LEWIS Gregory has outlined his confidence that both he and Somerset can continue their respective forward momentum and mount another County Championship title challenge.

The 24-year-old all-rounder, who starred with a five-wicket haul for the MCC in the traditional Champion County curtain-raiser against Middlesex, believes the squad are in a “good place” going into the start of the new campaign.

“Last year was a brilliant year no matter how it finished – in the second half of the summer we picked up that momentum and were difficult to stop,” he said.

“The lads are now in a really good place –everyone seems confident and playing good cricket. Hopefully we can start the summer well and get some good victories.”

The start of the season will be crucial for the Cidermen, who had to wait until the end of May to secure their first Championship victory of last season after drawing their first six matches.

“It’s hard because a lot of the teams are very cautious at the start of the year,” Gregory said.

“Some of the wickets you play on don’t warrant results in four-day cricket and there is usually a bit of dodgy weather around as well.

“For us it is about carrying on from where we left off last year, and if we do that results will fall our way and hopefully we can be victorious come the end of it.”

The seamer has had a busy schedule of late, appearing in the North v South one-day series in addition to his MCC exploits, and the Plymouth-born prospect is a player that remains on the England radar – though he insisted his initial aim is helping his county.

“I’m focused on my performances here – I’m here to take wickets and score runs for Somerset and if I can do that then I will help us get into winning positions and whatever comes after that will come,” he said.

“The wickets we played on last year mean I do not really set targets, it is just about making an individual contribution in each match and performing my role in the team effectively.”

Gregory enters this campaign having played exactly 50 first-class matches in his Somerset career and, having made his Championship debut six years ago, has become a mainstay of the side in recent years.

With that in mind, it is easy to forget that he is just 24 – something he is keen to point out when asked if he feels like a senior player within the dressing room.

“I’m not sure ‘senior’ is the right word for it! I feel like I’ve got a lot of experience behind me now though and I think I can contribute a lot to the team,” he said.

“We’ve got others with a lot more experience than myself, but we’ve also got some good talent coming through and I feel like I can add to them in any way they need.”

“The teams with a lot of competition for places tend to be the better ones in any sport – we’ve got a really strong squad here with a lot of young guys and senior players all pushing for places.

“We’re going to have to have 11 guys in really good form to stay in the team, which is great because in Division One cricket there are no easy games, no matter who you’re playing.

“It is tough cricket, and the slight change of format makes it even tougher as a quarter of the teams go down. We are not looking at that end of the table, and if we perform how I know we can then I’m sure will be in the hunt come the last few games of the year.”