by Glenn Pearson

Kent head coach Jimmy Adams says he will have "butterflies" before his new-look side take to the field for the club’s opening game of the season on Thursday.

Skipper Rob Key could hand debuts to five new winter signings, when Kent take on Yorkshire at Headingley in the LV= County Championship.

Mike Powell, Ben Harmison, Brendan Nash and loan signing Scott Newman will provide competition in the Kent top order and Charlie Shreck, who made one appearance on loan last season, looks set to form a new-look, new-ball attack with Mark Davies – who arrived from Durham last week.

Adams (pictured), the former West Indies skipper, has been pleased with his new recruits and Kent’s performances in pre-season but said despite his international experience, there will be a touch of nerves on the eve of the new season.

He said: "It’s a new experience for me so I will have a few butterflies myself.

"It’s going to be a big challenge to play a side that have come down from Division 1 but I also have confidence in the players we have and we should look forward to some good cricket."

Key has recovered from a wrist injury, with the skipper rating his chances of opening the innings at Headingley as "100%" while Darren Stevens (dislocated finger) and Simon Cook (shoulder) have come through pre-season unscathed.

Adam Ball and Daniel Bell-Drummond (England under-19 duty in Australia), Azhar Mahmood (IPL) and James Tredwell (England) are all unavailable, but with a larger pool of players to call on this season in comparison to the last couple of years, Key is confident of his side’s chances this season.

He said: "Coaches and captains can do whatever they can but you really need your players to do it and having a few senior players with points to prove – there’s nothing better than that.

"It’s a different environment now and there’s competition for places. Now senior players and junior players are under a bit of pressure from competition, which has not been the case for a couple of years."

*Pick up a copy of your local KM paper to read our two-page Kent cricket season preview.