Hosting side Karramomus is out to square its ledger after an opening Haisman Shield loss to Tatura, and seeing the Rod Kilmartin Memorial Trophy whisked away is sure to have left a sour taste on the tongues of the Bloods.
However, standing in their way this weekend is Nagambie.
The Lakers’ 128-run loss against Kyabram was far from an ideal start and, like a prodded bear, Karramomus would be silly to think Mark Nolan’s charges won’t have a frenetic hunger about them at Vibert Reserve.
Another chip stacked against the Bloods is their track record against Nagambie.
Though recent annals reveal a 2-1 imbalance in the Lakers’ favour during the past three seasons, it wasn’t pretty for Karramomus the last time these sides met in February.
A rampant Ben Tarran carried his bat all the way to make 84 which saw Nagambie 3-220; Karramomus was then strangled to fall short of the required total by more than 100 runs.
But with a fairly remodelled Bloods outfit stepping out this season, the side’s buoyancy will be tested in games such as the Nagambie contest — and make no mistake, there are game-defining players housed within Karramomus’ ranks.
Zane Newbound and Angus Heslin took three poles apiece when Tatura was in town, while middle-order maestros Bayden Bailey and Billy Jones made serious inroads with the bat before being dismissed in round one.
As for Nagambie, not much needs to be said about its individual capabilities.
What will be put under the microscope come Saturday is the Lakers’ competence in putting a side to the sword following a defeat — especially when approaching the fixture as a heavy favourite.
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