Stefan Hunt has cut down on his commitments ever so slightly at Cheltenham Cricket Club this year but still does more in a week than many clubmen the length and breadth of the county do in a season.

The cheerful 25-year-old has relinquished the captaincy of the 3rd XI in 2017 and is also no longer coaching the under-11s and 15s.

But, and it’s a big but, he still coaches every Thursday and Friday evening and he has taken on responsibility for looking after the All Stars Cricket programme – the hugely popular ECB scheme that is aimed at encouraging five-to-eight-year-olds to take part in England’s national summer game.

The two-times winner of the club’s Don Perry Clubman Award - given to the player or person who has done most to support the club – said: “I decided to take a back seat role for a year or two as far as the captaincy is concerned so that I could concentrate on my own game a bit more.”

It’s a move that has certainly paid off as the seam bowler has been a regular in the 2nd team this season and has even made his debut for the 1sts.

“That was unbelievable,” he said of the game at Thornbury.

So how did he get on?

“I did okay,” he said modestly. “I bowled my 10 overs right through. I took 2-52 which is pretty respectable on their ground because it is quite small.”

But while that was decent the best was yet to come in a West of England Premier 2 Glos/Wilts game Cheltenham won by three wickets.

“I hit the winning runs,” he said. “I was batting at nine and we needed one from the last ball to tie and two to win… and I hit a four.

“It wasn’t the most stylish four, I have to admit. I edged it through first slip and it crashed into the boundary. The boundaries are very short and straight at Thornbury – 35 yards either side. It was a bit of a pressure situation but I enjoyed the celebrations afterwards!”

Hunt, a teaching assistant at Alderman Knight School in Tewkesbury who is preparing to do a year’s teacher training course at the University of Gloucestershire, is grateful for the support he has received from the cricket club.

“I started playing for them when I was 11 and I’ve come all way the through the junior set-up,” he said.

“I was a pupil at Prestbury St Mary’s School and Chris White, the rugby referee, was a teacher there and he got me down to Cheltenham.

“They’ve put me through my Level 2 coaching so they’ve given me some great opportunities.

“I’ve been coaching the youngsters for the past four years and it’s really good fun. It’s nice to see the youngsters progressing at the club and to see some of them coming through the 3rd XI and moving on up.

“I coach the under-9s and then the under-13s on Friday nights but it’s not just me, I work very closely with the junior chairman John Cropper who does an awful lot of hard work.

“The All Stars Cricket programme is absolutely brilliant. It’s really well organised by the ECB and we’ve got loads of youngsters coming to the sessions. If we can keep hold of them the club will be really flying in a few years.”

While cricket is a big part of Hunt’s life, it’s not the only sport he plays.

“I try to play golf every Sunday,” he said. “I’m a member at Tewkesbury Park. I also play football for Bishop’s Cleeve 3rds so I’m pretty busy!”

Fortunately, his girlfriend of seven years, Chloe Davies, plays a bit of sport herself.

“She plays netball on Mondays,” he said. “She comes and watches me play cricket sometimes,” before adding, laughing, “but she absolutely despises golf!”