Date: 29th Mar 2024
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BOTES AND NEW BRIGHTON INVESTING FOR THE FUTURE

Date: 10th September 2014

A Paul Edwards copyright exclusive for L&DCC Official Website.

Rake Lane men not giving up chase - but need a whole lot of luck

New Brighton’s cricketers probably know that to describe them as outsiders for the ECB Premier League title rather overstates the case. Louis Botes’ team are 37 points behind Ormskirk with two Saturdays left in the season. Even if they take maximum points from their games against Fleetwood Hesketh and Maghull, Ian Robinson’s side will still need only 13 points from matches against Lytham and Rainhill to be crowned Champions.

 

Nevertheless, last Sunday’s victory over Leigh in the Ray Digman Trophy means that the Rake Lane side will at least end the season with one piece of silverware, which is one more than most clubs in the Med Imaging Liverpool Competition. And New Brighton’s skipper will still be viewing the campaign as a success.

 

“Earlier in the season we thought we’d perhaps win more trophies than we’ll actually be receiving,” admitted Botes. “But all we can do over the next two Saturdays is look after ourselves and win our games. We’ll have to be lucky but we can’t affect what Ormskirk do.”

 

Botes also agreed that without Luke Procter’s unbeaten 56 against Leigh, his team might not have achieved their slender two-wicket victory at Beech Walk.

 

“It was close,” he said. “We always make it difficult for ourselves but Luke stayed in. Games can develop like that when you have a young side but Luke is always very positive and he’s a team man. If the chips are down, he’s the one who’ll start talking and rally the troops.”

 

Despite the time Procter has spent out of the Lancashire team this season, people who’ve watched his cricket in recent seasons know that he does not lack for resilience and his innings at Hove this week may be seen as only the latest illustration of the Oldham cricketer’s ability to “guts it out”.

 

But New Brighton’s success this season and their emergence as Ormskirk’s only consistently credible rival for the title has not been all about Procter or indeed, any other single player. Martyn Evans has scored 683 runs and David While, Upal Fernando and Botes himself have all passed 500.  Ashraf Nawab’s left-arm spin has accounted for 39 batsmen while Andrew Clarke has taken 26 wickets.

 

“We’re always hoping that at least one of us will come off,” said Botes, and the skipper is also happy to explain the reason behind the financial investment in the team which has been made this year.

 

“That cash has certainly allowed us to bring in some players but we don’t want to forget local cricketers,” he said. “We wanted to bring on our own younger players while still remaining competitive. The local youngsters will gradually play a bigger role in the future. Next season we’re hoping to have nine New Brighton-based players and two imports, and in 2016 the aim is to have just the overseas professional playing alongside 10 local cricketers.”                            

 

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