On the road (again)
It has become fairly standard for the Belfast baseball clubs to bookend their campaigns on with a couple of jaunts up and down the motorway but Shackley and co. will no doubt be looking forward to getting home to Hydebank for a few weekends.
To earn the right for some home comforts however, the Belfast Northstars will have a tough test to get through in the shape of the Dublin City Hurricanes and the Dublin Spartans. For some members of the men in maroon, this will be the first time in a while (of at all) they have looked across the diamond and seen green or red jerseys.
For others, they remember all too well the last time they saw the Spartans.
The former Belfast Hornets contingent of the club last saw the men in green walking off to collect the Baseball Ireland B league championship on a sunny day last Autumn having been mercy ruled, due to a consistent Spartan offence and no shortage of errors in the field. Despite Colin Woods and Gord Cuthbert giving their all, the Bugs simply didnt have enough on the day to back their pitchers.
But the new season brings new hopes and new goals. A little older and wiser, this Belfast Northstars team hits Corkagh Park on Saturday carrying a 3-1 record, including a 29 run explosion against the Ashbourne Giants.
With Sean McMahon still dodging balls somewhere, Shackley will be giving Stephen Hunter a chance to cement his position as leadoff hitter. Intelligent at the plate with quick hands and even quicker feet, Hunter has become a prototypical centre fielder for the Stars and he will be expected to kickstart this Belfast offense.
The games should also see the return of the versatile Colin Woods to the lineup which will give his coach options around the infield and behind the plate and will also offer protection to Mark Smith and Melvin Woods in the middle of the batting order. Never afraid to steal a base either, he will slot back into a lineup that has no fear of capitalising on errors.
Against the Hurricanes and Spartans, they'll need to. There wont be many.
