Diss Cricket Club make positive start to new Norfolk Cricket Alliance Division One season

‘Morale is high’ at Diss Cricket Club after an impressive start to the new season.

Last weekend’s five-run win at Sheringham was not only Diss’ third victory out of four Norfolk Cricket Alliance Division One outings this term, it was also their first success away from home since August 2023.

And while the sample size may well be relatively small at this stage, first-team captain Mark Brawn is nevertheless delighted with the results during the early stages of his tenure.

He said: “I’m really pleased with how it’s been going. We’re enjoying our cricket as a group and that was one of the main things we wanted to happen before the season started.

“Morale is high and we’ve managed to get on to a little bit of a roll.

“And it’s not just the first team – the club is in a really good place. The junior sides won last weekend and there was four other games across the weekend which all went the way of the club.

“We’ve not changed too much. Training is a little bit more structured and that has helped us to get into the habit of winning games.

“Saturday was a really close game and when you’re in a rut those games tend to go against you, but we’ve got some confidence and that’s working in our favour.”

But despite his side sitting third in the table and just four points adrift of leaders Lowestoft Town, Brawn is not getting carried away.

He added: “We’re not setting any major expectations.

“We’ve started really well but we won’t be putting targets on ourselves or pushing too hard.

“We’ll just look to keep going how we have been and see where that takes us. We know there’s some tough tests to come so it’s about taking each match as it comes.”

One player that has caught the eye so far this term is Daniel Taylor.

The all-rounder’s top score of 73 not out at the weekend took his run tally for the season to 183, while he is also the joint highest wicket taker in the division with 11.

“Dan is extremely talented. I’ve known him since school and he’s always been a talented sportsman,” said Brawn.

“It’s great to see that he’s really showing what he can do.

“He’s always got that magical spell in him, like against Dereham on the first day of the season when he took a five-for.

“It’s nice to know as a team and a captain that you’ve got that weapon up your sleeve, but he can also change the game with the bat.

“He’s not been out in the last two weeks and he’s been a big reason why we’ve started so well.”

Victory for Diss at home against Cromer tomorrow (12pm) would see Brawn’s side match their tally of wins from the whole of last season.