WILTSHIRE captain Ed Young believes a switch to the longer format of the game will suit his side as they begin their Unicorns Championship campaign this weekend.

Young and his troops travel to Dorset in the Western Division on Sunday to start their first three-day game of the summer, having endured a below-par one-day season.

Wiltshire rounded off their Unicorns T20 programme with a disappointing double defeat at home to Cornwall last weekend to finish bottom of the Group Four, with just one win from eight games.

Young, though, says morale has not dimmed and sees no reason why they cannot achieve success this summer.

“Three-day cricket is about consistency a lot more,” said Young.

“Batsmen are going to be taking less risks as they aren’t under pressure to score from the first ball. I think that will help our younger players.

“And the bowlers need to keep hitting their channel and try to force mistakes.

“You know to win a three-day game you need to bowl the opposition out twice but it is about controlling the scoreboard.

“We will be looking for our batsmen to put a good score on the board to try to build pressure.”

Cornwall’s Matt Rowe took the first of last weekend’s T20 matches at Calne away from Wiltshire, scoring 86 as the hosts fell to a 12-run defeat.

Rowe’s knock, off 48 balls, helped Cornwall post 152-9 after being inserted by home captain Young, who took 4-16.

Brad Dawson made a spirited 52 not out in reply for Wiltshire but Young and Ben Draper were the only other batsmen to reach double figures as they could only reach 140-9.

Wiltshire got to bat first in the second game after losing the toss but again the outcome was the same as Cornwall claimed an eight-wicket win.

Peter Trego’s 3-18 helped limit the home side to 135-9, with Jack Haines (25) and Jack Mynott (25 not out) top scoring.

Trego was then to the fore with the bat in the Cornwall reply, making 47 not out to aid 51 from opener Thomas Rowe as the visitors reached their target with 35 balls to spare.

Young said: “It was a disappointing T20 campaign but this is a new era for Wiltshire cricket.

“Some of the old faces are still around but we are playing a lot of young guys trying to get them experience of county cricket.

“Inevitably that is going to lead to inconsistencies but we haven’t come away from those games feeling disheartened and I think there were plenty of things for us to be positive about.”