FERGUSLIE skipper Stuart Murray last night laughed off the notion that his side will continue to feature in the relegation dogfight.
The Paisley outfit plunged to equal bottom of the table thanks to last weekend's surprise defeat by Poloc – howe
ver Murray is confident the revival will begin on home turf today against Ayr, another of their oldest rivals.
"I strongly believe we will win at least half our remaining matches and haul ourselves clear of trouble," explained the captain. "This was always going to be a transitional season with so many youngsters in the side, though it has been tougher than we probably expected. We knew we wouldn't be blowing teams away on a regular basis.
"The purpose of this campaign is to consolidate and then make use of the experience gained by the kids in the squad."
One of Ferguslie's best prospects, Jamie Carruthers, returns to action after a back problem. He replaces Tim Preston-Jones.
Ayr have blown hot and cold since their spell at the head of the title race at the start of the season and – as ever – they will be pinning their hopes on Kiwi pro Matt Horne.
Former skipper Ian Stanger has opted to restrict his comeback from retirement to just one match and won't be featuring in the Greenock line-up against Heriot's at Glenpark.
The former Scotland World Cup all-rounder donned his whites again last weekend as Greenock plunged to defeat at the hands of pacesetters Grange at Raeburn Place. However, he has opted not to attempt to revive his career after telling team-mates he "just didn't feel right" going back in a playing capacity to the game he loves.
Despite his ongoing back-injury problems, Craig Wright will again lead the side – though only as a batsman. He said: "I think the situation is improving slowly and I will try to play as big a part as I physically can against Heriot's in what will be a very important match."
Greenock will still be without frontline bowlers Dewald Nel and Sean Weeraratna, along with all-rounder Richie Berrington and player-coach Tony Judd, who are all on Intercontinental Cup duty with Scotland in Canada.
Stanger's place goes to Shailef Prabhu, while Jonathan Hempsey returns for Craig Wooler.
Heriot's will be aiming to build on their surprise capital derby success against Carlton.
International short-game specialist Gregor Maiden is missing from the Grange line-up as they bid to bolster their position at the top of the pile by beating Clydesdale at Raeburn Place.
The home team will still enter the fray as clear-cut favourites, though spokesman Joe Barrett insisted Dale are the type of side to throw down a banana skin. He said: "They have been performing a lot better recently and we know that if we drop our guard we could be in trouble.
"We were at pains not to ease up against an understrength Greenock last week and we will be equally focussed this time round."
Included in the Grange line-up are rookies Oliver Hairs and Max Banks.
Poloc will be without new dad Brian Spence as they aim to use last week's win against Ferguslie as a springboard to dodge the drop.
Euan Ferguson deputises behind the stumps against Carlton at Grange Loan, while 18-year-old Noman Kenneth replaces Hassar Khan, who has work commitments. The Glasgow outfit will be inspired by the memory of their last visit to Grange Loan two seasons ago when they carved out a thrilling victory.
Spokesman Keith Young said: "Our batting and fielding have improved in recent outings and we want to keep up the standard."
Watsonians earned a major confidence boost last weekend when they toppled Clydesdale at Titwood, however they are likely to find Uddingston in a less charitable mood.
The Lanarkshire outfit crushed Ayr in another encounter where the toss proved crucial.
With the Myreside square sure to be on the moist side, the flip of the coin will again be an important factor.
The full article contains 676 words and appears in The Scotsman newspaper.
