Veteran Noel Gibbons looks set to make his 30th consecutive appearance in the Eastern Counties for Bailey's Bay this weekend.

Overlooked by his club earlier in the season as the selectors looked towards youth, Gibbons was back in the Bay team last weekend after returning from England and finding his club reeling from an internal dispute.

And now the allrounder, who returned figures of two for 22 against Willow Cuts, is in line for a place in the team which will be chosen tonight.

Gibbons thinks he will be picked more for his bowling than batting, even though he is by far the leading run scorer in the Eastern Counties. On Sunday he managed just one after opening the innings.

"I was asked by Charlie (Marshall) to open the innings and I didn't turn it down,'' said Gibbons. "I accepted immediately because I wanted to go out and have a long innings, but with cricket you make one mistake and you're out. I'm quite disappointed to be out for one.'' Bay face the difficult task of dismissing St. David's before they can even think of victory this weekend. Flatts got halfway through the job in the last round, having the champions in trouble at 22-5 before a recovery saw them reach 250.

Gibbons' vast experience as a seam bowler and his ability to bowl long, tight spells could be crucial.

"I'm sure my bowling is still up to class A and in order to beat St. David's we have to bowl them out,'' he said. "They are carrying a very, very solid batting order.'' Last year was supposed to be Gibbons' final year in the counties, but after a miscalculation it was revealed he had made only 29 appearances instead of 30, the number on which he wanted to bow out. He made his debut in 1969 as a 14-year-old and 30 years later holds the record for the most runs (1,761) and wickets (94) in the competition.

Gibbons says, if picked, this will definitely be his final appearance as he now looks to a future in coaching.

An internal dispute involving a few members of the team -- among them Ricky and Corey Hill, Glenn Blakeney, Cal Dill and Damon Edwards who are still not playing -- forced a rethink on Gibbons' status as the club went from unbeaten after seven games to an 8-4 record before last weekend.

Gibbons returned to a different reception this time, helping the team to beat Willow Cuts on faster scoring last weekend, and now has the feeling he is wanted again.

"If it wasn't for what's going down within the club, last year would have been my last,'' Gibbons said. "If the dispute had been settled I would have still been with my club in England. I go back to England the week after county.

"Since I've been back it's like a completely different chapter. Most of the folks I have chatted with are pleased to see me back, which is a good feeling.'' It's almost certain that the five disgruntled players will not be chosen for Saturday's final. And though Bay won't be at full strength they could still spring a surprise.