The initial 15-man squad for next year's Easter Tour to Marbella was this week revealed by Tour Secretary Azhar Khan and there are some intriguing names on the list, including no less than nine tour virgins.

Some stalwarts of touring teams in years gone by still remain, with David Lederman set for his 18th (eighteenth) tour, Harry Woolley his eighth, Jack Orr-Ewing and Arjun Chopra their fourth, Harry Gibson his third and Alex Gilbert returning for the second time.

Gibson, it may be recalled, has put in an excellent performance off the pitch in both his two previous tours, gaining first-hand knowledge of the Sofia pizza-making industry and, in Prague, the Spanish national athletics team's preparations for an Olympic Games.

The nine tour virgins include Tour Manager and an early candidate to finish in the top three of the Weird List, Azhar Khan. Azhar has been in excellent form on the pitch for the 2's this season, it remains to be seen how he performs on tour with 'sub-standard preparation'.

It is great news to see goalkeeper Charlie Walsh on the list - Charlie suffered a terrible knee injury in the 1's defeat at Charterhouse last season and is still undergoing rehab but he hopes to be back playing again in the new year. The benefit of a proper goalkeeper on tour cannot be over-estimated.

A powerful forward line will travel to Marbella with both the 2's leading front men Dave Stead and Max Curry making the trip and there is also a call-up for the man with the best goals-per-game ratio in the Club at the moment: 3's striker Alex Smith.

A 'sturdy' back line will include both Theo Gordon and Chuka Ilogu and two more 3's midfielders travel, Nick Kapoor and Toby Cooper.

Some early intrigue was provided when the list of passport names was released by Tour Manager Khan: Harry Gibson is travelling under the pseudonym 'William Devesci Gibson', prompting Club wag Jack Orr-Ewing to wonder whether someone had once called William 'Harry' by mistake and the lack of a correction meant the name had stuck for many years. Probably best just to call him Devesci from now on to avoid any confusion.

There are still places available for those who wish to sample the cultural delights of Marbella on the opening weekend of the summer season - please contact Azhar Khan if you wish to join in the fun in the sun...