Diss seeking much more of a straightforward Norfolk Cricket Alliance Premier Division campaign in 2021

Captain Lewis Taylor does not want his Diss side to be relying on a reprieve come the end of the 2021 campaign.

When the Rectory Meadow-based outfit played their last competitive campaign two years ago, they finished second from bottom in the Norfolk Cricket Alliance Premier Division.

However, they were spared relegation to Division One due to the amalgamation between Downham Town and Stow, which left the Premier Division a club light.

This time around though, Taylor has challenged his charges to ensure they are clear of trouble come the season’s conclusion.

“The merger gave us a reprieve so we were fortunate in that sense,” said the wicketkeeper.

“This year our target is to be in and around mid-table and making sure we are more comfortable. We don’t want to be in a relegation fight again.

“We only won four games all year in 2019 and there has to be improvement on that.”

One area Taylor is particularly keen to see some enhancement is in the bowling.

He feels the team has racked up some potentially match-winning scores in recent seasons but taking 10 wickets has not always proven to be a straightforward assignment.

And it is hoped that the return of Will Dawson – plus overseas addition Kadeem Alleyne – will help to rectify that issue.

“We’ve struggled to take wickets at times,” he added. “There has been plenty of occasions when we’ve scored more than 200, which you think would be good enough to put us in contention but then we’ve struggled to break teams down.

“We’ve got the same bowling attack – everyone has stayed – but we’ve added Will and Kadeem and that makes us even stronger in that area.”

Tomorrow, Diss get things under way with the visit of Norwich (12pm), and Taylor believes a victory could set them up nicely for a positive term.

“If we can beat Norwich and maybe get a couple of wins from the first two or three confidence grows and we start to believe we can compete,” he said. “It’s like any sport, confidence is such a crucial thing for any team.

“It’s a big game against Norwich. Hopefully we win it and then we can kick on from there.”