BROOKSBOTTOM chairman Richard Ernill has launched an appeal for new players following a difficult start to life in the Greater Manchester Cricket League.

High-profile departures before the start of the season have left the club struggling to field three full-strength teams.

Last season’s first-team captain Paul Hopton and vice-captain Kyle Ogden have joined Ramsbottom and Westleigh, respectively, while the pool of regular players has fallen from 45 last year to 35.

“Paul and Kyle’s decision to leave followed on the back of a number of players leaving in the close season and left the club with some serious thinking to do in terms of how many teams to field,” admitted Ernill, who has stepped up from the second team to return as first-team captain. “It only takes half a dozen absentees on any given weekend and we will be struggling to fulfil our fixtures.

“We only had 16 players to choose from for the opening weekend, so I was actually relieved when the first-team game was called off due to bad weather.

“The second weekend we had to take advantage of the GMCL ruling allowing us to loan players from a rival club, with a couple of Greenmount juniors filling in for us.

“Obviously, that situation can’t continue. Our hope is there are players out there who are not getting regular cricket at their clubs and might be tempted to give us a try.”

Ernill believes Brooksbottom, formerly of the Ribblesdale League, whose first team now play in Division Two of the GMCL, are not the only local side struggling for players.

A total of 14 clubs from the borough have signed up to the league, but with so many teams in such a close proximity, and the number of youngsters choosing to play cricket across the country falling, Brooksbottom’s struggle is not uncommon.

Even before the season kicked off another local club, Radcliffe, chose to pull its second team from the league amid fears it could not fulfil its fixtures.

“I must admit we seriously considered doing the same thing,” said Ernill. “But we feared if we scrapped the second team we might never get it back.

“The concern is our squad is getting older. I am 45 and retired from the first team a few years ago after spending five years as captain. Our second-team wicketkeeper (Graham Robb) has also had to step back up to the first team and he is in his 50s.

“Admittedly, for a while we did not pay enough attention to our junior structure, but we decided to do something about it a few years back and our junior sides are now thriving again.

“So the long-term future looks very bright, with the under-11s beating Ramsbottom and Woodbank in their opening fixtures.

“But we have to look for a short-term fix.

“We know we are in a heavily populated cricketing area, but we are a progressive club who play hard to win, but do so with a smile on our faces and are always welcoming to any new players.”

While Brooksbottom are struggling for numbers, they have enjoyed decent success in recent seasons, with the first team reaching the Ramsbottom Cup final in 2013 and the second team finishing runners-up for the past two years.

Members of the successful second team have made the step up to the senior side, including star all-rounder Ben Richardson, Ghulam Abbas and Jonny Ainscow. They have also recruited 21-year-old Australian all-rounder Luke Benaquista as pro.

If you are interested in playing at Brooksbottom, call 07846 638969 or email dixieernill@yahoo.co.uk

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Results and fixtures

Results

All matches on Saturday and Sunday were cancelled due to bad weather

Fixtures

Saturday

Premier Division: Denton West v Bury, Edgworth v Unsworth, Egerton v Greenmount, Heywood v Prestwich.

Division One: Bamford Fieldhouse v Elton, Walshaw v Dukinfield, Woodbank v Woodhouses.

Division Two: Radcliffe v Stretford, Stand v Westleigh, Thornham v Brooksbottom.

Division Four West: ELPM v Egerton 2nd, Tottington St John v Walshaw 2nd, Worsley 2nd v Elton Vale.