SKIPPER Marc Brown insists Netherfield will head into finals day with a swagger as the Parkside Road club look to retain their TWP Wealth Twenty20 crown.

Being held at Darwen Cricket Club, Netherfield face Lancaster in the second semi-final before a potential showdown with the winners of Darwen versus Blackpool.

Netherfield lifted the trophy 12 months ago after defeating Darwen at Parkside Road and will arrive in prime form after winning five of six group games.

Despite blotting their copybook with defeat to Barrow last time out, Brown is bullish about his side’s chances of bolstering their trophy cabinet.

“I’m confident we can go and win it and I’m quite bold about that,” he said. “We’ve got a lot of confidence in this format.

“To retain the trophy would be fantastic – it’s the first silverware available for the year and we’ve done pretty well over the last few years in the competition.

“It would have been nice to go in with six wins from six but we just weren’t mentally there on Friday against Barrow but on Sunday we’ll be well up for it.

“We have a good line up for the format and pretty much have all stations covered. We have a lot of confidence and that’s where all good cricket stems from.

“There will be some tough opposition and it should be a good day with a lot of runs scored. Hopefully we can come out on top on Sunday night.”

Prior to the glitz and glamour of finals day, Netherfield will look to enhance their recent good form in Northern League cricket when hosting Fleetwood on Saturday.

The Parkside Road outfit came close to seeing off reigning champions Leyland last weekend before beating St. Annes, with Brown happy with the response shown by his charges.

“We’ve won three in four but it really should have been four in four,” he added.

“It was good to bounce back straight away from Saturday’s defeat at Leyland. I was a bit concerned that the way we lost would have affected us for Sunday but it was all really positive.

“It was such a shame we didn’t win because if we had won four in four that would have been a fantastic achievement.

“But to win three in four, considering we had a little bit of inconsistency at the start of the season, is a great response.

“We need to take it game by game. We’re aiming for the top four or five and building for the next few years. Hopefully we’re building a side capable of challenging in the league.”