CAPTAIN Adam Barnes hailed the five-wicket display of 15-year-old leg-spinner Ben Seeley in Saturday’s victory over Ashton as Edenfield aim to keep pace with the promotion chasers in the GMCL’s Division Two B.

Seeley, promoted to the first team at Gincroft Lane in the last month, starred in an entertaining 18-run home win to leave them nine points behind second-placed Austerlands having won six of 11 games.

Currently sixth in the table, Barnes is hopeful of a promotion charge during the second half of the season. But success is not just measured by results, as Seeley proves.

Having elected to bat, Edenfield posted 248-8 from their 50 overs, with the skipper top-scoring with 46 alongside pro and opening partner Paul Gallagher’s 33.

Another youngster Harry Fallon added 45, while his brother Jack chipped in with 30.

In reply, Ashton recovered from 64-4, with Adnan Bashir hitting an unbeaten 92 from number six. But they had too much to do.

What made Seeley’s first-team best performance all the more impressive was he took the first five wickets to fall.

“Leg-spin’s not the easiest art to master,” said Barnes, who described the victory as “a good team win”.

“Ben had a bit of a shaky start but brought it together.

“We got the field right for him, and he relaxed into it and got some rhythm.

“He started off in the second team, did well and has been promoted for the last three weeks. He might just have cemented his spot!

“We’re not the biggest club in the world and are happy to promote from the juniors.

“If you look at our side, seven or eight of us have all come through the juniors. The Fallon brothers are 18 and 20, Andrew Rushton is 23 or 24 – he’s getting on a bit! We’re all around that age, and I’m over the moon with it.”

Looking at Edenfield’s chances of promotion, Barnes said: “My goal will always be promotion to get us into Division One.

“We’ve spent the last two seasons in the bridesmaid’s positions. We’ve finished fifth or sixth, just outside those promotion spots. But I’m quite positive about it all.

“Just before the start of the season, our overseas amateur Wade van Zyle gave back word due to injury, and we couldn’t sort a replacement.

“But everyone seems to have raised their game. Andrew Rushton and Fred Nixon with the ball, Dan Jenkins, who we signed from Burnley Belvedere, has held his hand up as well.

“With the bat, Alfie Taylor, myself, Harry Fallon, we’ve put on some important runs through the season.

“Paul, our pro, continues to be great all round, both on and off the field. He’s originally from Bacup, but he’s been our pro for seven or eight years.

“We’ve got some tough fixtures coming up over the next few weeks, which I’ll unfortunately miss because I’m a teacher and can only take some holidays at this time of year.

“But we always seem to raise our game against the better sides.

“We’ll continue to do what we do well, and hopefully we’re in the mix at the end of the season.”