NORTHAMPTONSHIRE STEELBACKS V SURREY LIONS at Northampton (TSL1), 29 AUGUST 2004

Surrey embark on what will almost certainly prove to be a pivotal week's cricket. In eight days' time the Oval outfit will have just one more fixture left - the championship visit to Hove. So, one can almost hear Steve Rixon geeing up his players for one more big push. The Lions' top division existence hangs by a threat in the totesport League. However, Northants, whose final two matches are against both the teams currently lying below them in the table, have lost their last five 45-over games.

Apart from Gerard Brophy and Graeme Swann, the Steelbacks' batting line-up has been exposed in the absence of an overseas batsman in recent weeks. After Van Jaarsveld, their highest run-scorer in one-day cricket this summer has been opener Tim Roberts with 486 at an average of 27.00. That said, skipper David Sales has passed fifty more times than any Northants batter this term.

The hosts will therefore be hoping their bowlers can turn round the team's limited-overs form. Their 'bankers' are Johann Louw and Graeme Swann, but the 23-year-old Aussie seamer Paul Rofe, although expensive, is a wicket-taking threat - as he showed against Hampshire last weekend. If only Ben Phillips could find some consistency, the Steelbacks would really fancy their chances of keeping Surrey to a sub-200 score tomorrow.

For the Lions, Alistair Brown needs 35 more for 6,000 runs in his one-day league career. Azhar Mahmood has now taken 47 limited-overs wickets for Surrey, so requires three more for his 50th. If he plays, Alex Tudor is three away from 100 one-day league wickets, while Martin Bicknell is closing in on his 250th such scalp. He needs four more to achieve that landmark. 

Recent history suggests this one could go either way and the task of picking a winner is not helped by the all or nothing nature of this encounter. All I am prepared to say is that Surrey are a better one-day side than their current placing in the totesport League would suggest. But, on the flip side, there is little to choose between them and the five sides lying immediately above.

Your guess is as good as mine - no team news has been placed on the Club's official website once again! Apart from 25.1 overs' worth of play on Wednesday evening, all of the first team have had a week's rest. So, the likes of Butcher, Ormond, Ramprakash and Tudor - who were sidelined by various niggles - should, in theory, come back into contention for a place.

T Huggins, T Roberts, R White, D Sales (capt), G Swann, J Cook, G Brophy (wk), B Phillips, J Louw, P Jones and P Rofe.

27 Jul 2004	NL	Won By 39 Runs	The Oval
3 Aug 2002	NL	Lost By 102 Runs	Whitgift School
4 Jun 2002	NL	Lost By 5 Runs	Northampton
22 Jul 2001	NL	Lost By 8 Wickets	Guildford
3 Jun 2001	NL	Won By 4 Wickets	Northampton
28 Jul 1999	NWT	Won By 7 Wickets	Northampton
13 Jun 1999	NL	Lost By 5 Runs	Northampton
25 Apr 1999	NL	Lost By 4 Wickets	The Oval
19 Apr 1998	NL	No Result	The Oval
27 Jul 1997	NL	Lost By 5 Wickets	Northampton
8 Sep 1996	NL	Won By 2 Wickets	The Oval
21 May 1995	NL	Won By 14 Runs	Northampton
22 May 1994	NL	No Result	The Oval
25 Jul 1993	NL	No Result	Northampton
19 Apr 1992	NL	Lost By 5 Wickets	The Oval
14 Aug 1991	NWT	Won By 7 Runs	The Oval
7 Jul 1991	NL	Lost By 15 Runs	Tring
3 Jun 1990	NL	Won By 4 Wickets	The Oval

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