Denby Dale are aiming to make sure the Cedar Court Conference are represented in the Total Indoor Cricket Solutions T20 finals day.

In Tuesday’s T20 Shield semi-finals, they travel to Jedi Sports Championship promotion-chasers Thongsbridge hoping to spring a surprise.

And don’t write off the side from Wakefield Road when they turn up for battle at Miry Lane (6.30).

Australian overseas signing Sam Mullavey, from the Casey South Melbourne Cricket Club – is sixth in the Conference batting standings with over 400 runs at just under 40, while teammate Naseer Rehman is just behind but with well over 300 runs to his name.

Bring into the equation Sam Tyas and Paul and Mark Hale, who are all around the 200 mark, plus Matt and Adam Rammell, and the Dale have enough batting through the order to put Thongsbridge under pressure.

Mark Hale is leading wicket-taker with 23 wickets at around 15, while Adam Rammell also has 20 wickets and Aidan Geldart 14.

Thongsbridge had Richard Marshall in half-century form in their Shield quarter-final victory over Mirfield Parish Cavaliers, with skipper Ben Raven-Hill taking four for 20.

Raven-Hill is just short of 500 runs for the campaign and his batting has been a big factor in Thongsbridge again challenging at the top end of the Championship table.

Marshall and Zimbabwean Brandon Mavuta are also going well around the 300-run mark, while Mavuta is the leading wicket-taker in the second tier and an obvious danger.

Experienced Zafar Iqbal and Tom Raven-Hill are also past 20 wickets and will be aiming to put Thongsbridge into a second successive final (they lost to Cawthorne last summer).

Thongsbridge bowler, Zafar Iqbal
Thongsbridge bowler, Zafar Iqbal

In the other Shield semi-final, Clayton West play host to Championship leaders Rastrick.

Clayton West, battling to avoid the drop in the Championship, will be hoping Kiwi Kyle Hitchman can reproduce his quarter-final form and crush the visitors.

Hitchman hammered 120 as the West put up 212-5 at Lepton in the last round and then took three for 12 as their hosts were held at 118-9 in reply.

Third in the Championship bowling, Hitchman has 30 wickets, while Craig Glover – multi-trophy winner with Shepley – provides the main bowling support.

Hitchman is also in the top 10 batsmen in the second tier with well over 300 runs, while David Swan isn’t far behind.

Rastrick – who managed to hold off Kirkheaton by just six runs last time out in the T20 – have been going well all season in their pursuit of a second successive promotion and would relish a place in the finals day.

Jacob Waterson is the top batsman in the Championship with well over 500 runs, while Brad Birkhead and Aussie Mitchell McCoach are also over 300.

Jack Pearson leads the Rastrick attack with 28 wickets and has only two fewer than Hitchman, so that should be a real shoot-out.