Indeed it is! Only one more sleep until the season kicks off and what an exciting one it promises to be! NTSL action gets underway tomorrow (Saturday 22nd) with both the 1st and 2nd X1's starting their campaigns against local rivals Lanchester. Much has changed since 2016, The 1st X1 are now lead by Gary Hunter with Robbie Winn embracing a new role as vice-captain. New signings Sam Sheikh, Sameer Haque and Seb Stewart-Taylor will all make their debuts tomorrow and will hopefully all add something extra to an already strong team. Two familiar faces will however be missing; Andrew Waters due to family commitments will not feature at the start of the season but fingers crossed he will make a return as the season goes on and unfortunately long term injury absentee Rob Hasan is still on the road to recovery after an horrendous knee injury half way through last season. We hope to see them both back on the Balckfyne field as soon as possible!
The 2nd X1 start their season back in Division B1 after a couple of seasons in B2. An already strong team from last season which finished as runners up has been bolstered by the extra bodies available to the 1st X1 meaning the likes of Paul Ringer and Daniel Pyke will line up at Balckfyne tomorrow with a return to cricket for John Stoke Jnr being warmly welcomed as he has decided to join the ranks after a couple of years away from the game. Unfortunate news of captain Andrew Cox's offer of a job in the big smoke (unfortunate to us not him), means he will only play a limited role this season and has hence stepped down as captain. David Williamson has been installed as captain with Ste Turnbull taking on the role of vice-captain but with David unavailable for the first week Ste goes straight in at the deep end but does have the benefit of an incredibly strong team to guide. Injury has meant that David Bridge will be unlikely to play any part in the team this season which for those who know him will know what a solid performer he has been over the years and will be a big miss. Second team 'pro' Wayne Greenwell has moved onto pastures new at Burnopfield for 2017, has demand for high standards and ability will certainly be missed. However the team now has a much younger look about it and hopefully the exuberance of youth will see them do well with only one of this weeks starting X1 over the age of 30!
Junior fixtures get underway this coming week too and we have been overwhelmed by the interest from juniors over the winter and again at our first outdoor session on April 20th. Were hope that this will be a sign of things to come and that some of these players are future 1st X1 stars in the waiting!
The HLSCL kicks off on Sunday 30th April with the 3rd X1, last years Division 2 champions opening their campaign with a home tie against Whickham again lead by Ian Cox and supported by Jack Marshall. The Academicals after an outstanding inaugural season will again be lead by Colin McPherson and Alan Waters hoping to build on least seasons strong showing and maybe even win the cup or get promoted this year.
Keep an eye on the website and social media as we have a plethora of social events to keep players, fans, parents, relatives and even just keen socialites interested throughout the year. We have already had fantastic nights in the club for the Senior Presentation, An evening with The Buskers and the season curtain raiser featuring the fantastic Mitch Laddie Band. We do however have much more to come so keep your eyes peeled for Ladies Day, Dog In A Box, Family Fun Day, Summer Spectacular and much much more......
We can't wait to get started and see you all throughout the season at some point. Don't forget that the bar is open all day on a Saturday when games are on with brand new wi-fi and live sports showing where applicable. Let's hope 2017 is possibly the best year yet for Consett CC and we look forward to having all of you people being part of it!!