David Payne is determined to step into the shoes of his outgoing hero Will Gidman and lead Gloucestershire’s attack next season.
Payne, 23, committed his future to the Bristol club for three more years in August and has now pointed to the exit of the Gidman brothers, Will and Alex, as a motivating factor.
“There are many reasons that kept me here but the main one is that with the departures we’ve seen this year it will give me a big opportunity to step up into a senior bowlers’ role,” Payne said.
“It is something I asked for from the club and am really looking forward to – leading a group of guys I see great potential in and get on with really well.”
The Gidman brothers have been a major force in Gloucestershire cricket in recent times – they contributed 2,100 LV= County Championship runs between them last season while Will took 39 wickets – but will both ply their trade in Division One next summer.
Will announced his departure for Nottinghamshire before the end of the season and soon after Alex agreed to make the short trip north to newly-promoted Worcestershire.
“There’s no doubt the Gidman brothers are a massive loss to us, no-one’s hiding behind that,” said Payne, who is coming off the back of an injury-interrupted summer that restricted him to seven championship games.
“For the bowling group and me personally Will was a massive hero to me, an idol. He’s a real professional that everyone got on with and a massive character in the changing room. Alex too with his experience – they will be sorely missed.
“But I think the opportunities will now come for players who have been here for a few years. A lot of us are coming out of the ages where you are seen as young and inexperienced and are at the age where guys should be stepping up into these roles, producing more consistent performances and delivering more on the pitch.
“That’s something I’m looking forward to doing.”
Gloucestershire’s bowlers proved they could prosper without Will Gidman when they beat promoted Worcestershire by seven wickets in August.
Payne shared the new ball with 20-year-old seamer Craig Miles in that game and Gloucestershire boast young talents such as Benny Howell, Liam Norwell, James Fuller and Matt Taylor.
Payne believes the rising talents can also help the club prosper in white-ball cricket after their quarter-final appearance in the Royal London One-Day Cup.
“We showed we are contenders for that competition but I suppose it was the first taste of knockout cricket for us,” said Payne, who took 17 wickets at 16.41 in the 50-over competition.
“You’ve got to turn up on the day no matter what you’ve done in the group stages and it’s all about then performing to your maximum. It was just a couple of slips ups that cost us but we certainly learned a lot as young group of players and I can only see that being a positive thing.”