Sussex County Cricket Club
While the 2014 cricket season may
seem a distant memory, there’s still
plenty of behind-the-scenes activity at
the Brightonandhovejobs.com County
Ground to keep you cricket fans excited
for next season’s prospects.
Opening batsman Luke Wells has
penned a new two-year contract at
Hove, which will see him remain at
Sussex until at least the end of the
2016 season. The 23-year-old, who was
born in Eastbourne, hit 942 LV= County
Championship runs last season at an
average of 36.23.
His highest score of the campaign came
in the final match of the summer as he
made 162 against Northamptonshire.
Sussex captain Ed Joyce said: “It is great
news that Luke has decided to stay with
Sussex for the foreseeable future. Not
many 23-year-olds already have eight
first-class centuries to their name.
Left-arm seam bowler Tymal Mills has
signed on a two-year contract, following
his departure from Essex. The 22-yearold fast bowler can bowl in excess of
Lewes FC
Amid the backdrop
of the new hospitality
rooms that are
the beach huts . . .
how are the Rooks performing at the
(Dripping) Pan then?
After a difficult start in August and no
win in their first seven games, Garry
Wilson’s team seem to be getting
to grips with the new season in the
Ryman Premier League. The first three
points of the season saw a 3-2 win over
Grays Athletic on the 3rd September,
which saw the beginning of a five
game unbeaten run. At the time of
writing, last weekend’s victory away at
Leatherhead means the Rooks are 20th
and unbeaten in their last four matches.
The 1-0 win, courtesy of a Sam Cole
strike, was their first win away from
home since February. This was then
followed up by a dramatic extra-time
victory over Brighton & Hove Albion in
the Sussex Senior Cup.
Sorry to see this season’s joint top
scorer, midfielder Jack Dixon, depart
for pastures new. He scored 24 goals in
62 appearances after making his debut
at the start of the 2013/14 season and
has moved to Ryman Premier League
rivals Dulwich Hamlet. The other joint
top scorer, and striker, 23-year old
90mph and teams up with another new
signing, Ajmal Shahzad on a three-year
contract from Nottinghamshire. The
29-year-old England seamer has signed
a deal until the end of the 2017 season,
after the Trent Bridge county granted him
early release from his contract. Shahzad,
who made his Test bow for England
against Bangladesh in 2010, has also
played 11 One-Day Internationals and
three T20 matches for his country.
Sussex County Cricket Club has
announced that Luke Wright has
been granted a Benefit Year in 2015.
The 29-year-old all-rounder has been
at the heart of Sussex Cricket for the
past decade, having joined the county
from Leicestershire at the beginning
of the 2004 season and made his
Championship debut during the same
campaign. He was part of the Sussex
squad that won the double in 2006,
winning both the County Championship
and the 50-over Trophy, before helping
Sussex retain the four-day crown in 2007.
In addition, the club is also delighted to
announce that he has signed a threeyear extension to his contract, which will
see him remain at Hove until at least the
end of the 2018 season
Photo: Paul Hazlewood
Luke Blewden will now look to be the
club’s goalscoring talisman in his own
right and at the very least repeat last
season’s 12 goals in 25 appearances.
Off the pitch, work will begin on the
new UEFA standard 3G artificial pitch,
situated within the local Priory school
fields, adjacent to the Pan. Phase
One of the £850,000 construction is
expected to be completed in just 14
weeks, and will be available to hire
from March/ April 2015. Commercial
Manager Kevin Miller is looking
forward to the build. “The new 3G pitch
development marks the beginning of
a new era for the club, and gives us
the opportunity to offer a first-class
sporting facility for the Town and
throughout the region. It will be a multisport facility, and available to hire for
schools, sports clubs and for private
use. It will also enable our six Lewes
FC teams to train on a better quality
surface, and on a more regular basis,
being so close to the Dripping Pan.”
For more information on the hiring the
3G facility, call 01273 470820 or e-mail:
[email protected]
Photo: Paul Hazlewood
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