The National Trophy makes an early start at Wodson Park, Ware, on Saturday when the home-town Leopards host the newly renamed West Anglia College Fury.

It’s the start of a new era for both club; Leopards are now back at Ware on the permanent basis, and have decided to concentrate on British talent, while Fury have a new name and several new players.

Only Sam Salter and Duncan Ogilvie return from last season’s regulars in the Leopards line-up, although there will still be some familiar names for fans of the Big Cats.

One player the Leopards’ supporters did not expect to see in action for their team this season is shooting guard Salter.

The 31-year-old shooting guard joined EBL Division One rivals Reading Rockets in the summer, but was released after just one game and handful of training sessions following the decision of club captain Adam Kelley not to retire.

Salter sunk the free-throws that sealed the National Cup triumph, ironically against Reading, two seasons ago and his return will be a big boost for coach Jon Burnell.

Guard/forward Gareth Laws will be a valuable addition to Burnell’s team after a career which has seen him gain BBL experience with London Towers and Plymouth Raiders. Laws has also played for London Capitals and Sutton Pumas in Division One, and will provide some extra court leadership for the Leopards.

One face from the past for Leopards fans is Laurent Irish. The 6’ 7” forward originally joined the club in November 2004, having previously played for Milton Keynes Lions and Christian Academy High School in the USA before attending Embry Riddle University in the States.

He left the club 12 months later following an altercation in the locker-room with Steve Ogunjimi, and missed out on a place in the National Cup final winning team, and played in the BBL for the now defunct London United last season.

The rest of the Leopards squad is built around the Barking Abbey Academy programme, though they are still looking for a senior big man, and coach Burnell is well aware of the challenge that the new season presents:

"It will be tough going at times, and the Trophy campaign especially will be a learning curve for the kids. But we’ve tried it the other way, with Americans, and never got close in the Trophy, so we’ll give it our best shot."

Fury coach James Bamfield is also looking forward to Saturday’s clash at Wodson Park:

"We're very excited about the new season with the support of the College of West Anglia and Subway as our headline sponsor we are entering a new phase for the club.

"Team-wise we have four returning senior players along with the arrival of imports Lamar Hull and Craig Williams. The addition of veteran Emerson Westerby gives the squad additional leadership, while we have four players from our academy who we hope can provide solid play.

"It's difficult to scout teams this early but we will have to be aware of the threat of Duncan Ogilvie and Sammy Salter. Last week we played the US select team and went down 84-62. I thought we looked solid defensively but tired towards the end of the game; hopefully we will be better prepared physically and mentally for our opening competitive fixture.

"I like our balance this year as we have more size up front and are a little deeper on the bench. The squad have spent quite a lot of time together over the last month and the team dynamics seem good - I believe we will be a lot more competitive this season and hope to improve with each game as we have a very young squad."

The Trophy gets fully underway on the weekend of October 6/7 with a full set of group games.