Prestwich run machine is in no mood to let up (From Prestwich and Whitefield Guide)

Prestwich run machine is in no mood to let up

3:25pm Wednesday 1st July 2009

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HE claims he only got his place in the Prestwich first team for his fielding, but 10,000 runs later Steve Orrell has proved he is also quite handy with the bat.

ET, Rocky III and Poltergeist were box office hits in the summer of 1982 when 18-year-old Orrell made his debut, and the longevity of his career underlines just how integral he has been to the Heys Road side's success.

He has played a crucial part in turning the team from a mediocre outfit into one of the best sides in the Lancashire County League, captaining them through the most successful period in their history.

The 45-year-old, who is the news editor of the Bury Times, took over leadership of the side in the early 90s and has since led them to a league title and two Walkden Cup victories, before stepping down in the 2006 season.

Orrell reached a personal milestone a fortnight ago when he passed 10,000 runs for the first team in their Walkden Cup victory over Stand, and he is showing no signs of slowing up. I have scored three 50s in five knocks opening the batting this season so I am doing okay,” said Orrell, who has scored two 100s and 46 50s in a successful career at his howetown club. “I was put up the order because we kept losing early wickets and it is working so far.

“I will bat anywhere the captain wants me too though. I have done most jobs in the top order during my time at the club.

“I actually came into the team for my fielding and batted number eight or nine, but I worked hard to improve and it paid off.

“I could hit a ball, but there were plenty of rough edges.”

A highest score of 132 not out against Irlam in 1995 is fondly remembered by Orrell, but there are other innings that he regards as equally as important to him and the team.

“The high score was special because it was my first hundred,” he said. “I also scored 47 when we won the Walkden Cup for the first time in 2000 and that sticks in my mind.

“It was the first time that the first team had won anything since the early 1930s and I was proud to play my part in that.

“Winning the league and cup double in 2007 was also a major highlight.”

Orrell, who played semi-pro football for 20 years with teams such as Glossop and Ramsbottom United, has played with and against some excellent players in his 27-year association with first-team cricket.

“I played against Malcolm Marshall when he was pro at Denton and he was a quality player and a quality man,” he said. “He was signing beer mats and bats for everyone and it was easy to see why everyone spoke in glowing terms about him. He was a good bloke.

“Craig Duxbury served us brilliantly as a pro, but the man who I learned the most from was our professional in the early 90s, Mark Whelan.

“I often batted at the other end to him and just watched and picked up things. He was an excellent player.

“I remember once, in the days before helmets, when he blamed me for not passing his personal best. He scored 161, but he needed 163 to beat his highest ever score.

“I was at the other end when he smashed it and it cleaned me out and hit the umpire on the leg. The umpire called 'dead ball' and I was taken to hospital to have half of my jaw re-wired.

“When I next saw him, he claimed, with a smile on his face, I should have got out of the way of the ball and it would have been a flat six, thus enabling him to reach 163. I never apologised.”

Orrell is already planning for life on the other side of the boundary, and worked his way to a Grade Two coach qualification over the winter.

He still has a few more runs left in the tank, but Prestwich can be sure they will still have a devoted servant when he does finally hang up his whites.

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