Crompton snap up Tolley as paid man

Photo: Picture by DARREN ROBINSON.

WARM WELCOME . . . new Crompton professional Josh Tolley (front) is greeted by captain Simon right (second from right), cricket chairman Glenn Rigby (left) and club chairman Bob Wyszynsky.

CROMPTON have signed opening batsman Josh Tolley as their professional for the 2014 Lake Garage CLL season.

Tolley, who plays minor counties cricket in the same Cumberland team as Unsworth professional Chris Williams, was a team-mate of Simon Wright – who has returned to Crompton as skipper – at Saddleworth and District League club Bamford Fieldhouse last season.

Bamford have been thrown out of the Saddleworth League for continuous flouting of rules so Tolley was approached by Wright for the vacant professional’s job at Glebe Street.

He was happy to sign and will link up again with Wright at Crompton next summer.

Tolley (23) began his cricketing career at his home-town club, Chorley, in the Northern League, before playing for Woodhouses in the Lancashire County League and then going on to Bamford.

He is a regular for Cumberland and has also played County Championship Second Division cricket for Lancashire and Northamptonshire.

In his one and only season at Bamford, Tolley topped the Saddleworth League amateur batting averages and shared a hugely-productive opening partnership with professional Grant Hodnett, who has signed as paid man for Moorside in 2014.

Said Wright: “I was down to bat at number three at Bamford, but went about four matches in a row without leaving the changing rooms!

“That’s about 200 overs which shows how successful they were.

“Josh is a very good batsman, quite a young lad who is capable of batting the full 50 overs of an innings and making big scores, which is what we have been lacking at Crompton.

“He is also happy to get involved with the youth side of the club which is thriving at present. We won two of the four youth titles up for grabs last season and Josh will be working with the lads.

“The fact that he has an English passport is a big help and he lives only half an hour or so from our ground.”