Lorenzo Tucker, the Warwick Workmen’s Club coach, is confident his team can hold their own as they return to the Premier Division 50-overs league this season.

Warwick were promoted to the top tier along with First Division champions Western Stars and Cleveland, and have since bolstered their squad with experienced duo Kwasi James and Sergio Raynor joining from Western Counties rivals Willow Cuts, and Zeri Tomlinson from Cleveland.

“We are definitely looking forward to playing some cricket and have been training for two months now with new additions Kwasi and Sergio coming in to enhance the team,” Tucker told The Royal Gazette.

“We had two teams playing in the sixes tournament (Jason and Gary Memorial Six-A-Side Cricket Tournament) last week at Rangers and they got a little taste of competition.

“They are now raring to go and very excited to be playing top-flight cricket and show the island that they belong there. We have a lot of talented youngsters up there and we are going to impress some people for sure.”

Warwick have been given a tough assignment in their season-opener as they take on last year’s runners-up Bailey’s Bay at Sea Breeze Oval on Sunday in the first of many gruelling battles Tucker is preparing for this season.

“We have aspirations to retain our place in the Premier Division and no game is going to be easy, so we know have to play our best cricket every time we go out,” he added.

“We can’t make too many mistakes and starting out against Bailey’s Bay, you can’t get any harder than that, but we are very optimistic. We have a lot of confidence and we have been training well, so we are ready to go.”

Bay are also looking to hit the ground running in front of their own fans.

“They have some players like Malachi Jones and a few other players who would have played against us at some stage over the years, so we are looking forward to renewing competition with some of the top players in the country,” Gus Logie, the Bay coach, said.

“I think it should be a good match and we are quietly confident that at the end of the day we will continue the good work we started last year.

“We are looking forward to the start of the season and have been training for quite a while. It’s a new season, a new beginning for many players and we are looking forward to seeing what they can bring to the table.

“This season is an exciting time for the club and I think we should be up to it.”

The remaining fixtures on opening weekend features St George’s hosting Southampton Rangers at Wellington Oval, while Western Stars face Cleveland at Somerset Cricket Club.

The First Division season will begin on May 13 with Willow Cuts hosting the Bermuda Under-19 team, who have entered the league for a second successive season, at Somerset Cricket Club.