Melbourne, Manchester in limited-overs showdown

Jermaine Lannaman, Gleaner Writer

It should be a battle royal at the Courtney Walsh Oval today when Melbourne Kangaroos meet Manchester Lions in the semi-final of the Jamaica Cricket Association (JCA) limited overs knockout championship.

For two teams who are unbeaten in the competition, the matchup will see Melbourne aiming to defend their title, while for Manchester, the goal will be to add the limited-overs title to the two-day crown they earned earlier this year.

The other semi-final between St Ann Cutters and Hanover Dolphins will be played at the Ultimate Cricket Ground in St Ann. Both games begin at 10 a.m.

Leading the way for Melbourne, who will be going for a fourth straight hold on the crown, will be Marlon Samuels, Donovan Pagon, Carlton Baugh and in-form all-rounder Damion Jacobs.

"It's two good teams, but we will be doing our best to defend our titles," Melbourne's coach, Donald McNaughton, told The Gleaner.

"In basically the finals of the Super League, they got the better of us on first innings on the final day, which landed them the title.

"They also beat us in the semi-final of last year's competition, albeit we defeated them in the final of the limited-overs event. So we know what they are capable of," he added.

Prepared for the challenge

Manchester will be banking on Donovan Sinclair, Brian Clarke, Jamie Merchant and Howard Powell.

Barry Barnes, the coach of Manchester, says his team also knows what Melbourne are capable of and they are prepared for the challenge.

"The chemistry is good and I am expecting a good performance from the team," Barnes said.

"We expect it to be a very close encounter. They are the defending champions and to throw them off their throne we will have to come good," he added.

In the quarter-finals, Melbourne defeated Portland Alligators by eight wickets and Manchester got the better of a star-studded St Catherine Saints team by three wickets.

As it relates to the St Ann versus Hanover matchup, much will be expected of St Ann's Xavier Marshall, Gifton Wray and Ricardo Dacres.

The trio were instrumental in the men from the Garden Parish's 48-run quarter-final win over Clarendon Bears.

Hanover, who defeated Westmoreland in a bowl-off in their quarter-final fixture, will look to the Blackwood brothers - Jermaine and Hugh - and Omar Campbell and Kadian McKenzie to pull off victory.