Quick Haag and Voorburg travel to Amstelveen and Rotterdam to take on VRA and VOC respectively in this weekend’s Hoofdklasse semi-finals knowing that their opponents’ home advantage makes the challengers’ task hugely more difficult.

VRA have lost at home only once this season, and that was to VOC in a game where the home side was without its four internationals. VOC have lost only twice at Hazelaarweg: to VRA in early May, and to Hermes-DVS a couple of weeks ago.

Difficult as their task may be, however, both Quick and Voorburg have the players to buck the form-book and take their side into next week’s final.

Led by skipper Edgar Schiferli, Quick’s seam battery of Darron Reekers, Somesh Kohli, Jeroen Brand and brothers Henk-Jan and Geert Maarten Mol has been among the most effective in the competition, and has ensured that Quick have beaten VRA in their last two encounters.

But those victories were in Schiedam in the Twenty20 semi-final and on their own ground at Nieuw Hanenburg, and Amstelveen’s turf wicket and large, fast outfield are a different matter entirely.

The battle between Quick’s seamers and a VRA batting line-up which includes Ryan Maron, who has so relished the opening slot he has filled this season that he is now the Hoofdklasse’s leading run-scorer, Darrin Murray, Peter Borren, Wesley Barresi, and Garth Brown should be one of the highlights of the play-offs. The Amsterdam side undoubtedly miss the injured Eric Szwarczynski, but they still have the potential to post a big total.

It has been the Quick batting which has not quite measured up to the performances of the bowlers, and with only Sean Clingeleffer, Job van Bunge and Reekers averaging over 20 in the Hoofdklasse so far they will need to raise their game in this department if they are to have a realistic chance.

Clingeleffer, although he is a powerful force behind the stumps, has been a little disappointing in front of them, with 58 the highest of his three half-centuries. There will never be a more appropriate moment for him to register a really big score than in this game, with a spot in the final at stake.

By contrast with Quick’s dependence on seam, VRA’s attack features three spinners. Mangesh Panchal has been a hugely valuable acquisition this year, and if he is unlikely to repeat last week’s figures of four for 4 in ten overs, he caused batsmen trouble throughout the season. He is backed up by Adeel Raja and Jeroen Oskam, and they are certain to play a big part in the outcome.

The advent of Sohail Bhatti, on the other hand, has fully compensated for the withdrawal of Victor Grandia from the seam attack, and with Joost Leemhuis back in the side, the VRA bowling now has a better balanced look than it did earlier in the season.

It should not be forgotten, however, that Quick registered their highest total of the year – 266 – at Amstelveen back in June, and came within 25 runs of VRA’s 292 for six. With so much riding on it, this game is likely to be just as thrilling as that one was.

Voorburg have had an extraordinary season: although they tied two of their first four matches, they did not record their first win until mid-June, but since then they have won eight out of eleven games to claim third place and their play-off spot.

The transformation seems to have been triggered by Tim de Leede’s hand-over of the captaincy to John Sist, from which point on De Leede has recovered the consistency with the bat which eluded him early in the season. His not-out 93 against Hermes last week took his aggregate to exactly 500, and with 25 wickets into the bargain he is again one of the outstanding all-rounders in the competition.

With Ryan Le Loux, Safaraz Gondel, Mohammed Rafi and Ehtisham Chaudry Mohammed all doing well with both bat and ball, Voorburg have developed greater strength in depth, although the question still remains whether they have quite enough firepower to overcome a VOC side which has already beaten them twice this year.

Xavier Doherty is, of course, VOC’s trump card, with more than 500 runs and 38 wickets to his name so far, and his contribution has been vital in ensuring that the Rotterdam side finished the home-and-away series in the top two.

Together with skipper Bas Zuiderent, he adds solidity in a batting line-up which also includes opener Maarten van Ierschot and Daan van Everdingen, whose emergence along with his younger brother, spinner Koen, has also been a key factor in VOC’s success.

Doherty’s spin, backed up by veteran Robbie de Widt and youngster Koen van Everdingen, has also made a big contribution, with the seam attack of Reinout van Ierschot, Ernst van Giezen and Jelte Schoonheim doing its share without ever looking completely dominant.

For both sides, much will hinge on capturing the wickets of their opponents’ danger-men before they get settled: if Zuiderent and Doherty, or De Leede and Le Loux, are able to build a big partnership, then the game may quickly go their team’s way.

One thing is certain: two terrific games of cricket are in prospect, and it is to be hoped that the
weather does not get in the way. Showers are forecast, but hopefully they won’t have an effect on either game.