BOURNEMOUTH skipper Chris Park insisted the variety in Lions’ bowling attack allowed them to hunt in packs.

The Southern League Division one table-toppers on Saturday face a crucial encounter at third-place Hook & Newnham Basics (12.30pm) searching for their sixth win in eight games.

Bournemouth’s left-arm spinner Rob Pack is the leading wicket-taker in the division, with 16 victims costing him 12.31 apiece.

Fellow spinner Dom Clutterbuck has also impressed, having taken 10 wickets and operated at a miserly 2.43 runs per over – the second lowest in the division.

Effective spells from seamers Dave Kidner and Dan Conway have also boosted the Chapel Gate side and Park believes he has a vast array of bowling options to turn to.

He told the Daily Echo: “We have a nice variety in our bowling attack and it’s a case of, as captain, trying to get the right bowlers on at the right times in the conditions.

“If the ball is seaming or swinging around, Dan Conway, Dave Kidner, Ed Denham and Simon Woodruff are four very good seamers. If it offers spin we have four spinners as well.

“We try to mix and match it. We don’t want batsmen getting used to left-arm spin so we have Jake Hurley with his off-spin and Jem Warner’s leg-spin when he comes back.

“We have played around a little bit with our bowling attack with people bowling at different times of the innings.

“Sarisbury played out Dom Clutterbuck and saw him as a threat – his economy rate has been absolutely first class.

“That means teams have to attack Rob Pack a little more and that is where he is getting his wickets. Rob is a good bowler and has been for the past few years.

“As a five or six-man bowling unit we are trying to be economical and bowl in partnerships. Rob is getting the rewards from bowling when batsmen are trying to get on with it and score against us.

“In the past, Dom and Jake have picked up wickets because they had been bowling towards the end of the innings.”

Lions are set to be without opening bowler Conway but welcome back Hurley, Kidner and Martin Miller to their line-up.

The visitors will be looking to bounce back having suffered a six-wicket home defeat to Sarisbury Athletic last time out.

Hosts Hook have won four of their seven fixtures this season, with one contest being washed out.

Assessing Bournemouth’s start to the campaign, Park added: “Two defeats so far this season is not what we planned but we will take them on the chin and learn from them.

“We have a difficult two or three weeks coming up where we need to hit the ground running and perform well.

“Hook have started the season really well and we need to be on top form on Saturday. They are a competitive side and we need to match that head-to-head.”