THE Worcestershire County League gets underway next weekend with Brockhampton and Bromyard leading the way in the Premier Division.

Formed in 1897, Brockhampton is nestled in the picturesque Brockhampton Estate in the south of Herefordshire, and is the home of four senior men’s teams competing in the Worcester League.

For the Brockhampton men’s firsts are captained by Sam Johnston, who said: “We have a good mix of experience and youth this season. Three of our players are included in the Herefordshire County development squad and have big roles to play in the team.

“We are also delighted to have signed Jamie Burgess, a right arm quick bowler from Australia having played a very strong first grade standard in the Wacca Premier this season.”

Brockhampton open their Premier Division campaign at Droitwich Spa and are joined by fellow Herefordshire side Bromyard who host Pershore.

In Division One, Burghill, Tillington and Weobley CC begin their season with a home match against Bromsgrove seconds. Also in the Worcestershire second tier Colwall host Halesowen seconds.

Meanwhile, Bartestree & Lugwardine begin their Division Two campaign with a trip to Himley seconds.

Eastnor are plying their trade in Division Five and travel to Stourbridge thirds on the opening day of the season. They are joined in the division by Colwall seconds who begin with a local derby match at Malvern.

Growing their own talent is a key aim for clubs across Herefordshire including Brockhampton, with a promising squad of juniors who take part in the All Stars Cricket.

In 1979, the Brockhampton became the first to start Youth Coaching and have not missed a season in the last 45 years.

Each year, Brockhampton CC coach 140 boys and girls each week and run teams in under 9’s, 11’s, 13’s and 15’s in Herefordshire junior leagues. A watch out for the 2023 season will be to see how The Brock Belles, the clubs all girl quad, compete in the Herefordshire league in their third season.

With over 150 juniors attending practice sessions on a Friday evening, the club are looking to build on that success to further promote cricket in Hereford.

Allstars cricket will be starting on the May 5, from 6.30pm. In the 45 years, coaches have logged up a mind boggling 1,500 coaching hours annually, meaning the club has provided in excess of 67,000 hours of coaching in the last four and a half decades.

Alongside Allstars and the junior teams, Brockhampton runs Dynamos Cricket, which provides girls aged 8-11 with eight sessions of non-stop cricket fun. Each week is a different focus on key skillsets of the game to build their confidence with bat and ball, before they take part in a 60-ball countdown cricket match.