CHRISTIES Crackerjack veteran Jason Green has questioned the McDonald's Megahit concept, saying it has lost some appeal and led to his side resting key players.
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The Crackerjacks, coming off a Megahit opening round win over the Fishpond Cougars, meet the Western Plain Automotive Warriors at No.1 Oval on Friday night.
But the likes of Ben Taylor, Mitch Williams-Hedges and some of the Crackerjacks' Wellington contingent are all expected to miss the match in order to be fresh for Saturday's Whitney Cup clash with Rugby.
Green said it was an easy decision to make, with the Twenty20 competition not a priority anymore due to the fact there is no prize money for the winning club.
The prize money was scrapped this season but to compensate for that the registration fees had dropped by $500.
But Green said there was still little motivation compared to the other competitions.
"You can't keep going having sponsors paying up to $1000 and then we're not getting any of it," he said.
"The decent blokes won't play and that's not good for the sponsors and when you're playing for nothing it's not good for the crowds.
"The Whitney Cup is the pinnacle but even in this if the winner at least got their money back it gives you a reason to play your full-strength team."
Green went on to say he was confident his opinion represented a majority of the local cricket community.
Despite the lack of motivation, the left-hand run machine and his side are still focused on getting past Rugby's Twenty20 side on Friday night.
The Warriors are yet to open their Megahit campaign while the Crackerjacks are looking for an improved effort.
Last week's performance was enough to get past the Cougars but the match was in the balance for long periods of the game, with the Crackerjacks only making 150 when batting first.
"I think at the moment it's all in their head and it's a mental thing, batting-wise," Green said of his batting line-up.
"They're relying on the next bloke to do the job and it happened last Saturday against Colts too but on Friday we really should have gone on to make 180 or 200.
"We've got to change that to be a force in this and also the Whitney Cup, which is the most important."
After Rugby's breakthrough Whitney Cup win last weekend, the Warriors will be looking for more success in the short form of the game.
The key players will once again be their experienced trio of Jordan Moran, James O'Brien and Nathan Munro.
The match begins at 6.30pm.
