Western Counties Cup holders PHC face a daunting task of defending their crown against challengers and counties giants Southampton at Southampton Oval today.

For starters, the champions will have to defend their crown on the opposition?s home turf, then contain the explosive Rangers bats and achieve what amounts to a Herculean feat minus two key players.

According to PHC player/coach Andre (Doc) Manders, key all-rounders Gerald Simons and Matthew Lee aren?t available for today?s crucial clash. Simons is currently off Island while Lee will be sidelined through work commitments. Expected to come in and fill the void are early-order bat Kenny Mills and the big-hitting Arthur Richards who has seen limited action this season due to work commitments.

PHC will again be bolstered by the inclusion of guest players Hasan Durham and former PHC opener Sheridan (Baldy) Ming.

But despite of the setbacks and daunting task which lies ahead, Manders is confident his charges can rise to meet the challenge.

?We?re feeling quite confident but it?s just the three week break which concerns us,? he said.

PHC have sat idle since disposing Willow Cuts of the silverware on August 21 while team practice has also been hampered by the impending football season.

?We couldn?t train as much as we would have liked to because right now our football team (PHC Zebras) are also using the training facilities at Spicelands (Middle school) on the same night,? Manders explained.

?But they (footballers) have been helpful by allowing us a period of time to train solely on the field. So we feel pretty confident we can get the job done against Rangers but everyone is going to have to chip in ? especially with the bat. We can?t just depend on one or two players to get the job done as was the case in the previous match.?

PHC defeated Cuts by 27 runs in the previous round with Manders topscoring with a polished 67 while an additional 59 runs came off the bat of Simons. The remaining batsmen combined accounted for exactly 50 runs while 41 runs came from extras.

Manders also grabbed three wickets for 17 runs off six overs of spin, a superb all-round performance he will have to reproduce today if PHC are to stand any realistic chance of retaining their crown against the might of a Rangers side boosted by guest players Saleem Mukuddem and Social Club wicketkeeper/batsman Dwayne (Streaker) Adams. Adams will also see action in tomorrow?s Central Counties Final as Social Club and Devonshire collide heads on at the Den.

Though Rangers go into today?s clash as challengers, on paper, the home side appear to have the edge as favourites to dethrone the champs.

Rangers skipper Janeiro Tucker, however, refused to buy into this notion.

?We are the underdogs. We haven?t won anything this year and PHC are the champions. And I think this makes it even better for us,? he said.

Like PHC, Rangers have also been inactive and haven?t been out in the middle since August 15.

Tucker added: ?Our team has already demonstrated character having lost the first four league games and rallying back to place fourth in the standings. And if we can win today then that will end our season on a positive note.?

Meanwhile, newly-crowned First Division Limited Overs and Two?Day League champions Social Club and Devonshire will renew their perennial rivalry at the Den tomorrow in what will be a repeat of the inaugural Central Counties Final.

The two teams squared off at the former Nationals Sports Club in Devonshire in 1969 with Social Club being awarded the cup on account of having been the first club picked out of the hat during the competition?s draw ? although the game ended itself ended in a tame draw.

Former Devonshire and St.George?s Cup Match star batsman Lionel Thomas scored an unbeaten 108 in the inaugural match, the first ever in Central Counties history.

While Devonshire will attempt to salvage what has otherwise been a disappointing return to top flight cricket, Social Club, on the other hand, will be gunning to put the icing on the cake with a third cup triumph of the season.

?I have been stressing to the guys in practice that this is what they have been waiting for all season. It was a great accomplishment to win both leagues and an asset but these guys have been focussing on the Central Counties all season long,? explained Social Club player/coach Charlie Marshall.

?So I think this is going to be a great challenge for them and an exciting match.?

Marshall said his team remained unchanged from the one in the previous round (semi?final against Police) and is raring to go.

?It?s not going to be an easy task for us and I do have a lot of respect for Devonshire,? he added.

And rightfully so, for it wasn?t too long ago when Devonshire once reigned supreme in the competition.

Now some 35 years onward, Devonshire wicketkeeper/batsman Ricky Brangman Jr. hopes to finally set the record straight.

?We feel that we stand a good chance of winning and on the day anything is possible,? he said. ?Whoever plays the better game on the day will win and playing at home will give us an advantage ? although they (Social Club) also play their home matches on the same ground.?