Jamie Robinson and two of the Watts brothers will be key to Otago's chances at the Jefferies Cup this weekend.
Otago will head to Christchurch for the South Island tournament with a small but keen squad that will be bolstered by a couple of local ring-ins.
Much rests on the shoulders of Robinson, the classy Southern Pride shortstop who will be asked to anchor the batting order.
Player-coach Brendan Taylor also has national league experience and has the ability to get on base.
Gary Pointon, Ryan Williams and Sean Martin are all tidy with the glove and useful with the bat.
On the mound and behind the plate, pitcher Ben Watts and young brother Cam Watts, a hard-hitting catcher, have a great opportunity to show their wares to national selectors.
"We're looking pretty sharp and I think we're going to go OK," Taylor said yesterday.
"The guys have known each other a while and we should be quite a tightknit team."
Otago plays Nelson, Canterbury Under-19 and the Southland Development team tomorrow, then faces a tough Sunday with back-to-back games against Marlborough, Southland and Canterbury.
"It's worked out all right. We can get ourselves sorted out on Saturday and then be ready for a tough finish," Taylor said.
Otago made the final in 2009 but slipped to fifth place last year.
Canterbury, seeking a 17th consecutive title, is missing a handful of its top players but will still start the tournament as the heavy favourite.
