Martyn James in Hook transfer switch. [Neil Smith]
Long term seam bowling Basingstoke & North Hants all-rounder Martyn James is poised to cross the Great Divide and join Hook & Newnham Basics this coming season.
The 31-year old has been part of the first team fabric at May’s Bounty for the past 12 seasons, taking over 500 wickets in competitive cricket, a large chunk of them during Basingstoke’s time in the Homes Counties Premier League/Thames Valley leagues.
Explaining his decision to switch clubs, James said: “I joined Basingstoke as a seven-year old and probably since I was 19-20 years of age have opened the bowling for them in first team cricket.
“It’s been a long and largely enjoyable time, but I feel as though I want a change and Hook is a club that I have always thought of going over to and I made the decision to move this winter.
“I accept I’ll be dropping down a division in the Southern Premier League, but there are a lot of promising young players at Hook and I hope to be able to pass on my experience and knowledge to them.
“To my mind, Hook is certainly not far from a team that could succeed in the Premier Division and I hope to see what we can do this year.
“It was a very difficult decision to make and who is to say I won’t go back (to Basingstoke) in years to come.
“I see people move clubs from time to time to try new things and I just want to go and enjoy my cricket and try something new.”
Spectacular
The arrival of Martyn James is a significant boost to Hook & Newnham Basics, who underlined their potential by winning the Southern Premier League’s T20 knockout in spectacular fashion at the end of last season.
Ironically, Ben Thane moved in the opposite direction 12 months ago and was Basingstoke’s Player of the Year last season.
Since his appointment as captain, Josh Buckingham has put massive emphasis on player fitness and midweek training sessions at Dummer have been tuned accordingly.
“Turn outs have been very encouraging. The sessions have been hard, but fun and hopefully everyone will enjoy the benefits,” enthused Vince Gardner, Hook’s new Director of Cricket.
The 31-year old has been part of the first team fabric at May’s Bounty for the past 12 seasons, taking over 500 wickets in competitive cricket, a large chunk of them during Basingstoke’s time in the Homes Counties Premier League/Thames Valley leagues.
Explaining his decision to switch clubs, James said: “I joined Basingstoke as a seven-year old and probably since I was 19-20 years of age have opened the bowling for them in first team cricket.
“It’s been a long and largely enjoyable time, but I feel as though I want a change and Hook is a club that I have always thought of going over to and I made the decision to move this winter.
“I accept I’ll be dropping down a division in the Southern Premier League, but there are a lot of promising young players at Hook and I hope to be able to pass on my experience and knowledge to them.
“To my mind, Hook is certainly not far from a team that could succeed in the Premier Division and I hope to see what we can do this year.
“It was a very difficult decision to make and who is to say I won’t go back (to Basingstoke) in years to come.
“I see people move clubs from time to time to try new things and I just want to go and enjoy my cricket and try something new.”
Spectacular
The arrival of Martyn James is a significant boost to Hook & Newnham Basics, who underlined their potential by winning the Southern Premier League’s T20 knockout in spectacular fashion at the end of last season.
Ironically, Ben Thane moved in the opposite direction 12 months ago and was Basingstoke’s Player of the Year last season.
Since his appointment as captain, Josh Buckingham has put massive emphasis on player fitness and midweek training sessions at Dummer have been tuned accordingly.
“Turn outs have been very encouraging. The sessions have been hard, but fun and hopefully everyone will enjoy the benefits,” enthused Vince Gardner, Hook’s new Director of Cricket.
