Darley has reinforced its stocks ahead of another crack at a Ballarat Cricket Association first XI premiership.
The Lions, who made their first ever BCA grand final last season, are hoping to be in the mix again this season.
New coach Michael Alexander said after a strong preseason, which had stepped up over the last month, they were ready for the real stuff to start.
Alexander, who will bat at the top of the order, said they would have a similar line up to last season.
Sri Lankans’ Anurudda Rajapakse and Roshan Anuruddha have joined the club and will add depth to both the bowling and batting.
Rajapakse is a right arm fast medium bowler who plays with Kurunegala Youth Cricket Club in Sri Lanka and has captained the club is several major tournaments.
Anuruddha is a genuine all-rounder who has represented his country at under-19 level.
They join fellow Sri Lankan Hasitha Wickramasinghe who has returned for a second season at the club.
Alexander said with Sajith Rupasingha not returning and former captain-coach Heath Pritchard looked unlikely to play, they needed to add some extra bowling options.
“We looked to add more depth to the bowling, Alexander said. “We don’t have the same depth without Heath and we’ve added one pace bowler and an allrounder.
“It’s a nice mix of talent.
Alexander said he expected Wivkramasinghe to take his game to another level this season, having adjusted to playing on Australian wickets.
He said they would also focus on bringing through the next generation of players through into the firsts.
Alexander, who joined the club in the off season from Melton, said despite not being part of last year’s grand final team, he feels the drive the playing group has about going one step further.
“We spoke about setting goals,” he said.
“There’s no doubt [winning the premiership] it’s a goal and there’s a lot of drive as we’ve never won a Ballart premiership.
“We said at the start of the preseason that talking about it is one thing. It’s about doing the things we need to do to get back there.”’
As well as looking for success with the top side, Alexander is hoping that with a bit more depth their other sides will be a lot stronger.
The club’s second and third XIs won two games each last season, both finishing bottom of the ladder.
“Another key area for us is the club championship,” he said. “We haven’t been up the top with that for a while.
“A top three in that would be a good finish.
“Adding some top end talent helps with that. There’s a core group of 10-15 younger players that have made progression.
“Hopefully we have enough depth in the seconds and thirds.”
