Mildenhall captain, Ben Shepperson, highlighted the roles played by some of his club debutants following Saturday’s eye-opening two-wicket win over Swardeston.

Tom Rash and Hugo Douglas, who both made the move from Copdock & Old Ipswichian over the summer, played major parts with the ball and bat, while James Stamatis also delivered a good all-round performance on his debut, as did new overseas player Nick Maiolo.

“This was a great win against a very good side, and we also managed to get a few of our new faces bedded into the team,” enthused skipper Shepperson.

“I won the toss and opted to field, to get us all together and get us all out there.

“It was always likely that the wicket might offer a bit early on, and then get better and better later on in the day, with the sun on it.

“Tom Rash bowled really well (10-3-25-0). You know what you get from Tom – he bowls tightly and doesn’t give very much away.

“He is difficult to score off, and Swardeston never got away from us.

“Nick (Maiolo) bowled well on his debut (10-2-32-3), as did Murtaza (Hussain) at the start of his second season with us.”

Shepperson did not contribute much with the bat, but the Mildenhall captain had earlier played a vital role in the run-out of opposing skipper, Joe Gatting, as Swardeston struggled to a total of 222.

“I managed to run out Joe Gatting. He was trying for a quick two to mid-wicket. I ran in from mid-on and threw it to the bowler’s end, where Matt Allen took off the bails,” explained Shepperson.

“I rated Joe as the best player I saw last year, and he also scored a 100 against us, so it was a big wicket.

“We did well to keep them to 222, and although we lost Ben Curran early on, we batted positively so the run-rate was never an issue.

“We didn’t lose wickets in clumps. Nick (Maiolo) batted well, as did Tom (Rash) late on. He was very effective.

“I thought Tom was going to get us over the line, but he got caught at mid-off. At 194 for seven we still had plenty to do.

“Kyle Morrison opened the batting for us last season, so we do bat low down. He batted well, as did Murtaza,” added Shepperson. Morrison finished 11 not out, while Hussain made 13 to ensure a home win.