It’s all change at Neston as David Hurst returns for his second spell as skipper.

He will be without some of the Cheshire County Cricket League’s most experienced players as he tries to improve on some disappointing league finishes.

From the top order, Dane Williams leaves for Oxton after eight summers and more than 3,000 1st XI runs, while Luke Camden is taking a break after 11 seasons spent topping 5,000. 

And with the ball, a mainstay of Wirral cricket, the rapid Ash Davies, will only play a bit part role after 12 years terrorising opposing batters (and dismissing 359 of them).

But Hurst hopes his new arrivals, and some developing young talents, will fill the gaps.

England Learning Disability XI captain and all-rounder Chris Edwards has joined from Caldy, and former Northop Hall skipper Carwyn Johnson will fulfil a similar role.

Another seamer, left-armer Toby Mountain, arrives from Yorkshire after a break in playing.

In addition, several young players – including player of the match when Neston won the ECHO Cup last August, wicketkeeper Matthew Strong – will be trusted to have a greater impact.

Hurst is happy with his lot, and can see the benefits of taking over a new-look side.

“There are pros and cons,” he said.

“I’ve done five seasons as 1st XI captain up to 2019. 

“I will be changing quite a lot, hopefully for the better in terms of improving the player experience. 

“Thankfully, all the players who have come in, personality-wise, are going to be fantastic for the club. 

“They don’t necessarily have the talent of players like Ash, Luke and Dane, who are a lot older and a lot more experienced – but hopefully, with this year under their belt, they’ll all improve and carry on playing for us.”

Young South African wicketkeeper-batter Yosuf Ravat will be the side’s overseas player this year, and Hurst hopes he can help improve on post-Covid league finishes of eighth, eighth and ninth.

The skipper added: “If you look at the last three seasons, we’ve finished eighth, eighth and ninth. 

“We won the ECHO Cup last year, and we’ve got to cup finals and have been in good positions in the league – but those finishes are not a great return for a club of our size, considering the experience we’ve had in that squad.

“Anything better than that would be amazing but ultimately it’s about player enjoyment and player improvement. 

“If I can eke out something better from the younger kids, then that’s my job done and hopefully we can have a good season.”

Another change in the Cheshire league is the format. Hurst is a fan of the hybrid approach, in which clubs will play both 50-over and win-lose-draw cricket in the league.

He added: “It will be interesting to see how some teams go. 

“Having to use five bowlers can be difficult, it’s why some teams struggle in cup competitions on a Sunday. 

“I think it’s a good challenge for the captains as well, having to pick slightly different sides, and I still like the fact that in half the games you are going to have to bowl sides out if you bat first. 

“So I welcome it, I think it’ll be really good.”

(Edited at 2.10pm on April 12, to correct a technical error)