THE current squad at Netherfield Cricket Club is the strongest they have had for five years and is more than capable of winning a first Northern Premier League title since 2008, according to club secretary Ian Heath.

The Parkside Road team continued their impressive start to the 2017 season with a seven-wicket win against Morecambe.

John Huck hit a second successive half century for Netherfield to guide them to victory in 41.1 over having previously bowled Morecambe out for 148.

Heath admits he had not seen this form coming for Netherfield, saying positive results are coming from strong performances throughout the squad.

He said: "They're looking a very strong side. The acquisition of the two players from Morecambe (Josh Dixon and Lewis Edge) have made a difference to the side and there seems to be a confidence to them all – everyone seems to be contributing.

"John Huck is scoring runs consistently, and the team as a whole has been great despite certain players being unavailable from time to time.

"We've not been as strong as this for about five years when we lost four of the top six batsmen. Since then we've been trying to play catch up in putting a side together."

From what he has seen so far, Heath sees no reason why Netherfield can not maintain their challenge for the remainder of the season, starting with a trip to Barrow this Saturday.

"I think they've got a very good chance, I can't remember us being top of the league at this stage of the season before," he said.

"We've always been notoriously slow starters but when you start winning regularly it builds the confidence in the team."