"I am excited to get going after what has seemed like the longest winter ever!" - Dan Heath

1st Team Captain Dan Heath previews the season with VC Callum Guest.

Very different circumstances to be preparing for the season this winter, how have you found it?

As someone who likes to be ultra -organised I found it quite challenging! Over the 3rd Lockdown I heard and was told lots of contrasting information about start dates, restrictions, travel etc so it was very hard to know how it was all going to pan out. I am not too concerned about the lack of winter nets, I do feel players can do too much in the winter especially batters, batting on flat indoor surfaces, which could not be further from what batting April is like. We will have 4 very good friendlies and 6 practice sessions before our league kicks off on the 17th.

The second team have been promoted into the Whiting’s league for the first time. How beneficial do you think that is to the first team and the club as a whole?

I am absolutely delighted for everyone involved to be honest. The club now has a better pathway for players, it makes it easier for us to attract good young players now as we can offer cricket to cater to their current ability and potential.
As recruitment as shown this year we have been able to attract some players who will be very very good at the Whitings level, which would have been hard to do, had we not been promoted.
I am also very happy for the current crop of 2nd team players, they will be playing some good competitive cricket, which they deserve to be playing. There is some really good players in the 2s who I know have found the last 2 seasons slightly tedious, so I am delighted for them to be able to play some regular cricket at a better level.
Finally it will certainly benefit the 1st team as players who are potentially not selected for the 1s will be able to play some good cricket, with some good blokes and push for selection.

You may not have been busy practising in the off season, but you have brought in some key recruits to add to the team from last year. Talk us through them and how they benefit the side? 

Firstly I am happy not to have lost anyone! Retaining the squad from last year is fantastic as we are fortunate to have lots of good players so competition for places is always high.

+ Haggy (Matthew Hague) returning is huge for us both on and off the field. The partnership that he and Waxy developed in 2019 was crucial to our success, we never had a settled opening pair last season and having those 2 up the top together is important. He’s also a good friend of mine and someone I turn to on the field for some ideas.

+ Noah Thain is one of the best young players around, he has super potential and works very hard at his game. I really hope that as a group we can help him improve and I wouldn’t be surprised to see him playing First Class Cricket in years to come, we will do all we can to help him get there!

+ Rishi Patel is obviously an incredibly exciting acquisition and shows how far we have come as a club. We don’t know how much of him we will see but I know Rishi is very excited to be part of the club and i am sure when he does play will contribute an awful lot.

One area we need to improve upon from last year is our batting and Haggy, Noah and Rishi will certainly do that.

This will be your 3rd year as 1st team captain. What have been the keys to maintaining the 1st team’s success? And is there anything you are looking to improve?

I feel the key to the success we have had is the players we have been able to bring in have had the right character and personality to fit in with the group. We always take character over ability because we are a very tight knit group. I am sure every team says it, but we are all very close group and all get on incredibly well and I know this definitely helps. The committee is also incredibly supportive of the team and that creates a fantastic atmosphere throughout the club.
One area we need to improve is training / fitness, the expectation in cricket is very different to other sports but it would be good to try and change the mindset slightly towards both of those things.

On the back of last season, what are the aims and expectations for the 1st team in your eyes?

Last year was the perfect introduction to Premier League cricket. We got to experience the level and it was great for us to see where we are at compared to other clubs. I am excited to play the other half of the league this year and play 2 formats, which will offer some variety to just 50 over cricket. The goal is to be competitive at the top end of the league and win more games than we lose! I am excited to get going after what has seemed like the longest winter ever!

Guesty