The Wollongong Cardinals are confident their talent-laden roster will allow the side to make a winning start to the Illawarra Baseball League on Saturday.
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The Cardinals take on Berkeley in the first round of the competition, with both sides boasting Australian Baseball League players.
Among the ABL crop for Wollongong include Alex Howe, Trent D'Antonio, Michael Campbell and Todd Gratton, while the Eagles will be led by Brisbane Bandits and Australian pitcher Tim Atherton.
Howe is expecting a tough clash against the 2019 champions, however he's confident his side will prevail.
"It's been quite an experience having this much time off from playing, coaching and training," Howe said. "A lot of people are excited to be getting out there and having the opportunity to play.
"Berkeley is always a tough affair. I'm pretty excited, I've been doing a lot of work, I'm coming off a good ABL season, we've got some ABL players, so we're excited to get out there and get after it."
Saturday's other match will see Dapto take on the Pirates. The two matches will be played in Berkeley and commence at 2pm.
While the competition may only feature four teams, Howe believes that will only add to the league's quality.
With all sides featuring talented players, every match will be a tough encounter.
"The competition that's around is great for the league. Berkeley have strong hitters and pitchers, we've recruited some players, Dapto have some strong pitching and the Pirates have some state league players from Sydney coming down."
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Cameron Mee
Sports reporter at the Canberra Times
Sports reporter at the Canberra Times
