Newmarket Cricket Club captain Mark Nunn believes squad is better equipped to go the distance in Onyx League Division Two

After coming up short last season, captain Mark Nunn is hopeful that his Newmarket side will mount a more sustained Onyx League Division Two promotion challenge in 2025.

The Stampede were in the running for a top two finish for much of the previous campaign but ultimately a combination of key results going against them and the weather meant that they had to settle for a fourth-placed finish.

However, this time around Nunn believes that his team are better equipped to last the distance.

“Last season was pretty good overall for us,” said the all-rounder. “Ultimately we were not quite good enough in certain games and it didn’t help that we had a few games rained off while the top two played.

“When you have a call off you get seven points, whereas you can still get 14 or 15 points from playing and losing. But that’s not an excuse, overall we were not quite good enough.

“This year I expect us to be pushing at the top end again and to be in and around those promotion places.

“Whenever one season finishes you always reflect on what went wrong and where you can improve.

“We’ve made a lot of progress in recent years and now the aim is to go and bridge the gap from last year.

“There’s enough quality and experience in our squad to be a very competitive side again this season.”

In terms of recruitment, Newmarket have added 20-year-old bowler Suroor Afzal, who played for Mildenhall III last season.

And they have also gone for experience with their overseas in the form of New Zealander Kieran Lloyd, who featured during last weekend’s friendly defeat away at Cambourne.

“Kieran is an all-rounder that swings the ball both ways and bats at the top of the order,” added Nunn.

“He’s 29 years old and we wanted to go down the experienced route with our overseas player this year, as well as someone that can provide us with quality with the bat and ball.

“He’s played at a high level in New Zealand and you can see that we’ve got a top end club cricketer.”

Newmarket will begin their 2025 Division Two campaign on Saturday when they play host to Cambridge NCI at Dullingham (12pm).