HCC and Hermes-DVS Schiedam appear to be in strongly contrasting situations as they set out to improve on a 2009 campaign which saw them miss out on a top four place and finish fifth and sixth respectively.

For Hermes, the winter has been a period of almost unmitigated gain: not only have they acquired the services of New Zealand-born Dutch aspirant Derek de Boorder, but their already strong seam attack has been augmented by the return of left-armer Ernst van Giezen, who comes back to his old club after a four-year stint with VOC Rotterdam.

Van Giezen will join international Ruud Nijman, Erik Hartong, Nils Lenstra, Harro Seelaar and Sebastiaan Braat, the latter one of the most promising of the young talents recently added to the national A squad, in a generally steady seam department, with the spin again provided by Pieter Seelaar and Nick Statham.

With Shanan Stewart – second in the national averages last season with 831 runs at 55.40 – returning as player-coach and Statham and De Boorder in the top order, Hermes will be hoping to register substantial totals more consistently than they have been able to do in the past, perhaps the main reason that they have not managed to reach the play-offs in the three years since they were established.

An unknown quantity as yet is young English batsman Ben Lake, whose performances in the Bassetlaw and District League suggest he may challenge for a first-team place, and Hermes have also picked up Laurens Jongepier – a prolific scorer in the Overgangsklasse last season – from neighbours Asvion.

Jasper Beijer and keeper Bart Schilperoord are also capable of making valuable runs, while the club are hopeful that former youth international Pieter van der Hammen will have more time this season to develop his considerable potential. The only bad news is the retirement of long-serving opening batsman Renzo Borrani.

HCC, on the other hand, face the loss of four players from last season’s squad, which had already suffered a remarkable loss of form from the double-winning performances of 2008.

Captain Feiko Kloppenburg, opener Derk Rijkens and left-arm spinner Jacob-Jan Esmeijer have all decided to call it a day, and Stephan Myburgh, no longer eligible to play as a Dutch resident, will be player-coach of the Seconds. That leaves a very large hole indeed, and 2010 seems certain to be a season of reconstruction for the Royal Haagse.

Fortunately for them, Johan Myburgh returns as coach, and much of the responsibility in the batting will rest on his shoulders and on those of Tom de Grooth when his international duties permit. Other than that, new skipper Bernard Loots will be hoping that Thijs Fischer, Bob Entrop and Guus Kout put together consistent runs of success with the bat.

Much will also be expected of Philip van den Brandeler, who looked the part when he broke into the First team last season, and who may become a key figure both in the middle order and as a seamer. The latter department is, though, the one area where HCC, with the Jonkman twins, Loots and Van den Brandeler’s Under-19 colleague Olivier Klaus, seems to be as strong as ever.

It’s not yet certain which, if either, of the South African exchange players, Jancan Adams and Imran Nackerdien, will play in the Topklasse, and the club is waiting to see how they fit into the squad. Nackerdien, interestingly, was in the Boland Academy side which met the Dutch national side in a warm-up game in Brackenfell as part of the build-up to last year’s World Cup qualifier.

Myburgh currently seems likely to be the main provider of spin, although De Grooth may find himself bowling more overs than in the past. With Jeroen Smits behind the stumps HCC will again have one of the most spirited motivators in Dutch cricket history, and it may be that all his energy and commitment will be needed if the side is to stay clear of the relegation play-offs.