Bint wants more county appearances

The result may have been disappointing, but Matt Bint is hoping his first ever appearance for the senior Norfolk side is the first of many more to come.

The opening batsman’s form for Old Buckenham so far this season captured the attention of the selectors, who included him in the side that took on rivals Suffolk in this week’s three-day Unicorns Championship encounter.

Suffolk were dominant from the off and eventually wrapped up victory by an innings and two runs.

On an individual level, Bint scored just 14 runs across the two innings, but he felt comfortable within the new environment and is eager for it to become a regular occurrence.

“The result was obviously not what we wanted, but it was such a big honour to be selected,” said the 18-year-old from Attleborough.

“I have had a pretty good season so far and it goes to show that all the hard work does pay off.

“I am still young, but the coaches have shown they do not think about age – it is about whether you are good enough.

“It was a challenge playing against better players and it would have been nice to score a few more runs, but I felt good out there.

“The only way to improve is to play at that sort of level so hopefully it will happen more and more in the future.”

Of more immediate concern to Bint is Old Buckenham’s position in the Norfolk Cricket Alliance Premier Division.

Last weekend’s five-wicket loss to North Runcton was their eighth reverse of the 2018 campaign and subsequently saw them drop into the relegation zone as neighbouring Diss leapt above the safety line.

It means that Old Bucks have plenty of work to do in the five matches that remain, to preserve their Premier Division status for another season.

However, Bint has insisted morale remains high within the dressing room and he is confident there is enough quality in the squad to successfully fight off the threat of relegation.

“I am sure we will be all right come the end of the season,” he said.

“We have a lot of young players, but they are good players with a lot of quality.

“Our overseas (Amith Sarma) scored a good century a couple of weeks ago so he is in good form and I feel I am contributing a good amount of runs.

“There is still a good spirit within the camp and everyone is pulling in the right direction.

“We need to win a couple of games, that is obvious, but as long as we stick together then I am sure it will happen for us.”

Second-placed Fakenham, who have won eight matches this term, will host Old Buckenham tomorrow (12pm).