SOMERSET director of cricket Matt Maynard believes his players are gearing up nicely for the new season following an intense six-week training block.

With seven weeks to go until Somerset’s opening fixture of the 2015 season against Durham MCCU, the players have been working flat out since they reported back from Christmas and as a result are currently enjoying a well deserved week off.

Director of Cricket Matt Maynard, who has been fully involved with all of the sessions in the Indoor School, told the club’s official website: “I am really happy with the way things have gone here since Christmas.

“We’ve had the bowling machines on full pace with short deliveries and varying lengths and big swings so they have been tough sessions.

“We have varied that with the players own nets when they decide what they want to do and then on Thursday we had a T20 day.

“All of the cricket skills have come on really nicely but the guys are pretty tired now and have been working really hard - they fully deserve their break this week.”

When the Somerset players return on February 23 they have just over a week at the County Ground before heading off for their pre-season training camp in south east Spain.

Maynard continued: “A lot of the work in terms of the team will be done in Desert Springs, but in terms of the player’s skills what we have been doing here has been great.

“We have had some really good feedback from the bowlers and the batters as well.”

“We have got six weeks to go before the start of the season and I think we have to be very careful because we don’t want them peaking in March when there are no games.

“The guys are quite advanced now, look in good touch and are getting their game plans together, so I think a week off will give them a bit of down time and time to think.

“They are all physically shattered because we have worked them really hard which is great, so the week off will give them a chance to get their energy levels back up.”