A CRICKET club said to be ‘going places’ got their new season preparations off to a flying start when Worcestershire skipper Daryl Mitchell took time out to help further develop the team’s skills.
The New Road skipper made a special visit to a recent Kempsey Cricket Club nets session and gave their amateur stars insightful advice on batting skills and technique ahead of their Worcestershire County League Division Three campaign which gets underway next month.
Last year Kempsey, who play their home matches at Plovers Rise Playing Fields, achieved promotion from Division Four as champions.
And, with weekly sessions starting again at Malvern College, Kempsey’s players had a great opportunity to learn from the Worcestershire star, who in recent years has been one of the top performing batsman in the country.
Mitchell, who this year is celebrating his benefit year with Worcestershire, told the Observer he was more than happy to help out.
“I live in Kempsey, so I know a couple of guys involved with the cricket club,” he said.
“I was in the Walter de Cantelupe Inn one night and was asked to pop along one night so I was more than happy to oblige.
“It’s a fantastic little club, going places, with lots of great lads. I enjoyed my evening with them at nets and at the Talbot after.”
Kempsey chairman Steve Winstanley said Mitchell’s visit provided a great boost for the club.
“We are very grateful to Daryl for spending his spare time to come and meet us – it is very much appreciated,” he said.
“You can only benefit from someone with Daryl’s experience and we hope we can use that to take into the new season. He conducted himself so well throughout.”
Winstanley added he felt the club were in a great position to test themselves in the third tier of the county league.
“It’s certainly a challenge I think we are ready for. We’ve got some very talented players here,” he added.
“Last year was our third promotion in four seasons for our first team. Things are looking good.”
