Tara Murray
Newport Rams got a crucial win in the race for finals spots in the Baseball Victoria summer league division 2.
In a competition where one loss could see a side drop several positions, every win is vital in the run home.
The Rams were able to overcome difficult conditions against Preston to come away with a 7-2 win on Sunday.
Rams coach Sean Arnott said they had spoken about the importance of getting the win first up coming off the break.
“The next five weeks we play three of the bottom sides and two of the sides up the top,” he said.
“If we can knock off the bottom sides and challenge the top sides, we’ll be pushing for finals.”
Arnott said on Sunday against Preston they had to overcome the conditions and their opponent to get the win.
“It was tough conditions,” he said. “Newport is always a hard place for the hitters.
“There was a strong breeze coming in yesterday. We hit the ball really well and were able to keep their hitters in check.”
The win has the Rams in third position with seven rounds remaining.
Arnott said he would have taken that spot at the start of the season, but admits the season hasn’t been completely smooth.
“It has been up and down,” he said. “In the lead up to Christmas we didn’t have a full side and the form was up and down.
“I wouldn’t say I’m happy but we were in a good enough position to challenge for finals.
“Hopefully we can put it all together the next few weeks with the gap from first to eighth only a couple of games.
“Every game is important, you drop one or two in a row and you go out of finals.”
The Rams hopes have been boosted by the return of two key players.
Two of the side’s best hitters Dean Malthouse and Cameron Lyons will be back after returning from overseas and will play key roles in the run home.
Lyons played on the weekend and Malthouse is back home this week.
The Rams this week face Cheltenham Rustlers, who are also pushing for a finals spot.
Arnott said the Rustlers, who dropped from first to fifth after a loss on the weekend, would be a good challenge.
Overall things are going strongly at the club with all five sides in the top four at the moment.
The club leads the club championship, which Arnott said they don’t focus on, but would be a good achievement to win.
