CRAIG PRINCE TO SKIPPER BOOTLE - NEW SIGNINGS UNVEILED

Date: 16th October 2014

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

Neil Williams returns; Stenhouse moves across the Mersey.

It was always a decent wager that next summer’s matches between Firwood Bootle and Formby were going to be eagerly-awaited, well-attended affairs. Thursday’s appointment of Craig Prince as the successor to David Snellgrove as captain at Wadham Road has done nothing to lessen the expectation.

As a member of the Bootle side which carried almost all before it a few years back, Prince happily admits that ex-skipper Ian Cockbain is one of the men from whom he has learned most in the game. Next summer, though, Ron Weasley will be taking on Professor Dumbledore at least a couple of times as he seeks to fill the Liverpool 20 trophy cabinet.

As he accustoms himself to his new responsibilities, Prince admits that he is looking forward to the encounters. “There’ll be a good crowd and Ian’s done his usual thing by getting every ounce from his players at Formby,” he said.

“I’m not sure he’ll enjoy playing against Bootle though, so let’s hope we beat ‘em. But I won’t be winding him up. There’s no chance of me taking Coey on in that way.”

Indeed, 29-year-old Prince’s main immediate concern has been to strengthen a team which finished sixth in the ECB Premier League last season after flirting with relegation for part of the year. To ensure that the club’s supporters are focused on the other end of the table in 2015, the new skipper has signed Chris Stenhouse from Birkenhead Park and has persuaded the former Leigh skipper Neil Williams to return to the Med Imaging Liverpool Competition.

“Neil’s the best wicketkeeper I’ve ever played with,” said Prince. “He’s a top lad and it’s superb to get him back at Wadham Road, but I’ve also got to say thank you to our former keeper Graeme Jones, who’s retired. He’s been a fantastic servant to Bootle over something like 15 seasons. Graeme was a fighter and a winner who even had his teeth knocked out in one game yet still went back out there. Chris simply wants to come to Bootle to win things. He’s someone who’ll run in all day for you and bowl with good pace.”

Prince has also signed the 22-year-old all-rounder Scott Butterworth, who was Rochdale’s professional in 2014 and is the brother of the current Bootle cricketer Greg, and the new skipper will be welcoming an as yet unnamed top order Australian batsman to the club.”

“I’ve taken my thinking on signings from the people I saw Ian sign,” said Prince. “It’s not enough to be good at cricket. I want winners in my side and I want people I can trust. You’ve got to come into that Bootle dressing room and fit in, and maybe in the recent past that hasn’t quite happened. We’re going to spend a lot of time together during the season and we’ve got to be mates as well.

As for himself, Prince is simply delighted to have landed the job he admits he has wanted for a couple of seasons.

“I feel proud and privileged,” he said “For me to follow powerhouse names in Liverpool Competition and Lancashire cricket like Ian Cockbain and David Snellgrove is probably my proudest moment in cricket. I’ve been at Bootle for eight years and I know what it means for people to be able to come and watch us.

I want to be able to give them something as well because watching us is a very big part of their lives. It’s time we got the place going again.

“I’ve played under good captains from Graham Standring at Southport and Birkdale to Phil Luxon at Wallasey and Jon Bowden at Fleetwood Hesketh and then Ian and David. All five are different characters with different styles and I’ll be taking bits and pieces from every one of them. You wanted to play for those guys.

“But I’m also going to do things my way and certain things will be different. I thought it was interesting what Gladstone Small said at the Liverpool Comp dinner about letting people express themselves and I want to let people do that. There are going to be disciplines but I also want players to do their own thing. I’ll be open and honest with them and tell them what I want from them but my door will always be open for them to say that I could do this or that. I’m lucky enough to have four ex-captains in the side and I’m happy that there’ll be no shortage of advice.

“There are also good young lads coming through in the junior sides at Bootle but they have to understand that they will have to learn their trade at times and then take their chance when it arrives.”