Treadwell Gibbons, Temiko Wilson and Makai Young head back to St John’s Field tomorrow looking for maximum points with Cleveland in their hopes of avoiding relegation from the One Premier Division.

The trio were all late transfers from Stars after playing in the Twenty20 tournament for them at the beginning of the season. That disrupted Stars’ build-up to the season, with coach Arnold Manders criticising the Bermuda Cricket Board’s late transfer policy.

Now the trio and their team-mates find themselves needing victory and bonus points to close the gap on second-from-bottom Somerset, whom they beat last weekend for their second straight league win.

Cleveland can earn up to 17 points if they win comprehensively. They are 13 points behind Somerset and have a vastly inferior run-rate. As well as beating Stars, Cleveland need Southampton Rangers to win away to Somerset.

“We’ve already played against them so there’s no ill feelings about that,” Manders said of his former players. “We just have to do what we have to do, win a match. I don’t care if it’s against Treaddy, Temiko or any other Cleveland players; it’s just a match we have to win.”

Gibbons even helped Stars retain the Central Counties title this season. Stars cannot afford any favours in return, as they are battling with Somerset to avoid finishing fifth and having to play against the second-placed First Division side in the relegation play-off to determine who play in the top flight next season.

“This is definitely an important match, we don’t want to leave it in anybody else’s hands,” Manders said. “It’s a game that we need to win to avoid finishing in the play-off spot.”

Victory, and a loss for Rangers, would result in Stars finishing third in the standings, a good achievement in their first season back in the top division. Stars have also struggled this season to field a full team and will be without youngster Jaiden Manders, who has a broken foot from a recent cycle accident.

“For us it has been a difficult season, losing three players at the beginning, but we still won matches, although we have failed to consistently field our strongest team with players working, injured or away,” the coach said.

“We even played a couple of matches with ten men, but I’m pleased with the progress we’ve made this year. We had three youngsters away [with the Bermuda Under-19 team] and now one of them has a broken foot and can’t play.

“It’s been frustrating, but I’m pleased with the way they have gone about the business, especially playing with ten players and sometimes nine if somebody had to go off the field.”

Manders, a former Stars captain, did not risk playing himself to make up the numbers because it would have cost his Evening Cricket League team, Tuff Dogs, all their points for fielding a BCB-registered player.

In tomorrow’s other match, second-placed Bailey’s Bay will host St David’s at Sea Breeze Oval, with the visiting side having already won a second straight league title.

Bragging rights will be at stake in this the fourth meeting between the teams this season, with Bay recently dethroning St David’s as Eastern Counties champions after two earlier losses to them.

In the First Division, St George’s will be looking to move one step closer to automatic promotion when they meet Devonshire Rec at Wellington Oval. They now have a 24-point lead over second-placed Flatts, whom they thrashed by 224 runs last weekend, with three matches remaining.

Flatts have another tough match, when they take on third-placed Willow Cuts at Lord’s while Warwick play PHC at Southampton Oval in the other match.

• Janeiro Tucker, of Southampton Rangers, and Onias Bascome, of St George’s, are the One Communications Premier Division and First Division players of the week after scoring centuries last weekend.

Tucker scored 111 against St David’s as Rangers handed them their first loss, while Bascome stroked 121 not out against Flatts in the top-of-the-table clash as the East Enders picked up maximum batting bonus points for posting 300 (307) in their innings.

• Southampton Rangers will be looking to secure a spot in the Champion of Champions competition when they meet challengers Warwick today in the final of the Western Counties at White Hill Field at 10am.