Cricket: League side open President's Trophy campaign

By ctravers

THE North Staffs and South Cheshire League representative side start their League Cricket Conference President's Trophy campaign on Sunday.

They entertain the Durham Senior League XI, at Audley (2pm), with the winners facing a trip to either Nottinghamshire, Northamptonshire or Liverpool.

The side lost to the Nottinghamshire Premier League at the quarter-final stage last season, but a strong 12-man squad has been named by the selectors.

Burslem captain Chris Lowndes leads the team, following in the footsteps of dad Paul and brother Steven in captaining the side.

Lowndes is joined in the squad by three of his Burslem club-mates – left-arm spinner Michael Brown, Khalid Malik and Kevin Cockerton.

Audley have three players in the squad, while Longton professional Roger Sillence is also included after impressing with both bat and ball in the Premier Division.

The squad also includes two players playing in Dukes Division Two. Weston's in-from batsman Raj Kumar, plus Checkley wicketkeeper-batsman Andy Carr have been called up.

"This is the first time I have captained the side and I'm very honoured to do so, especially following in the footsteps of my dad and brother," said Lowndes.

"The standard is pretty high because it is the best players from the league, although with Staffordshire playing it does hamper us a little bit.

"I'm looking forward to it. We've had a busy time with Burslem over the last few weeks, so it will be good to have a break from club commitments.

"Durham will pose a tough challenge, but we can enjoy the match."

Squad: Chris Lowndes (Burslem, capt), Dave Fairbanks (Audley), Richard Holloway (Audley), Andrew Johnson (Audley), Michael Brown (Burslem), Khalid Malik (Burslem), Andy Carr (Checkley), Richard Cooper (Leek), Michael Longmore (Longton), Roger Sillence (Longton), Raj Kumar (Weston), Kevin Cockerton (Burslem).