with neighbours Willow Cuts, in one of the day's top matches during the second week of the new cricket season.

Fresh off a 208 run whipping of perennial strugglers Warwick, where skipper Perry Maybury slammed the year's first century and Charles Swan claimed seven wickets, Somerset are not likely to find such easy pickings this time around.

And while Cuts may have suffered defeat last weekend against Southampton, they must be respected, if only for the sole reason that they finished runners-up last year in the Open League, showing that they are a team to be reckoned with.

"It's the derby!'' exclaimed Maybury when asked about the team's focus for this match. "Playing Willow Cuts is never going to be easy.

"There is a lot of friendships and personal duels going on whenever we're playing each other.'' Although history usually means little in cricket, Cuts enter with the knowledge that they were able to beat their close town rivals twice in 1992, including a seven wicket thrashing late in latter game.

Maybury indicated that main concerns for his club would be to limit the exploits of brothers Richard and Dexter Basden and utilise their allotted overs when batting. Dexter, the team's captain, just missed reaching the century mark last weekend, scoring 90, while the younger Richard was out five runs short of 50.

"Dexter and Richard are the backbone of that team,'' said Maybury. "And when we're in the field we have to get rid of them as early as possible as well as trying to bat the whole 50 overs ourselves.'' The latter may prove more difficult than the former, with no team able to accomplish that feat on the first week of the limited overs competition.

Somerset batted for 45 overs compared to 45.1 for Cuts.

Maybury's new ball partner, Swan, meanwhile, will want to follow up on his amazing haul, but has been told by his skipper to file the previous outing away and concentrate on the current task.

Opponents will now be more weary of the burgeoning young paceman and he is not likely to catch the more accomplished batsmen by surprise.

Rodney Fubler heads Cuts' bowling attack along with Vance Gilbert, complimented by a trio of slow bowlers.

Another intriguing battle witnesses Bailey's Bay entertaining Cleveland at Sea Breeze Oval.

Club secretary and opening batsman, Grant Smith stressed the state of the wicket and its traditional kindness to bowlers in giving his opinion of the looming contest.

"I would say that the trump card would be the pitch at Bailey's Bay,'' said Grant. "The team that can approach the match, really dig in batting-wise and fight for runs will probably win.'' While conceding that his opponents probably possess the faster bowlers, having Clarkie Trott and Terry Burgess at their disposal, he felt that the seamers and slow bowlers might be able to extract more movement.

The Bermuda Cricket Board of Control (BCBC) has launched an inquiry into the events surrounding the controversial banning of top umpire Randy Butler.

A four-man committee headed by BCBC vice-president Reggie Pearman has been formed, and while Pearman would not comment on any specifics surrounding the Butler case, he did say that he would be speaking with the umpire in due course.

Butler, president of the Bermuda Cricket Umpires Association, was handed an indefinite suspension last month, after comments attributed to him regarding suspect bowling actions by local players as well as several alleged incidents last season at various matches, surfaced in the The Royal Gazette .

MAIN CONCERN -- Somerset are determined to neutralise the exploits of Dexter Basden (shown here with Albert Steede) and his brother Richard on Sunday.