Skipper Ed Foster knows it’s vital Shrewsbury sign off their home programme in the Birmingham League premier division by beating Wolverhampton on Saturday to stay in the exciting race for title glory.
A perfect Bank Holiday weekend saw the second-placed London Roaders triumph at both Moseley and Wellington as they moved to within 10 points of leaders Knowle & Dorridge.
Now Foster is targeting more of the same to set up a final day showdown at Kidderminster Victoria, another team still in with a chance of ending as champs.
“We’re playing in probably the strongest league competition in the country so it’s great for us to be in this position,” said Foster, who needs just 18 runs to become the first player to rack up 5,000 Birmingham League runs for the club.
“We’ve always been a decent side but this season we’ve managed to a win a few games scrappily and that’s made a big difference for us.
“We’ll be disappointed if we’re looking back at what might have been at the end of the season so we’ve just got to put everything into these last two games.”
Foster feels Shrewsbury “owe Wolverhampton one” after losing by six wickets at Danescourt in June and he’s heartened by the fact that his side have hit form again at just the right time.
Foster will have to make at least one change this weekend as allrounder Alex Blofield has left for a few weeks travelling around Europe.
He will be replaced by Wolverhampton old boy Jon Anders or potential debutant Jack Hudson-Williams.
Meanwhile, Foster is expecting an exciting day’s cricket when Shropshire’s top four teams battle it out in the Salop Leisure Knockout Twenty20 tournament at London Road on Sunday.
Holders Shrewsbury play St Georges in the first semi-final at 10am and next up will be Shifnal against Wellington. The two winners will then contest the final.
“The Salop Leisure Knockout Twenty20 is a great competition for Shropshire because it’s not often that the best four teams in the county get to play against each other,” said Foster.
“There’s the added excitement of coloured kits in this popular Twenty20 format.”
The following Sunday, September 12, Shrewsbury host Himley in the Birmingham League Twenty20 Challenge Cup final. SHREWSBURY (v Wolverhampton) from: E. Foster, R. Bishop, W. Parton, R. Foster, J. Leach, T. Cox, S. Leach, S. Barnard, P. Donaldson, E. Green, J. Anders, J. Hudson-Williams.
By Stuart Dunn