Padiham’s opening fixture of this summer – Blackrod away – could hardly be tougher. But it is a challenge they are relishing as they bid to continue their impressive start to life in the Anthony Axford North West Cricket League.

It is first versus third from last year’s Premiership and the standout match of the opening round, on Saturday April 26.

And Padiham are ready to take on the challenge presented by Joey Pryle’s champions.

Captain Toby Burrows said: “If you’d have asked me who I wanted, that’s exactly who I would have wanted. 

“To be able to go there hopefully catch them when they’re a little bit cold and potentially make a bit of a statement early on is something we’d love to do.

“That’s something we’re definitely all looking forward to starting with.”

Prolific left-arm spinner Burrows strikes a confident tone. And so he should.

In the first two seasons of the NWCL, the Arbories side have finished fourth and third in the top flight, whilst also winning the Hamer Cup title in 2023. It is a mightily impressive return. 

“Winning the Hamer Cup, finishing in the Lancs Knockout positions both years that we’ve been in the North West Cricket League, I don’t think anyone other than ourselves would have said that would happen when we joined,” continued Burrows.

There has been some notable winter departures and arrivals at the club, including last year’s professional Jack Edgar moving on to Todmorden and talented youngster Max Seedall to Chorley. In have come new local pro Iftikhar Naseer (all-rounder) and wicketkeeper-batter Tom Turner from Longridge.

“Iftikhar has played a lot around the Manchester and Cheshire leagues,” said Burrows. 

“I spoke to a few people we know who have played with and against him.

“Kieran Grimshaw was one, who has done a bit of sub-pro’ing for us. He played with and against him for quite a few years over in GMC, and he had really good things to say about him. As soon as we met him, he came across brilliantly. It was a no-brainer from there.”

Such is the quality of Turner, he will take the gloves from Ben Uttley.

“Ben has literally been second to none,” said the skipper. “He’s won the division’s keeping award for the last two years. But we’re not in a position to turn down players of Tom’s quality.

“I didn’t go out there looking for a wicketkeeper. It was probably the last position we probably needed. But it sort of just landed on our laps.

“In my opinion, Tom gets in, I’d go as far as saying, any team in Lancashire. Ben understands, and he will definitely be in and around our team because of his batting. He’s also a superb fielder and is brilliant in our dressing room.”

Returning to that confidence which has come from an impressive last two seasons for Padiham, Burrows does not shy away from aiming high in 2025.

“I’m going to say we want to win the title and we will do. But it’s actually a realistic possibility,” he said. “We’ve got as much chance as everyone else.

“Within our club, we’ve always been like, ‘Oh, we’re a young side, we’re a young side’ because we’re all the same age. But we’re at a point now where all those young lads are 25, 26. We’re lads who should be in our prime years and should be winning things.”

To do that, though, they do need to right a wrong from last year – and with Blackrod first up, they get an immediate opportunity. 

“We lost both games against Blackrod and Little Lever last year,” recalled Burrows. “And I don’t think we lost too many more. You win a couple of those games and you’re right up there, aren’t you?”

Padiham are one of only three old Ribblesdale League clubs in this season’s Premiership, alongside Salesbury and promoted second-tier champions Read.

“Read’s obviously our rival game, but we are quite close,” said the skipper. “A lot of us have grown up together, playing with and against each other. We’re playing in the same football teams and stuff like that.

“That competition is really good between us, and I think that’s really helped us to be two of the better teams from the Ribb League. 

“Read should never have been in that bottom division last year, and I think you’ll see this year that they’ll be right up there.”

And finally, late last summer Burrows took his 500th wicket in first-team cricket, with the club tweeting: “Here’s to the next 500!”

“I’ll be probably around to get to 1,000, yeah, but I’m not going to be any more than that,” he chuckled. “You see people around the leagues who’ve played for 40 or 50 years, but I enjoy sitting in a camping chair watching too much to do that.

“I’ve played for around 10 years now, and I’ll probably do another eight or nine and see where I’m at.

“I just love being around the lads, being around the club. That’s the bit I enjoy the most.

“When you talk about the actual playing side of it, I can’t stand fielding and can’t stand batting. I purely play to bowl and win. As long as I continue to enjoy those two things, I’ll carry on.”

Saturday April 26, Premiership: Blackrod v Padiham, Farnworth Social Circle v Kearsley, Lostock v Farnworth, Read v Eagley, Salesbury v Atherton, Tonge v Little Lever.

