David Britton has pledged that he will continue helping young cricketers develop their skills even if he steps down as second-team captain at Southport and Birkdale at the end of this season.
The former first XI seam bowler has been appointed club manager since his election as second-string skipper and he admits he finds the balance between working and playing difficult.
“There’s also the physical side to take into account,” he said. “My mind says I can do things but my body tells me to forget it.”
Before he gives up the second-team captaincy, however, Britton is determined that his side will spare no effort to win promotion to the Premier League this summer.
“One of the main purposes of the second team is to develop first-team cricketers,” he said. “That’s done with the help of senior players who know what first-team cricket is like.
“But the intensity and level of commitment you find at the top level of club cricket is utterly different to what you find in other sides and it’s something I found very noticeable when I dropped back to the second team.
“The experience of playing with and against first-class and Test cricketers is a great privilege and you learn a lot. But it is also a great test of your skills. We try to prepare players for that in the seconds but they still need a run of games to get used to the new environment.”
Burscough captain Adam Waterhouse believes that this will “very probably” be his last season in charge at School Lane.
The 41-year-old former Ormskirk skipper has effectively given club players and officials a year to elect a new leader for the 2014 campaign, something which he believes is in the best interests of Burscough.
“I don’t think the club is in a bad situation because they’ve now got time to find a new captain, which is really something they should be looking to do in any case,” he said.
“Of course, I’m not saying I won’t play for Burscough, but at the moment it seems highly unlikely that I’ll stay in charge beyond this September.”
The School Lane side go into the 2013 season aiming to win promotion from the Second Division of the Liverpool Competition.
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