan Maple, Liam Brady, Cole Roscholler, Liam Wood

Buninyong: Harrison Bond(c), Brad Byrnes, Bailey Ryan, Mitchell Tierney, Hudson Palmer, Ethan Giri, Campbell Palmer, Nicholas Schiemer, Fletcher Downs, Rory Fisher, David Anderson

DARLEY V BALLARAT-REDAN

Darley: Ben Longhurst(c), Bradley Barnes, Andrew Pickett, Drew Locke, Rockey Hoey, Dilan Chandima, Harry Killoran, Hasitha Wickramasinghe, Madushanka Ekanayaka, Danza Hyatt, Mitchell Ward

Ballarat-Redan: Zac Jenkins(c), Riley Fisher, Jayden Hayes, Robert Hind, Max Riding, Thevanireshan Rajendran, Matthew Aikman, David Carton, Nathan Patrikeos, Jack Landwehr, Jack Gilbey

NAPS-SEBAS V MT CLEAR

Napoleons-Sebastopol: Daniel Scott(c), Luke Corden, Nathan Doonan, Jonah Healey, Dylan Sexton, Dylan York, Sajith Dissanayaka, Janath Tissera, Viraj Pushpakumara, Corey Hucker, Mayank Sharma

Mt Clear: Jarrod Burns(c), Jacob Smith, Thomas Le Lievre, Grant Trevenen, Nathan Yates, Matt Goonan, John Butler, Zack Maple, Lachlan Payne, Joel Moriarty, Jack Jeffrey