ONE of Herefordshire’s old Minor Counties adversaries will be looking forward to a new role when the 2013 cricket season gets underway.

Former Yorkshire batsman Kevin Sharp, who spent several seasons with Shropshire in the 1990s, confirmed to Herefordshire Cricket Society’s January meeting that he will be coaching the Salopians this year.

The affable Sharp, who was an entertaining and lively speaker, remembered fielding at Dales when Herefordshire’s former West Indies star Alvin Kallicharran made some attractive runs.

And he also recalled that it was Herefordshire who brought the curtain down on his career.

“I played for Shropshire against Herefordshire at Colwall and Neal Radford got me out for a pair,” he recalled. “That was my last game.”

He was actually dismissed for two and six but that was back in 1997 and since then he has gone on to enjoy a long career with Yorkshire where he coached the first and second teams as well as being a specialist batting coach.

Sharp has first hand experience of the talents of the latest Yorkshire star to move into the England side.

He coached Joe Root from the age of 13 and expects the young batsman to go on to have a big career at the top level.

Sharp said that he felt, to some degree, on home territory as his wife’s grandfather came from Hereford.

l THE curse of Herefordshire Cricket Society seemed to have struck again last Thursday, at least temporarily, when a power-cut caused the Starlite Rooms to be closed prior to the monthly meeting.

The Society, which previously met at the, now re-opened, Imperial, Hereford Conserative Club, Arte, The Left Bank and the Farmers Club, has seen all of those venues close.

Quick thinking by Herefordshire Minor Counties secretary Pete Sykes enabled the meeting to be moved at short notice to the GWRSA Club.

Next month’s guest, back at the Starlite Rooms on February 21, will be former first-class umpire and Football League referee Martin Bodenham.

l BARTESTREE Cricket Club, whose first and second teams will be competing in the Worcestershire County League for the first time this year, have announced their awards for last year’s GB Liners Marches League season.

Dave Robinson carried off the first-team batting award while Matt Ashcroft collected the bowling prize.

AWARDS, First Xl Batting, Dave Robinson; Bowling, Matt Ashcroft; Players’ Player, Matt Ashcroft.

Second Xl Batting, Ollie Robertson; Bowling: Andy Kalwaites; Players’ Player, Andy Kalwaites.

Third Xl Batting, Richard Fisher; Bowling, Owen Beynon; Players’ Player, Richard Fisher.

Club awards Fielder of the Year, Nick Freeman; Young Player of the Year, Nick Fisher; Clubman of the Year, Nigel Shore.