SKIPPER Robert Croft is confident Glamorgan can put themselves firmly back on course for promotion to the County Championship First Division.

Two wins have taken them from near the bottom to joint third in Division Two and a win over leaders Worcestershire in the game beginning at Cardiff tomorrow will put them bang in the firing line.

And victory is certainly possible as the New Road outfit have more player problems than almost any other county.

Top batsman Graeme Hick, the scourge of Glamorgan in the past, is out with a broken hand bone.

Top all-rounder Vikram Solanki and bowler Kabir Ali are on England one-day duty.

Another all-rounder, medium pace seamer and hard-hitting batsman Andrew Hall, is on South Africa international one-day duty.

And wicketkeeper Steve Rhodes is out with a hamstring injury and deputy James Pipe with an eye injury, leaving the county with Shropshire's Steve Ashed as number three.

Indian-born batsman Anurag Singh may return after a hamstring problem, but it leaves Worcestershire in dire straits.

"The loss of Hick is a huge blow to them and Rhodes always does well against us," said Croft.

"Certainly Worcestershire's strength is in their batting at the moment, but their squad still possesses a lot of skill and the youngsters who come in will want to prove themselves.

"We said at the start of the season our two main aims were to win promotion back to Division One and do well in the forty over game.

"Another win will put us in the top three of the championship and leave us with everything to play for so we have got to be aiming at that.

"And although we lost our unbeaten record to Warwickshire in the National League last week, it was only narrowly and we are still a formidable side in that competition."

Asked if four defeats in the new Twenty20 Cup plus that National League loss might affect confidence, Croft said: "No."

He added: "It has caused a bit of a shake-up and made us rethink things a little, but at the midway stage in the season that's no bad thing.

"If it was going to happen it's best it has happened now.

"We will refocus and concentrate on doing what we do well. We know we are a good side and we have to go back out in the championship and show it."

Glamorgan will again be without Steve James, Simon Jones and Andrew Davies while Darren Thomas steps back into the seconds for match practice after a few one-day appearances since returning from injury.

Glamorgan squad: Hughes, Powell, Maynard, Hemp, Dale, Croft, Wallace, Harrison, Kasprowicz, Wharf, Cosker, Parkin.