The Somerset squad returned to Taunton this evening after spending what Head of Injury Prevention Darren Veness described as "Two very very good days, which were good fun for everybody all round. It was all very intensive but very worthwhile and they will all have learnt something from the experience at Centre Parcs."

One of the activities involved working in teams of three to scale a forty foot telegraph pole, and then standing together on a platform less than two feet in size at the top. In another similar activity they had to leap from the top of the pole onto a trapeze style swing, which a number of the players admitted they found pretty daunting.

Darren told me, "That was a real confidence and team building activity. It was a big thing for all the boys to get up there to do it in the first place. Just to do that was an achievement for many of them."

Steffan Jones, who was last season's overall wicket taker, told me, "It was all a new experience for me, but I know that we will all have got something from it."

He continued, "Most of us were pretty scared climbing to the top of the telegraph pole, so it was a different type of achievement for us to do it. As we were doing it we were egging each other to get there, which was good for team building."

All rounder Mike Burns told me, "It was a good two days especially the activity in teams climbing up the telegraph poles and we also spent sometime rock climbing all roped up. It was a new type of activity being offered at Centre Parcs and hopefully we will all have benefited from it."

On Wednesday the Somerset squad travel south to Lympstone on the River Exe estuary to spend the day at the Royal Marine Commando Training Centre where they will amongst other things tackle the assault course.

I asked Darren Veness for his thought ahead of the day. "It will be a pretty gruelling and I think that most of us will be happy to just get through it."

Steffan Jones told me, "It's been a bit like the Krypton Factor with all of the different things that we have done over the last ten days, but it has made a welcome change from working indoors where most of have spent the winter months training hard."

Steffan continued, "Last season we had a pretty good team spirit in the club, and we all hope that this year it will be even better as a result of the types of activities that we have been doing."

Looking forward to Wednesday Mike Burns told me, "It should be a very interesting day, especially as Chief Executive Peter Anderson will be taking part in the day!"

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