Victoria keen to defy history at Bellerive Oval

HOBART - Victoria aims to defy history and continue its charge towards the Pura Cup final when it meets Tasmania at Bellerive Oval tomorrow.

Victoria has never beaten Tasmania in a four-day game on Bellerive's notoriously benign wicket.

Its last outright win in Hobart was 20 years ago when Tasmania still played its first class games on the other side of the Derwent river at the TCA ground.

Victorian captain Paul Reiffel admitted Bellerive was far from his favourite ground.

"There's better grounds around Australia to be bowling on, there's no doubt about that," he said.

But he refused to be bowed by the weight of history.

"What happened yesterday is gone and you have to make your own future," he said.

Reiffel thought he had the team to do it - settled, confident and with a varied attack whose members complemented each other very well.

Victoria, two points behind leader Queensland, has much more to play for as the final three rounds over three successive weekends start.

The number one aim was to finish top and secure the home advantage in the final, Reiffel said.

Winless Tasmania, on the other hand, is six points adrift in last place. Captain Jamie Cox said it was a dispiriting and unaccustomed position to have three matches to go and know the final was beyond reach.

"But we can still make a big difference to the composition of the competition and we'd be delighted to wreck Victoria's ambitions," Cox said.

As for the dreaded pitch, it isn't quite the belter it used to be. Cox thought it would give the bowlers help for the first session or two, but after that they'd have to work hard. Victoria has not decided whether to give 17-year-old leg spinning allrounder Cameron White his first class debut on such a track or let him settle into the team as 12th man with a view to using him on the much more spin-friendly SCG against New South Wales next week.

Victoria: Paul Reiffel (capt), Darren Berry, Jason Arnberger, John Davison, Matthew Elliott, Ian Harvey, Brad Hodge, Mathew (Mathew) Inness, Michael Klinger, Michael Lewis, Matthew Mott, Cameron White.

Tasmania: Jamie Cox (capt), Sean Clingeleffer, Michael Di Venuto, Andrew Downton, Shane Jurgensen, Scott Kremerskothen, Dan Marsh, Dene Hills, David Saker, Damien Wright, Shane Watson, Shaun Young.