FORMER England captain Mike Gatting praised the setup at Corsham Cricket Club as he opened the new triple-bay net facility at Station Road.

Gatting, who has been appointed by the English Cricket Board as managing director of cricket partnerships, was impressed by what he saw at the club.

Gatting said: "It's great to see how much is going on, it does hearten me in the job I've got now.

"We need clubs like this because otherwise the game doesn't progress, and my role is to find a few more clubs like this and try and help them out.

"The Wilts County Board have done a tremendous job by having places like this, it's a bit of a showcase.

"It does look very organised and a huge amount of work goes into making the kids comfortable and making them better cricketers.

"It's great to see the families and kids around and it's not just about producing cricketers. It's a great way for kids to learn discipline, how to win, how to lose and how to work as a team.

"It's a magnificent learning curve for life and you don't need to be a cricketer to get involved. Umpires, scorers and tea ladies are very important to the game."