WARMINSTER will resume their annual challenge for the Gloucester and Wilts One title against Goatacre next Saturday armed with a new overseas star.

Left-arm seamer Matthew Bell has replaced the popular Nick Curran at Sambourne Road and Warminster are hoping he can bowl them to league silverware this summer. Bell is the third overseas player to join the club from Australian outfit Western Creek, following Curran and hard-hitting batsman Sean Maxwell.

Chairman Chas Knowles says 2006 will be a big year for Warminster as the club strive for promotion to the West of England Premier Two. Knowles said: "We finished in second place two seasons ago and in third place last year, and both times I thought we deserved to win promotion.

"The players have been practising hard in the indoor centre since November so they should all be prepared when the season starts on May 6. "I'm hoping this year is going to be third time lucky for us."

Warminster will look to leading batsman Sean Adams to reproduce the scintillating form he showed last summer when he topped the division averages with 641 runs at 58.27.

Spinner Leigh Beauchamp will be hoping to improve on his impressive haul of 40 wickets at an average of 17.45. Knowles believes the addition of seamer Bell will boost the team morale ahead of what promises to be another close-fought competition for the division title.

He said: "There's a real buzz around the club at the moment. We've got some promising junior players coming through and they will no doubt make the team even stronger."