South Australia will be out to prove a point when it returns to the scene of its 2004-05 Pura Cup crime against NSW next week.

The Redbacks play the first game of the first class season at the SCG - the ground on which they were dismissed for 29 in December last year.

Composed middle order stroke maker Cameron Borgas, who with Callum Ferguson is a youthful name in a suddenly powerful batting line-up featuring the likes of Matthew Elliott and Darren Lehmann, said that mauling had offered potent motivation for the SA squad during the off-season.

"All the guys have worked hard over the past six to eight months, particularly on the batting," said the 22-year-old, whose chance is partly due to Mark Cosgrove's overweight ban.

"We've had a really big pre-season, so everyone's looking forward to getting out in the middle and really proving a point."

Any point, or points, will be hard-won against a NSW side that should feature a bowling attack of Glenn McGrath, Brett Lee, Stuart Clark and Stuart MacGill, three of the four bowlers fresh from crushing the World XI.

Borgas spoke confidently of how SA would counter, though his suggestion the Blues' bowlers would not be too much difference from grade cricket seemed like wishful thinking.

"It's tremendous to get picked and probably even better to be able to play New South Wales at full strength," he said.

"It's more about handling the pressure, but really it's the same sort of stuff as you face in grade cricket, you might come up against a McGrath or Lee playing grade cricket anyway."

Borgas' selection chances were enhanced by his patient maiden 50 against Tasmania in the Redbacks' final Pura Cup game last summer, when he saw off a nagging spell from quality seamer Damien Wright.

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