2025 PREVIEWS: No targets this year at Norley Hall as Hughes looks forward to enjoying his cricket again

Norley Hall skipper Callam Hughes is determined to enjoy his cricket this season, after a couple of tense promotion battles. 

The Wigan side missed out in both, finishing third in 2023 and fourth last season in Division Two of the Love Lane Liverpool Competition.

Hughes believes his side have the quality to mount another push, but will not be setting them any targets.

He said: “Last year, I was focused every game on checking the other results and seeing if we might be going up… I stopped enjoying cricket. 

“So I’ve said this year, let’s just enjoy our cricket and try to win games.

“We all back each other and I definitely think we are good enough to go up but there’s no pressure – it’s not the be all and end all.

“Let’s just take each game at a time and see where we are at the end of the season.”

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Helping Hughes will be a new-look top order, with Shah Afridi and Matthew Hayes arriving from Whitefield and Orrell Red Triangle respectively.

Harbir Singh also makes the short journey from Goose Green, where he racked up 928 runs in the Southport league last year.

“It’s a big step up but if you can score that many runs at any level, you’ve got something about you,” Hughes added.

The skipper hopes the new arrivals can give the middle order a bit of breathing room.

He said: “Last year we lost too many early wickets, I think everyone would admit that, and our middle order would be going in at 20/3 every week. 

“Hopefully now we can settle down and get off to a good start.”

from Merseyside Cricket Online https://ift.tt/tvenTxb