WITH the weekend finally here, the preparations for the upcoming round of the Victorian Men’s Premier Cricket competition will be soon finalised. Last round saw some interesting results, with a number of boilovers taking place across the competition. Fans will be hoping for something similar again this week, with the race for a spot in the top eight still well and truly wide open. The most intriguing match-up comes in the form of a battle between two teams looking to stay in the top four.

Melbourne vs. Northcote

Saturday, January 22 @11am
Albert Ground

The biggest match of the round will see Melbourne play host to Northcote when the two sides face off at Albert Ground on Saturday morning. These two teams currently occupy half of the top four, setting this up to be a blockbuster clash.

Melbourne found itself on the end of a strong performance from Melbourne University, losing by eight wickets in Round 8. They will be looking to amend for this loss and return to the form that has delivered them five losses throughout the season. There are no doubts surrounding the Dees’ ability to produce a winning score, having notched a total in excess of 200 in the loss (thanks to Jack Harper‘s 107-run effort), but they will be looking to become more damaging and economical this time around, which Kyle Williamson has been known to do in the past.

Northcote s entering this match fresh off their win over Richmond, which saw the victors bat exceptionally well. They will be hoping to do something similar this week given Melbourne’s capability to post a big score itself. Jack Lalor has been fantastic at the crease for Northcote this season, and is typically a major factor in his side reaching a winning total, so expect him to play a key role here if he gets going. With ball in hand, they will be looking for the wicket of Harper early in the match.

Around the grounds now, Geelong will travel to Shepley Oval to take on Dandenong on Saturday morning. These two teams have identical records, and with some spots inside the top eight still up for grabs, the stakes are quite high heading into this match, but Dandenong will need to improve their batting total.

The next match on the agenda is the clash between Fitzroy Doncaster and Carlton at Schramms Reserve on Saturday morning. Fitzroy Doncaster are just inside the top eight with four wins and three losses so far this season, but face a tough task with their opponents in red hot form in the last two weeks.

Moving on to the next game, the Greenvale Kangaroos will be looking to continue their recent form resurgence going when they take on Frankston Peninsula at AH Butler Oval on Saturday. Both sides have won just the two matches, but the Kangaroos are currently on a winning streak of late, and will be keen on resuming their move up the ladder with a win here.

Over at Walter Galt Reserve, fans will be treated to an even matchup, with the Camberwell Magpies taking on Kingston Hawthorn on Saturday. These two sides currently occupy the bottom two spots on the ladder, so whoever emerges victorious here will get a huge boost in the context of their season.

After last week’s big win over Melbourne, Melbourne University will be eager to continue their charge into the top four when the Students take on Prahran at University Main Oval on Saturday. Prahran will head into this match as underdogs too, having won just two games so far this season, but the competition has seen plenty of upsets, so there could be one more on the cards here.

Heading over to Central Reserve North for the next match, Richmond and Casey-South Melbourne will do battle for a spot in the top eight on Saturday. Casey-South Melbourne have just snuck into eighth spot after eight rounds, but Richmond are hot on their tail in a spot behind based on percentage, so this match could very well go down to the wire.

The penultimate match of Round 9 will see Footscray look to edge closer to the top four when the Bulldogs take on Ringwood at Russell Lucas Oval on Saturday. Footscray currently sit in sixth spot on the ladder, equal fourth but miss out based on percentage so the Dogs will be hopeful of a win and some other results going their way, but will need to take down a Ringwood side keen on causing an upset.

The final match of this weekend sees the ladder-leaders in St Kilda look to maintain their throne when they take on Essendon at CitiPower Centre on Saturday. St Kilda have been the team to beat so far this season, and have not dropped a game after the first eight rounds, but Essendon will be keen on changing this and claim a season-defining win.