BEAMINSTER skipper Ross Baker has bolstered his side ahead of tomorrow’s visit of Bere Regis to the Memorial Ground (2pm).
Baker has confirmed three alterations to the XI that suffered a disappointing Dorset League Division Two reversal against Ferndown Wayfar-ers Seconds last Saturday.
Into the ranks come all-rounders Will Everitt and Mark Gough as well as seamer Paul Martin, in place of Mark Barber, Andrew Sherring and Stu Lindsay.
Baker identified the tail – which meekly subsided at the hands of Ferndown – as one area in drastic need of modification and is delighted to have reinforced his line-up for tomorrow’s encounter.
Discussing the changes, he said: “I’ve been on the phone trying to get a better side and I’ve managed to strengthen the batting, which is what was needed.
“It’s unfortunate Mark (Gough) doesn’t play more often because he’s a good player. Paul will strengthen the bowling and provide some powerful batting in the lower order too.
“Will is another good all-rounder and is also a very sharp fielder. Our average age last week was about 39 and we struggled in the field, so I wanted to get some younger players into the side.
“Our tail completely capitulated so we needed to improve that area. We were about 30 runs short of Ferndown but should have got much closer.”
Bere Regis opened their season with a convincing victory over Christchurch, bowling out their opponents for a meagre 88 having compiled 163 with the bat, to claim maximum points.
But Baker is confident his troops can break their duck and believes that a winning sequence could alleviate the long-standing commitment issues at the club.
He added: “I’m much more confident about this game but it should be close because Bere Regis will be one of the strongest sides in this division.
“I have played Evening League cricket against many of them before so I know their strengths, but they won’t have played at our ground so that should give us an advantage.
“We need to get our first victory as early as possible and if we can get a good run going, it might help with players committing themselves every week.”
Beaminster: Runyard, David, Jones, Hillier, Herring, Rathbone, Baker, W Everitt, Gough, Martin, Penman.
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