BRADFORD Premier League’s Premier Division newcomers Jer Lane will have no fear when taking on reigning champions Woodlands at home this weekend.

Three promotions in five years have seen Lane complete a remarkable rise to Bradford’s top division, but this weekend offers Raqeeb Younis’ men a challenge like no other.

They take on a Woodlands side who are chasing their fourth consecutive Premier Division title, and they look in no mood to let that record slip having won all seven of their opening fixtures as they sit at the table’s summit.

New boys, Jer Lane have started the season reasonably well and find themselves in 7th out of a possible 12 after just seven games.

Looking ahead to today’s exciting match-up with the champions Younis admitted that his side have nothing to fear.

He said: “It’s going to be a challenge, but we are embracing it; we can’t wait. We’ve got a lot of friends at Woodlands and we know the quality they possess. Games like this are why we chased promotion to the Premier Division in the first place, so we should be excited for it; it’s going to be a brilliant day of cricket and a match that is full of quality. I just hope that we can put in a top performance – and one that we’ve been threatening all season.”

Younis admitted that getting a win against Woodlands could be a turning point for any team’s season, particularly for his own team who are new to this level of cricket.

He said: “Getting a win against the reigning champions would be a massive boost for everyone at the club; not many teams beat Woodlands because they are a fantastic side. They’re an all-round team and they’ve got strength-in-depth all over the field. For us, winning against a game against Woodlands would mean everything in terms of our outlook on the season. I’m not saying that we don’t believe now, but a victory would give us belief that we can beat anyone in the division and confidence would arise from that.”

Younis added: “It will be very tough to beat them, and we’ll probably have to call on a few favours from Woodlands along the way because they are good mates of ours,” Jer Lane’s captain joked.

“Honestly, I don’t think they have any weaknesses as a team but let’s not forget that they’ve been together a very long time. At this level, we’re only just starting out and I think we can get there in the future with time. It’s all about the journey and I think Woodlands are the perfect example to look at regarding that.

“Our start to the Premier Division has been a little inconsistent, but we are beginning to find our feet and I believe that a big performance isn’t too far away.”

Jer Lane have won two of their seven fixtures; they’ve lost four while one fixture was abandoned.