Warwickshire Bears Prepare for Cardiff

The Warwickshire Bears go to the SWALEC Stadium in Cardiff on Friday June 6th to play Glamorgan at the start of their final four day LV County Championship match before the Twenty/20 programme kicks in the following week.

After six matches the Bears are still unbeaten in the Championship, hold second place and are beginning to see the green shoots of improvement with both bat and ball.

Skipper Darren Maddy will be forced to sit out both this match and this season's Twenty/20 series and without the services of Maddy and Sri Lankan batsman, Jayasuriya, due to recall to the national team, the Bears will be without two of the world's leading exponents of this form of cricket.

Hopes of success in this season's competition had been high when the announcement was made that Jayasuriya was to be part of the Bears' squad, but these have crashed with the double blows of unavailability and injury and now fans are left wondering where and from whom the runs will come.

Before that, Glamorgan have to be overcome and their lack of recent  consistency offers Warwickshire real hopes that they can inflict another defeat on the Welsh side and in doing maintain the Bears push towards promotion and a return to the first division.

Tony Frost is in great shape at the moment and with Westwood and Troughton showing signs of improved form with the bat, the Bears will be looking to post a competitive total at the stadium that is being busily prepared for the 2009 Ashes and inaugral Test Match at the ground.

A win would temporarily take the Bears to the head of the table and with the almost certain arrival of New Zealander, Chris Martin after the current tour ends, the Bears could be well poised for a sustained seconfd half of the season attack on promotion.

A result in Cardiff is essential