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Walsh, a Social Circle stalwart who has come out of retirement to lead the first team, has one heck of a busy opening weekend on his hands. 

Having hosted Kearsley on Saturday April 26, the following day he will run the Manchester Marathon in aid of charities Down Syndrome UK and Holly’s Heart.

“I’ll probably be the fittest I’ve ever been coming into a season because of that marathon,” admitted Walsh. “Mind you, whether I can walk for the rest of the summer is yet to be seen. We’ll see how that goes.”

Walsh is certainly confident Social Circle can hit the ground running in 2025 as they aim to build on last year’s fifth-placed finish, winning 13 of their 22 matches.

“I think last year we had a strong season, but we probably could have done better if it was a school report,” continued the captain. 

“We’ve got a lot of potential, but we probably lacked a little bit of discipline and structure on and off the field that probably then played into the way we played. I’d like to think this year we can pick up on that and improve our position.

“We’ve got a good blend of youth and experience, and we’ve added a few new faces to the team who hopefully will do us good.

“We’ve obviously got who I think is the best professional in the league in Jameel Stuart, and we’ve got the components of a really strong side on paper. It’s just about making sure that we wrap the learnings from last year around that.”

Featuring alongside stalwarts Chris Barrow, Dave Mather and David Tonge will be talented youngsters such as Lewis Whittle, Archie Walsh – Christian’s son – and Max Perry. The latter has taken on the role of vice captain.

Added to that are new signings Basil Sultan (batter) from Southport and Birkdale and Faiz Khandu (left-arm spinner) from Astley Bridge. 

“Two really good, young, strong additions,” was Walsh’s assessment.

Aged 46, Walsh last played regular first-team cricket just over a decade ago, though he has played in the second team since then.

And added to those youngsters aforementioned are many more in the seconds who are “guaranteed” first-team cricket over the next 12-18 months.

Is it fair to say, therefore, that the excitement which comes with developing youth enticed Walsh out of retirement? 

“Yeah, a little bit,” he said. “This is my club, I’ve never played anywhere else, and I care a lot about the cricket club. I feel like I can add something with the experience I bring.

“It’s exciting playing with a team that’s got a good blend of experience and youth, and quality youth as well. That’s nice.

“I’m excited about this season. We want to compete, and we want to do it in the right way. Will we win anything? I don’t know. 

“It’s always a big statement to say you’re going to go and win something. I just want us to compete. I want us to do it in the right way and to enjoy it. 

“I think there were a few times last year a few of the lads didn’t enjoy it, but I think now we’ve already started training and we’ve got a good spirit about us.”

It is no surprise that, having developed star names such as Josh Bohannon and Haseeb Hameed, Social Circle are fully invested in continuing along the same path.

“I can’t underestimate how important it is to invest in your junior structure.

“We have a separate pot of money that sits on one side at the club, for example, that’s never been touched for anything else. It’s solely dedicated to junior development.

“Whether that’s T20 for this year, whether it’s a cup competition this year, it’s so important we give these lads chances and you have that pipeline. If you don’t, you kind of end up getting to a stage where you go, ‘What do we do now?’

“We want to give these boys a chance to play cricket but also to develop friendships. I’ve got friendships now that I’ve had for 30 years plus through playing cricket with a group of mates. Hopefully that’s what we’ll continue to try and do.”

And when asked who he thinks will challenge – hopefully alongside Social Circle – this season, Walsh threw in names such as Blackrod, Little Lever and Farnworth alongside the two promoted sides Atherton and Read. 

He added: “The league has definitely got stronger and stronger in the last couple of years. It’s competitive cricket.

“I think that’s a sign of hopefully what we’ve got to come this year where five or six teams are competing in that top division. It’s testament to the clubs who’ve invested wisely, whether it’s professionals or their own juniors. I think it should be quite exciting.”

Christian Walsh two Just Giving pages set up for donations ahead of the Manchester Marathons. They are: https://www.justgiving.com/page/chris-walsh-1 and https://www.justgiving.com/page/chris-walsh-3.

Saturday April 26, Premiership: Blackrod v Padiham, Farnworth Social Circle v Kearsley, Lostock v Farnworth, Read v Eagley, Salesbury v Atherton, Tonge v Little Lever.

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Last season, Oswaldtwistle finished sixth in the second tier, winning seven of their 20 games.

A similar finish again this season is the aim for new captain Dean Martin, their new ball seamer.

Martin will be his club’s third captain since mid-summer last year. Kurt Smithson left mid-season, while his replacement for the remainder of the campaign, Niall Heyes, has also departed.

