WITHAM Cricket Club's buoyant first team are hitting the form that they wanted to be in as the Marshall Hatchick Two Counties Championship reached its midpoint and skipper Jake Wakelin is backing his side to now push on further in the second half.

A 94-run win against Lakenheath last weekend was Witham's fifth victory in a row and they start the second part of the division one campaign with a trip to Mistley on Saturday sat second in the table and looking for a sixth straight victory.

Spin bowler Greg Stephens' amazing haul of four wickets in four balls ripped the heart out of Lakenheath's run chase last weekend and with his team hitting such a rich vein of form, Wakelin is looking forward to now facing the Swans.

He said: "With (leaders) Wivenhoe losing last weekend and now playing (fourth-placed) Worlington on Saturday, our trip to Mistley is a big one for us.

"When you have two sides up at the top playing each other, then someone will take points off the other so it is important for us to get the win because of the state of other games.

"Mistley won last week themselves, though, and we always have good games when we go there so it's vital that we turn up right. "I'll be back available after missing last weekend and we have Leroy Facey and Ben McKendry back as well, so we should be looking strong again, although Billy Moulton-Day is still a week away from returning due to a groin strain.

"If results go our way, we could be top of the league on Sunday.

"We are very happy with how we are placed - after 11 games, we've had just two losses.

"We were disappointed with them, but that's part and parcel of sport.

"They were games we felt we shouldn't have lost, but through 11 games, we're close behind the leaders in second position.

"Would we have taken that at the start of the season?

"100 per cent yes we would.

"We feel we are playing great cricket and we are on a run now.

"When we get on a run we don't let up because we believe in our ability.

"We are where we are because we know we are one of the best teams in the league, but we don't take anyone for granted."

With the second half of the season about to start, Witham's thoughts will inevitably turn to last summer, when they won every game in an incredible run of form.

But while Wakelin knows repeating that would be tough, he is feeling buoyant about his side's prospects in the final 11 games of the campaign.

He added: "We'd love to finish like we did last year and obviously if we could do that then there would be a very good chance that we'd be champions, but that type of thing doesn't happen very often and teams take points off each other. "It's so tight this year so I don't think there is any team that won't lose at least one game between now and the end of the season, but we aren't thinking about league standings.

"We are just enjoying our cricket.

"We are mates off the pitch as well as on it and that's why you see us able to close out games the way we do as everyone plays so hard for each other."