The end of a disastrous season has finally arrived for the Natal cricket team and the off-season focus will be on the acquisition of players to bolster the squad.

Natal finished second from bottom in the SuperSport Series and were knocked out in the first round of the Standard Bank Cup for their poorest season since 1991/92 as uncertainty over the coach and sponsor of the team raged on.

Although happy with the talent coming through, Natal cricket's chief executive officer, Cassim Docrat, said the disappointing season may force Natal to bolster the team from outside the province.

``For a while now we've been providing the other provinces with players, but the time may now be right for us to do some shopping around,'' Docrat said on Monday. ``There is ample room within the budget. The budget for players has not been cut, it is only other departments who have had to spend less.

``We probably won't be looking at someone from overseas, but if we find someone locally who matches what we want, then we'll move on him.''

Docrat said the KwaZulu-Natal Cricket Union (KZNCU) were pleased to see some talent coming through. ``Robbie Macqueen, Jon Kent and Wade Wingfield all performed heroics and you can see there's lots of talent there.

``But the overall performance of the team was very mediocre. They just couldn't gel and some of the experienced players did not perform to standard.''

Next season will see the provinces limited to 17 contracted players, excluding those stars contracted by the United Cricket Board, but Docrat said Natal could well sign only 15 players.

Much-improved paceman Jannie Dreyer, on loan from North-West, will probably be lost as his province will be playing in the 11-team SuperSport Series next season, but all the other Natal regulars are busy negotiating with the KZNCU for the extension of their contracts.

Craig Sugden, one of the stars of Border's impressive season and a former Maritzburg Varsity player, was given to East London on loan and, with the chance to play regularly, flourished to such an extent that Docrat now wants to bring him back to Durban. ``We are very keen to have Sugden back and there is a strong possibility that will happen.''

The other two problem areas of this season have been the coach and the sponsor. The search for a new sponsor can continue until next year, NBS remaining on board until the end of the 1999/2000 season, but the KZNCU will be eager to name the new coach in the next couple of months to avoid this season's uncertainty, when three people held the reins at different times.

Docrat said the union would have to wait and see what Graham Ford is doing, but all the signs are that he will take charge of the national team when Bob Woolmer steps down after the World Cup in June.

Natal's search for a coach of his calibre will be as difficult as their hunt for star players to bolster the team.

There are no obvious candidates drifting around in club cricket, and while Ian Tayfield was happy to step in and replace Ford for the rest of this season, whether he will agree to a new career is debatable.

Natal finished the season a bit like a terminally ill patient in need of euthanasia, but it can only be hoped a cure can be found in the winter that will restore life and vigour to what was rapidly resembling a corpse in the last few weeks of the campaign.