Martin, however, is excited by the presence of some talented youngsters and believes they can fill the void. One of those is new 20-year-old batting signing Sebastian Radler from Cherry Tree, while others include batters James Clark and Mo Jalgaonkar.

“There’s been quite a big player turnover, where we’ve lost some quite experienced heads who have contributed a lot of runs and a lot of wickets in places,” said Martin. 

“So, as a club, we’re trying to force through all the younger players and give them a proper platform.

“Success is measured in different ways. 

“As long as we’re competitive in every game and we’re solidly mid-table, we’ll be looking at the end of the season and saying, ‘Yeah, we’ve been happy with that’.

“We’re looking more long-term than short-term, and hopefully in three years or so we can have a really successful team.”

Martin says the club are still trying to complete the signing of a professional for this summer.

Reflecting on last season, Martin said: “We had a really poor run in the middle of the season. 

“We lost Kurt, the captain, at that stage. But things picked up for us later on, and hopefully we can continue that.”

A quirk of the fixtures sees Oswaldtwistle face one of the promotion favourites Walkden twice in the first three games, starting with an opening day away trip on Saturday April 26. In fact, having played them in last season’s penultimate game, it means they will have played each other three times in five NWCL games.

“We had a good, competitive fixture against them at their place last year, so fingers crossed it’s the same again,” said Martin. 

“I think we’ve had a strong winter, and it will be good to see where we’re at with that one.”

Martin says it will be “a proud moment” leading his side out as the new skipper, something he has done previously on the odd occasion. But this is different – it’s his team.

In terms of the division more generally, Martin believes there will be a number of challengers for the two promotion places.

Opening day opponents Walkden are one he name-checked, adding: “I also think Cherry Tree will push. They’ve really strengthened. 

“We’ve got a few good friends there, a few former players who have played for them. I think they’ve come on a long way.

“I think then you’re probably looking at the two teams who have dropped down alongside Walkden – Astley Bridge and Ribb Wanderers. They’re good sides, aren’t they.”

Saturday April 26, Championship: Baxenden v Barnoldswick, Earby v Astley Bridge, Ribblesdale Wanderers v Cherry Tree, Walkden v Oswaldtwistle Immanuel, Whalley v Brinscall.

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The Oval side have a new captain and a new professional in Ammad Afzal and Uzzair Shah. Both players are seam bowling all-rounders. 

They have also signed a host of other new players to boot: “It will be a totally different team,” said Afzal, who is formerly of Little Hulton but is embarking upon his second season playing in the NWCL.

Walkden were up with the pace for much of last season and went into the final month with promotion still on the cards. However, they were hit with a points deduction for fielding an ineligible player earlier in the campaign, ultimately dropping them to the foot of the table.

This season, they start with a clean slate and with confidence high that they can secure one of the top two spots in the second tier.

“We’re confident we can get promoted, well and truly,” said captain Afzal.

“We want to try and win everything we can. We’ll be trying our best each game, whatever competition it’s in. But promotion is definitely our main aim.”

While pro Shah arrives having previously played for Scotland’s Under 19s, Afzal will be hoping he can build on a first season with the club which saw him take 22 wickets and score 157 runs in the Championship in 2024.

“I’m really excited about the captaincy,” he said. “It will be a good challenge. 

“I’m very excited about the start to the season.”

That start to the season sees them host Oswaldtwistle Immanuel on the opening day – Saturday April 26. In fact, a quirk of the schedule sees them play Oswaldtwistle at home and away during the first three weeks of the campaign.

Walkden’s most recent success came with back-to-back Bolton League titles in 2018 and 2019, but they have struggled since.

They are one of only two Bolton teams in this summer’s NWCL Championship alongside Astley Bridge, who were relegated last season. 

You would expect those two teams to challenge in 2025, as you would Ribblesdale Wanderers, who have also dropped down from the Premiership division.

“Compared to last year, it looks like it’s going to be a stronger division this time,” said Afzal. “But it’s difficult to tell exactly who will challenge until after two or three games. 

“The standard of the pro’s will be important. 

“If you get a good one like Read (Blayde Capell) had last year, you will have a really good chance.”

Off the field, things look to be going well at Walkden, where they have undertaken renovations of their facilities in last couple of years and seem to be concentrating heavily on their junior section. 

“In our league, I think we have the best ground and best facilities,” added Afzal. 

“It’s a brilliant place to play cricket for the seniors and the juniors.”