CHRIS Park is looking for a strong start from his Dorset charges in their opening three-day date with Devon at Dean Park tomorrow (11am).

The two sides met in one-day action last month, with Park’s men throwing their wickets away to succumb to a nine-wicket thumping.

But the captain believes the loss will not be in their minds as they begin their Unicorns Coun-ty Championship campaign.

“It is a completely different game and a different format, I enjoy the longer format of the game and it will be a good test,” Park told Echosport.

“There is emphasis on the batsmen to bat the 90 overs and be patient. We are looking for a little bit of experience from the guys to knuckle down and bat as long as they can.

That experience has been boosted with the inclusion of Somerset trio, Max Waller, Jack Leach and Chris Jones, but Park has also emphasised the need for other members of the squad to deliver.

He added: “It’s excellent to have them but we are not looking for Waller, Leach and Jones to put in the match-winning performance, we need to step up as players as well.

“Momentum is key and you don’t want to be losing your first Championship game. We are looking for a positive performance and all eleven players to contribute and hopefully we can have some success in this format this year.”

All-rounder Sam Thomson comes back into the side, but Luke Webb is unavailable as he has received a call-up from Hampshire Seconds.

Dorset (from): Jones, Porter, Waller, Lintott, Leach, Thomson, Park, Hicks, Denham, Wolstenholme, Hayman. 12th man: Stuart Martin