RUSSELL Rowe believes Wiltshire have their best chance ever to be pushing for honours ahead of this week's opening Minor Counties Championship match against Oxfordshire.

The Wiltshire captain has been encouraged by his side's early season form and insists they have a realistic chance of winning something for the first time since 1909, their last championship triumph.

Wiltshire have also never won the minor counties knock-out cup, despite reaching the final in 1993, but ahead of the three-day match at Banbury, starting on Sunday, Rowe is full of optimism.

He said: "We have started the season as strongly as I can ever remember. Availability looks like being better than ever and that should make a difference.

"It has been a lasting problem for us because we have always had a very strong squad but it has been a case of struggling to get 11 really strong players in the team at the same time.

"This does not seem to be a problem this season and I genuinely believe we have a squad that is good enough to be pushing for honours by the end of the season."

Wiltshire ended the 2004 campaign in fifth position in the championship while a promising knock out cup run ended in disappointment with a comprehensive semi-final defeat to Northumberland.

Their performances last season did earn them qualification into a C&G Trophy first round match against Kent, a tie they went agonisingly close to winning last month.

This was the second successive year Wiltshire had qualified to face first class opposition, having played Nottinghamshire in 2004, but from next season onwards minor counties will not be allowed in the C&G Trophy.

The re-structuring of the competition has left many minor counties angry about the decision but, while admitting it is a blow, Rowe believes there can be a positive slant put on it.

He said: "The fact that there is no qualification into the C&G is a travesty for counties like ourselves but it may actually help us in the minor counties championship.

"We won't have to worry about trying to lose games to pick up enough points to qualify and as a result we can actually go all out to win games."

After a disappointing with the bat last campaign, averaging just 11.5, Rowe has already showed signs this summer he is back to his powerful best.

He has been scoring runs regularly for South Wilts and has shown good form in Wiltshire's early season defeats to Berkshire and Kent.

He said: "Last season was not a great one for me personally. I only played half the games because of illness and it has just been a case of getting back to form. I am reasonably happy with how I have been playing so far this season and hopefully I can get stronger as we go on."

South Wiltshire teenagers Eddie Abel and James Hayward have been called into the squad as it continues to take on a more youthful look.

Abel, 17, who is also a member of Hampshire academy, will make his first senior appearance for the county while Hayward, 18, will be given his second outing to make a teenage duet of left arm bowlers.

Rowe, who is expected to open the batting with Abel, said: "The talented young players we have coming through is brilliant for the county.