Mark Jackson could not have dreamed of a more appropriate home debut.

Brighton Bears' new point guard lines-up at The Triangle tomorrow against Thames Valley Tigers, the side he left in the summer to pursue a new adventure on the south coast.

Jackson is one of the new signings likely to get court time tomorrow as Bears finally enjoy their long awaited first home outing.

Fans will also be keen to see whether Sterling Davis, Randy Duck and latest addition Rodney Alexander, snapped up on a short team deal from Conference outfit Inter-basket, can revive last season's Southern Conference wooden spoonists.

Jackson, born and based in Southampton, could easily have been lining up for the Tigers tomorrow had he not made plans to move to the United States.

Those plans fell through, but not before Thames Valley coach Paul James had made new signings, so Jackson got on the internet to find a new employer.

He said: "I e-mailed every club through the BBL website and Romek was the first one to phone up and say he was interested.

"I started negotiating at the beginning of the summer and once Nick Nurse was named as coach I started talking to him.

"He's brought in a whole bunch of new guys and we are feeling confident."

Jackson will be seen by many as a direct replacement for last season's co-skipper Daniel Hildreth. He admits he is likely to start as back-up point guard to Duck, who piled up plenty of minutes in last weekend's tournament in Birmingham.

When Duck fouled out in the win over Chester, Jackson came off the bench to sink seven crucial free throws in overtime and he could play a similar role when the serious stuff starts.

Jackson, who started his career with Solent, admitted: "Randy is an experienced guy and he will be our leader.

"He is a far better player than me but I am here to learn from him. He's got a lot more experience and I can only get better playing alongside him.

"I'm a hustler, I'll bring the three-point shot if no-one else is hitting and I will do the little things that the other guys are struggling to do.

"I will bring leadership, enthusiasm, hussle and intensity. Hopefully I will be more of vocal leader here than I was at Thames Valley.

"They had the likes of John McCord, who is very vocal.

"Here it is a new bunch of guys and I can speak my mind in front of them."

He might even have told last season's players where they were going wrong, if only he could pinpoint the reasons.

Jackson, whose Tigers beat the Bears four times last season, said: "They play their socks off but they always get pipped to the post.

"I don't know why they were coming up short. I spoke to some of the guys and they said they practised hard.

"They used to win everything in the Worthing days and all of a sudden they hit a brick wall and it just went downhill from there.

"Hopefully we can take them back up."