NEWTOWN captain Mat Skinner has labelled his side's final two matches of the Whitney Cup regular season as must-win games as the Tigers chase a finals place.
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Last season's runners-up have fallen into a slump during the second half of the season and head into day one of their clash with South Dubbo at No. 2 Oval on the back of three consecutive losses.
Last round's loss to Macquarie allowed the Blues to cement their hold on third spot, leaving the Tigers no other option but to beat the ladder-leading South Dubbo and then CYMS in the final round.
"It's definitely must win from now on," he said.
"We have to because if we lose then we're no chance and even if we win both that might still not be enough but we've just got to win."
The problem, according to the skipper, is one his side has been dealing with for some time now.
The Tigers bowlers have been doing the job but the batting line-up has failed to score 200 the past three rounds.
No individual batsmen has even managed to score a half-century during the string of losses.
"It's the same message I've been singing for a while now but hopefully this weekend someone stands up," Skinner said of his batting line-up.
"Someone has to knuckle down and take responsibility and want to be there.
"It has been a bit disappointing and a bit frustrating because we've got plenty of bats but we're all in a bit of a slump at the same time.
"Usually it's only one or two and you can work around them but when you're all not getting runs it's hard to be competitive."
The task does not get any easier for Newtown, coming up against a South Dubbo team which moved to the top of the ladder courtesy of a thumping outright win over CYMS last round.
Tim Berry is expected to be missing from the Hornets lineup on day one but Will Lindsay was outstanding against the Cougars, taking five wickets in the first innings.
John Colwell finished with nine victims for the match while Scott Tucker, Henry Railz and young leg-spinner Sam Fraser ensured there was plenty of variety in the attack.
"They've got a very solid attack and a really handy team so it will be a good match for us if we can beat them," Skinner said.
"We've beaten them once this season and if we do it again it proves we belong in that third spot and if not then we'd be wasting our time a bit there anyway."
Skinner confessed Lindsay and Berry, if he plays, are the keys to the Hornets attack and added his side will aim to get through the new ball unscathed before looking to lift the scoring rate.
Despite three consecutive losses and finals hopes hanging by a thread, the mood in the Newtown camp is still positive and confident, according to Skinner.
"Everyone is still confident enough and no one is stressing about our ability," he said.
"Everyone is just wondering when it's going to click and it has to happen now."
The weekend's Whitney Cup matches begin from 1pm on Saturday.