This week, Sparsholt’s all-rounder Tim Vokes, who has more than 2000 Southern League runs and nearly 100 wickets to his name, and opening batsman Ed Jenner look forward to the new Cricket season. This will be Tim’s eighteenth year with Sparsholt; whist Ed is a newer addition, joining the club last summer having played for Littleton and Sutton Scotney prior to joining Sparsholt.

Tim Vokes is looking forward to playing cricket again this year, which looked unlikely after he suffered a cardiac arrest last year. “It was tough. I had a cardiac arrest and technically died twice” he explained. “Not knowing whether I could play cricket again was really tough.”

“I’ve got myself a little bit fitter and stronger, and I was able to make the last couple of games of the season for the Second team. I hit a hundred in my second game back and then a seventy in the next game. There were definitely signs that I was getting back to full fitness though.”

When asked about his targets for the upcoming season, Tim said: “I think just to play as many games as I can really and to try and get back in to the first team, playing some stress free cricket. I’m not captain any more so I don’t have to worry about anything like that so I can just relax and enjoy my cricket.”

From the team’s perspective, Tim is cautiously optimistic of a good season. “Our first target has to be to stay in the league” he said. “After that it would be to see how high we can finish up the table. If we get off to a good start then you never know. The team is looking stronger this year than it was last year, so it could be a good season.”

Tim has been a part of the Sparsholt setup for his entire cricketing life, and believes the club’s junior setup is one of the best around. “I’ve been playing for Sparsholt since I was eleven. My dad was a keen cricketer and he played for Compton, so he prompted me to start playing cricket and to join Sparsholt. Most of the big clubs in Winchester have good junior setups and Sparsholt is no different. The junior setup here is just as good as anywhere in the area.”

Having played his part in the advancement of the club on the pitch, Vokes is keen for the team to put in some entertaining performances for those behind the scenes. “Sparsholt Cricket Club as a whole is moving forward in every way at the moment, on and off the field. It would be nice to repay such hard work in to the club with a good cup run and some good league results.”

Opening batsman Ed Jenner is looking to build on an impressive first year at Sparsholt where he scored over 300 runs. Jenner opened the batting alongside Dan Payne last year, and this partnership yielded plenty of runs. “We were consistently getting fifty or sixty runs for the first wicket partnership”, he explained. “We had a consistent start to the season and we kicked on from there really.”

Ed is aiming for another solid season personally, and believes the team is good enough to challenge towards the top of the division. “I would like to score my first Southern League ton this season and in general I would like to be consistent and to be contributing a lot to the games. The squad that we have this season is definitely stronger than we had last year and as long as we can consistently put out the sort of team that we are capable of fielding then there is no reason why we can’t challenge for promotion. We have a really strong squad here and a really good, enthusiastic bunch of lads so there is no reason why we can’t be up there if we work hard and work together.”

Ed got to know about the club through playing against his current teammates. “I used to play against them during Colts and I played with Tim and Dave Gough in the Henry Beaufort school team. When I got back into playing serious cricket again after a few years out there was no question I was going to play with these guys.”

Since joining at the beginning of last season, Ed has been impressed by the club. “[The facilities are] absolutely faultless” he said. “I was instantly made to feel at home and there is a really good atmosphere around the club. I had a good summer last year, I really enjoyed it and I am looking forward to this year.”

Sparsholt Cricket Club hold indoor nets on Monday evenings. Anyone interested should contact Norman Gough at Norman.gough@sparsholtcc.co.uk