New South Wales' one-day cup title victory has been the catalyst for their hot early form in the Sheffield Shield, according to offspinner Will Somerville.
The Blues need just 93 more runs - with all 10 second-innings wickets in hand - on the fourth day of their Shield match against Western Australia on Monday to start their campaign with back-to-back victories.
It comes after their success in the one-day cup, where NSW won six of eight games including the final against Queensland.
Carrying that momentum into the four-day format, the Blues are set to win their sixth consecutive match across both competitions.
Somerville, who finished with career-best match figures of 9-126 after helping bowl out the Warriors in their second innings on Sunday, said they were also driven by their Shield failure of last summer.
"We played well last year and just missed out on the Sheffield Shield final which was a big disappointment because we played well all year," he said.
"We had a fixture abandoned and a few things didn't quite go our way. That's cricket.
"This year we're trying to do our best, we're really well prepared and the group's going really well. The Matador (one-day cup) was a great success so we're just following on from that."
Nightwatchman Somerville (0) will return to the crease with opener Dan Hughes (three) on Monday.
"I'll try and bat for as long as I can and play as straight as I can," he said.
"I'm looking forward to batting. It's a nice slow wicket so I can't get too many around the ribs."
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