Dolphins preseason continues full steam ahead
Hollywoodbets Dolphins coach Grant Morgan is excited by the current preseason work that his chargers are putting in ahead of their first Sunfoil Series match starting on 19 September.
THE Hollywoodbets Dolphins have been building up steadily for the 2017/18 domestic season and coach Grant Morgan is excited by the new campaign.
The Dolphins contested bravely in all three of the competitions last season, however by Morgan's high standards it was not a good enough display.
“We have had a good start to the preseason and the guys have come in with a positive attitude. There is a good respect now between me and the players and they know now that I am not afraid of hard work. I think the players have got the respect for that now and we are using everything we learnt from last season and putting it into play for the upcoming season,” Morgan commented.
The Dolphins experienced a large exodus of players at the end of the previous season which has been a set-back for the Durban-based franchise, however Morgan is aware that the younger players in the squad will need to step up.
“We don't have as much depth from a squad perspective as we have had in the past. We have basically lost a whole team of fairly experienced players and all types of cricketers, but we sit now with a very good crust of players and below that we have promise but they haven't really been tested at the next level. It is important that we work with those guys below the top crust in case that crust breaks through injury or national selection, so we have to prevent that shortfall between what is our top side and the players below that,” he said.
The Dolphins have made some strong acquisitions in the off-season with the likes of Dane Vilas coming into the squad from the Cape Cobras. Vilas brings with him 109 First-Class games and the wicket-keeper batsman has been in fine form for county side Lancashire, hitting his highest first-class score of 244 earlier in the season.
Among the other signings made by the Dolphins are seamer Lwandiswa Zuma from the Knights. Zuma has been involved in the National High Performance Academy but is looking forward to being part of the Dolphins set-up.
“It's really good to be back home even it is just a short period before we go back to the Academy. Coming back to KZN with some franchise experience is going to be massive for me and I am really looking forward to contributing to the Dolphins side over the upcoming season,” Zuma said.
