McLean Park's faster pace and superior bounce may well see the bouncer become a significant factor for the first time in the National Bank One-Day International Series when New Zealand meet England in their third match in Napier tomorrow.

Conditions in the lead-up to the game have been a welcome change from the rain-affected build-ups in previous games. Both sides have had lengthy practices in the fine and warm conditions.

There is also a hard and fast pitch and the new law allowing one bouncer an over could be a factor in the final result of the match.

England 2-0 down in the five-game series desperately need a win tomorrow while New Zealand are equally determined to take out the series by completing their third win.

At the back of the minds of players in both sides must be the historic point of the last series in New Zealand between the two in 1996/97 when England were 2-0 up and New Zealand came to Napier to tie the match here and then win the last two games to draw the series.

New Zealand captain Stephen Fleming said: "We've enjoyed the three days and in a way it has helped us refocus. If you keep going the way you are going, you sometimes make mistakes and the word complacency comes in.

"For three days we have been very thorough to make sure we carry on what we have started.

"When it is going well, and it is enjoyable, you don't want it to stop. That's certainly the feeling that we have in the camp at the moment," he said.

The pitch tomorrow will decide New Zealand's final selection but it is most likely that fast man Ian Butler will come into the side. He has been most impressive in the nets and if he can tighten his line in the face of what is certain to be an English assault to unsettle him, he could play a big role in the game.

But supplementing him is the new found respect for Andre Adams whose fast bowling was a big factor in New Zealand's win on Saturday.

For England the requirement is survival, especially after the magnitude of their 155-run loss in Wellington on Saturday.

Putting that behind them has to be the key to their hopes.

They certainly need Marcus Trescothick to get among the runs, and to see Nick Knight, Nasser Hussain and Graham Thorpe give the side a high-scoring start to give them their best chance, whether batting first or chasing.

Fleming said: "We obviously want to win every game we play in our home country.

"Naturally we expect them to come back stronger, we would be foolish if we didn't.

"And the guys feel the same way which is often a good gauge to how much, not of motivation, but how much they are looking forward to the remainder of the series. That is the way we have been training and the way we are looking forward to the next three games," he said.

"We want to win the series and if we can win it tomorrow it will be great and then we can look forward to bigger possibilities, but the series is first and foremost.

"It's an oiling process as time ticks by where we are down the track to where we want to be for South Africa and it's just a case of working with what we've got or giving guys more experience."

The Napier ground was, for a long time, New Zealand's most successful ODI venue but some recent results have not been so impressive. The side want to rebuild their successful record at the ground.

"It is quite a unique ground with its size and quite a good atmosphere. We do enjoy playing here, it's traditionally been a pretty good wicket and with those square boundaries you get a good amount of runs as well.

"We had a very proud record before the last couple of years and we're looking forward to getting that back," he said.

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