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Lions aim to bounce back

Johannesburg - After suffering a heavy defeat to the Dolphins on Sunday, Highveld Lions captain Stephen Cook could be forgiven if he felt the universe was conspiring against his side.

With three players on national duty in the UAE and four key players missing through injury, the Lions lost a handy toss at Senwes Park and their inexperience showed in a total of 171 all out.

Nevertheless Cook has retained his rosy demeanour, and is grateful for the slew of fixtures coming his way this week as the Lions play three One-Day Cup games in five days - starting with a match against the Warriors at 15:00 on Wednesday afternoon.

"We just didn’t have any of those outstanding performances where somebody stood up and took the game by the scruff of the neck," Cook said of Sunday’s six-wicket loss.

"We sort of stayed in the game - everyone did okay.

"We’re not doom and gloom about things, though; we know we weren’t at our best, but the games come so thick and fast that you can bounce back almost straight away."

The good news for the Lions is that Neil McKenzie is close to returning and could even play in Wednesday’s game, while Cook expects a better batting surface at Senwes Park this time around.

Cook and his fellow batsmen will come up against an in-form Wayne Parnell, who claimed career-best figures of 6 for 51 on Saturday as the Warriors beat the odds to defend a target of 243 against the Knights.

"It’s massive for team morale to win games where you shouldn’t," Parnell reflected.

"It also gives you confidence for when you get into those positions again, because you know that you’re capable of pulling off a result.

"The Lions are a quality outfit and even if they are missing a few players through injury they can’t be taken lightly because they have a very good bowling attack.

"I think it could be a very good game."
 
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