One of the fiercest rivalries in the Northern Tablelands will get underway on Saturday when Hillgrove and Easts go head-to-head in a grand final replay. The two sides have been the benchmark teams in the first grade competition for a number of years and this season is expected to be no different.
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Hillgrove captain Matt Schaefer said Saturday’s clash will be “biggest game of the season so far.”
“The bowling line-up of Easts is probably a bit stronger than the sides in the comp we have faced so far,” he said.
“We are up for the challenge and are looking forward to it.”
The reigning premiers have four players unavailable for the encounter and will call upon the club’s depth to cover it.
“We are only bringing one up from seconds, a young guy called Will Waterson, he's at uni and has played a couple of games of second grade this year so he will get a chance in the top grade,” Schaefer said.
Easts captain Sam Uphill agreed with his counterpart and said their bowling will have to be sharp.
“Their batting line-up is their strength so our bowling is going to have to be on top. Probably quick wickets with the new ball will be key so if we can expose their middle order with the new rock it will be fairly good I think. We will be fairly close to full strength,” he said.