Tara Murray
Sunshine Eagles will get a clearer idea of where it sits in the Baseball Victoria summer league division 1 competition in the lead up to the Christmas break.
After losing in round one, the Eagles have put together three straight wins on the back of some efforts late in games to win some close matches.
Eagles coach Stuart Clayton said while it was a close competition, he admits the teams they’ve played so far are likely to be towards the bottom of the table.
“We’ve got a couple of tough games in Upwey and [top side] Geelong coming up,” he said before the weekend’s match.
“It will be good to see where we are before the break. It will be good to play the good sides.
“The competition is really close, so a day off can cost us.”
Clayton said the side had started to improve as the season progressed. He said they were hitting the ball better as each week progressed.
A key for the Eagles had been the way they were playing out their games. Two of three wins they’ve came from behind, while the third was a thriller.
They are currently sitting fourth on the ladder.
“We pride ourselves on playing until the last out of the game,” he said.
The side is set for a boost in the coming weeks with two key players set to return.
One is Jeremy Young who is yet to play due to injury. Clayton said before the weekend that he was a chance to return for the weekend’s match.
The other is Clayton Campbell, who is currently in America.
“He’s currently in the states trying out for major league teams,” he said.
“He’ll be back after Christmas. It’s fantastic and he’s a ripper of a kid.
“He came down to Melbourne this year to get some experience and now he’s trying out for Major League teams.
“He’s been working really hard.”
Clayton said overall as a team they still had a fair bit of improvement to come. He said defensively was one area they had been working on.
“We can definitely still improve,” he said.
“We have some work to do and hopefully we’ll keep getting better.”
Clayton said the vibe across the club had been good. Like the firsts, the other men’s teams still haven’t been able to hit full capacity with the bat.
The club’s women’s side which has reformed this season is setting undefeated.
In just three matches, they’ve scored 58 home runs.
Clayton said from talking to others at the club, the women’s side has been really smashing the ball.
The men’s side was due to face Upwey while the women’s team team was set to face bottom side Werribee.
Both matches were after deadline.
For results of both those games, go to www.starweekly.com.au.
