“Just like every other team in the division we want to win promotion.”

So says new Gloucester Cricket Club captain Sam Hewitt as he looks ahead to a campaign that he hopes will end with his side reclaiming a place in Premier 2 Glos/Wilts of the West of England Premier League.

They finished fourth in the 10-strong Gloucestershire Division last time out and with only one team promoted Hewitt will be looking to make a fast start.

Hewitt, who will have just turned 30 when Gloucester begin their league campaign at home to promoted Rockhampton on Saturday 4^th May, is looking forward to the challenge.

“The goal is to get back to where we were, we want to move the club forward,” he told The Local Answer.

“We’ve got some seriously talented players at the club and some fantastic young players coming through. As always, availability will be the key.”

Gloucester were playing in Premier One of the WEPL not so long ago and Hewitt, a royal marine, has been using his contacts to strengthen the club ahead of the new campaign.

He’s captained the Royal Marines’ cricket team for the past couple of years and also plays for the Navy and he said: “A couple of the lads from the Navy team are going to play for us this season.”

The two recruits are Ben Johnstone and Rob Wigley and Hewitt continued: “Ben is the Navy’s captain, he’s a batting all-rounder. He’s a left-handed batsman who bowls right-arm seam, he can open the bowling.”

Wigley, meanwhile, is a quick bowler and he certainly bowls at a decent pace because Hewitt, an opening batsman who scored more than 450 runs last season, readily admits: “I really don’t enjoy facing him.”

The club have also signed all-rounder John Barlow, the nephew of former South Africa all-rounder and one-time Gloucestershire coach Eddie Barlow, with Hewitt adding: “He’s an opening bowler who bats in the middle order.”

This will be Hewitt’s second season with Gloucester – the former Chosen Hill School pupil  played for Painswick for many years – and although he is relatively new to the club he obviously feels very much at home.

“I just feel my cricket is clicking,” he said. “I’ve got a lot of people backing me, they don’t care if I get nought or a hundred, that takes the pressure off.”

Former skipper Tom Collinson will be Hewitt’s vice-captain and Jack Whiting, who led the side last season, will also be available this time around.

“Tom knows the club inside out,” he said. “There are quite a few people I can turn to for advice if I need it.

“Chairman Stu Wilshaw has really looked after me since I joined the club and the work that Stu and Craig Collinson do at the ground is second to none.”

And Hewitt, who can bowl medium pace,  certainly showed his appreciation of their work in 2023 as he piled on the runs.

He had a strike rate of just under 100 which is very impressive even though he describes his batting style as “not too aggressive”.

A strike rate of just under 100 would certainly have been regarded as aggressive when his dad Michael was playing for Stroud back in the day.

Michael was lucky enough to play alongside two Gloucestershire greats during his time at Stroud – Jack Russell and Mark Alleyne – and he also played with former New Zealand A player Jason Mills.

Mills is Hewitt’s godfather and he arranged for him to spend a winter  playing in New Zealand. Hewitt, who has played at Lord’s for the Navy, has also spent a couple of winters playing in Australia so has plenty of experience.

He’s due back at Lord’s in the next few weeks when the Navy take on the Army, something he’s obviously looking forward to.

He’s also looking forward to hopefully reaching three figures in the league for the first time after coming so close in 2023.

“I was on 94 and we needed one run to win and had something like 25 overs remaining,” he said. “It was against Charlton Kings. I’d just hit a couple of sixes and I went for another. I was in the baseball stance and I got cleaned up!”.