ELTON Vale skipper Zeeshan Anwar says the club will not rest on their laurels after clinching back-to-back promotions.

Former Bury player Anwar, aged 28, stepped up to captain the side for the first time this season and enjoyed a superb campaign, upsetting the odds to clinch the Division Three title in Greater Manchester Cricket League.

It carried on the progression started the previous season, when they won promotion from Division Four West in the league's first year.

Anwar believes they have the platform to build on their recent success, and says there are big plans to develop the club.

“We want to use this achievement to grow and develop the club further and hopefully add another team,” he said. “Winning the title is a massive achievement for Elton Vale and one we’re very proud of.

“To have only been promoted up to Division Three last year and then go on and win it with a game to spare shows how far we have come.”

Elton Vale lost just four of their 24 matches in Division Three and eventually clinched the title by seven points from Whalley Range seconds after last weekend’s final match of the season at Irlam was rained off. They had two batsmen in the top five of the division’s batting averages, Muhammed Sajid and Muhammed Ashraf, while Ali Shah was second in the bowling averages behind Radcliffe’s Jimmy Dixon.

But Anwar puts the success down to a team effort.

“All the players put in a match-winning performance at some point and at all times supported each other,” he said. “One of the main reasons for our success was the ability to pull together at crucial times and close out tight games that could have gone either way.”