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    Maynard keeping the faith

    GLAMORGAN aim to return home in style when they welcome Gloucestershire to the glamorous setting of the Swalec Stadium today.

    The floodlit Friends Provident Trophy clash will be the first at the newly refurbished £9.4m base and the Dragons head into it with an unchanged 12-man squad from their first three matches.

    Off-spinner Robert Croft, who played a huge role in the County Championship victory over today's opponents, is once again left on the sidelines with cricket manager Matthew Maynard opting for continuity.

    Glamorgan have not won a home match in the competition against first-class opposition since 2001 but Maynard is hoping that the occasion, and a packed house, will help inspire his charges.

    "We're looking forward like you would not believe, as we've been all winter," he said. "We'll have a full stadium and a team that really wants to go out and show its skills to make the fans proud."

    After the opening Friends Provident match against Gloucestershire fell victim to the weather, Glamorgan defeated Somerset on Sunday before a bank holiday Monday loss to Worcestershire.

    But after the Pears put his side to the sword, Maynard is resisting the temptation to tinker with line-up.

    He said: "I firmly believe in continuity, that's something that was difficult to achieve last season. We did some good things last week and it was nice to get a result at Taunton.

    "And one of the advantages of the one-day side that is on the park at the moment is that it offers terrific athleticism in the field.

    "The match at Somerset was a joy to watch the quality of the fielding and was one of the reasons we won the game."

    Meanwhile, Sky Sports commentator Ian Ward, who will be part of the team in Cardiff for the televised clash, is impressed by what he has seen in the season to date.

    "The Glamorgan boys have a sense of a new, fresh start at Cardiff and the future looks very bright for them," said the former England and Surrey left-hander.

    "It's tough to pin down what their aims will be for the season - they will obviously want to win something, but I think with it being Maynard's first year in charge it will be more a case of setting some foundation blocks and continuing to promote Welsh cricket and Welsh players, which is a fantastic thing and they should be applauded for that.

    "I see this season as being a case of getting as much as they can from it to build for the future."

    Glamorgan: D Hemp, M Wood, M Powell, T Maynard, J Dalrymple, B Wright, M Wallace (wicket-keeper), A Wharf, R Watkins, J Gillespie, D Harrison, D Cosker.

    1:16pm Friday 9th May 2008

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