The club are delighted to announce that the first signing of the winter is Matt Pardoe. Pardoe, formerly of Worcestershire and current captain of Herefordshire, returns to the club after 15 years at Kidderminster cricket club, where he captained the club for 2 year in which they finished 2nd and 3rd in the Premier league.

Pardoe joins the club to strengthen the first team, but also as Head Coach for the junior section. As a level 3 coach he will help shape the program that all the junior cricketers at the club will take part in, and will work alongside senior club coach Alex Bingham, who happens to be his brother in law. Matt will continue to strengthen the strong pathway for those young cricketers to transition into the senior section successfully.

Having fought off lots of other interest, the signing of Pardoe represents a big coup for the club and is an indication of the ambition to continue to go forwards. The club is heading into the 3rd season since getting back into the Birmingham & District Premier League Premier One having finished 8th and 4th respectively in the last 2 seasons the signing is a show of intent.

When asked why he chose to re-join Halesowen Pardoe responded ‘I was previously at Halesowen in 2007 and 2008. I’ve always kept an eye on the club and I admire how the club has built itself over the last 5 or so years. Lots of quality players, but more than that, people who are clubmen and get stuck into club life through coaching and supporting socials.’

On what he hopes he will bring to the club the former Worcestershire opening batter replied ‘I am hoping that I can help the squad do even better than last season and push to win the league. I aim to do that with runs and wickets of course, but also with my experience, helping others to develop too.’ When asked why the coaching element of the role is important ‘I am looking forward to overseeing the juniors programme and trying to develop players that will become the future of the club. I hope I can help to bridge the gap between being a successful junior cricketer and a successful Birmingham League cricketer.’

When asked about the signing Wes Griffiths, the newly re-appointed club captain, replied ‘this feels like a massive signing for the club, a real statement signing and I’m really pleased we’ve managed to get it done. Matt is clearly one of the best cricketers in the league, something he’s shown over a number of years, but I’ve known Matt for a long time and he’s also the perfect fit for us as a lad too.’ On the ambition that the club is showing by signing Pardoe Wes commented ‘I think it shows where we want to be, we finished 4th last year, and signing a player of his ilk and experience is only going to help us kick on. The fact that he’s also going to be so hands on with the junior section is also really exciting. It shows just how far the club has come in a short space of time that we were able to get it done.’