Fired up Warriors ready to get the season started

After a disappointing season that saw them finish bottom of the CSA 4-Day Domestic Series table, the Dafabet Warriors are motivated to bounce back and perform well in the red-ball competition this season.

The team from Gqeberha won one match last season, their final home game against the Hollywoodbets Dolphins but lost three and drew three matches leading into that victory. The victory went a long way in helping them survive relegation from Division 1.

The Warriors host WSB Western Province in their opening match at St George's Park starting on Thursday and head coach of the Warriors Robin Peterson believes that his side are in good shape going into what's going to be another busy season.

"Pre-season has gone very well for us," Peterson said. "We’ve had a good build-up to the season and our local university (NMU) has supported us with great facilities to get ready for the season and the boys are excited to get going."

The Warriors have welcomed the likes of seamers Gideon Peters, Kerwin Mungroo, Matthew Boast and Wesley Bedja for the new season.

They did lose a chunk of players at the end of last season, however there is a steady core of players that Peterson can rely on. The core of the batting group has remained and there are some exciting young batters in their ranks that will be pushing to make a name for themselves this season.

From a squad perspective, Peterson feels that the Warriors have added firepower in the correct areas. Four-day cricket is about making sure you can bowl your opposition out and the coach believes they are going to be able to do that.

"We have quite a few new exciting bowlers we’ve added to the group that have provided us with many attacking options to try and take 20 wickets. Our batting has remained consistent for the most part which provides us with a degree of stability."

St George’s Park has historically been a happy hunting ground for the Warriors and they are comfortable playing in their home conditions. Heading into the new season coach Peterson wants his side to dominate on their home patch as well as on the road.

“There’s definitely an emphasis on winning all games. Yes, St George’s Park is a unique place to play cricket and we would like to make that an advantage. But in saying that most teams have experience of playing here now so there are no secrets.”

Building a strong team environment is the goal of all coaches going into what is traditionally a long season. Making sure that the Warriors play to their strengths and get the best out of each and every player is the aim for Peterson.

“Our strengths have always been about the power of the collective and being a team that prides itself on being adaptable and finding a way.

“Mentally we feel that it’s going to be important that we are switched on from the outset to give ourselves the best chance to achieve something special this season,” Peterson mentioned.

The Warriors held on for a spirited draw in their fixture against Western Province last season; however this season Peterson will be hoping his side can start on the front foot and dominate the match on home turf.