TWO visually impaired 1610 staff are celebrating their most successful cricket season ever with the Somerset team for blind and partially sighted cricketers.

Martin Hallett who is an apprenticed fitness instructor at Trinity Sports and Leisure in Bridgwater and Michael Contreras, a leisure assistant at Castle Sports Centre in Taunton are both members of the Somerset Visually Impaired Cricket team which has just enjoyed a highly successful debut season in the Blind Cricket League of England and Wales (BCEW).

The Somerset side finished fifth in the league, they were runners up in the National knock-out cup final last month and they have just defeated Warwickshire in the finals of the National T20 cup, a first major trophy for the team in their first season in the National League.

Martin Hallet says that it has been a phenomenal season for the Somerset VI cricket team. He said: “We are all very proud of what we have achieved in our debut season in the league but we are a good all round side and we have all worked very hard to make this happen.

“We will be going for glory next season and will be training in the winter to defend our title next year.”

The Somerset VI Cricket Club is looking for sponsorship and for a permanent home ground where they can play and train.

1610 is hoping to set up a weekly Visually Impaired football training session at Robert Blake & Elmwood Sport Centre in Bridgwater, which could lead to the setting up of a VI Football Team which could enter a specialist league.