BBF’s Bank Holiday battles

The only NBL action scheduled for the weekend sees the Herts Falcons come up against the London Mets in what could be a decisive pair of games in the playoff battle. The Mets haven’t played since sweeping the Lakenheath Diamondbacks on the first weekend of the season and will want to stop Herts getting away from the pack, while a sweep for the Falcons would see only them and the Mustangs possessing records better than .500.

The rain date scheduled for the South and Midlands AAA teams may not be taken advantage of as rain hasn’t yet made a huge impact on schedules, whereas those in the North will have to complete their league fixtures. The Trojans can jump back to top of the standings if they can defeat Halton Jaguars twice, but a split will see them in second at best after three weeks of the season. Cartmel Valley Lions host the Menwith Hill Patriots, with different agenda items for each; the Lions can take second with a sweep while the Patriots will hope for a win or two to revitalise their 2013 campaign.

AA South sees only a double header between the London Mammoths and Sidewinders, although a sweep for either could set them up for a big run at the championship, while in the North there’s a full set of six for the schedule. Bolton Robots of Doom and Manchester As – both in AAA North last year – need to bolster their win columns soon as the Hull Scorpions and Sheffield Bladerunners do battle. Harrogate Tigers are putting together their challenge slowly but surely this season, and two likely wins over the Oldham North Stars would see them move nicely into second and add distance to some of their close rivals.

Only the one game in Single-A South, too, this weekend, as the Haverhill Blackjacks will want to make it third time lucky against the streaking Tonbridge Bobcats. Like all games in this division, decent pitching and good fielding will be the key for victory, but Tonbridge also have some pop in their bats to match the best in the division.