HE made a huge impression in his debut year at Allendale, and now he wants to guide Allendale to the West Tyne Cricket League title.

Topping both the league’s all-rounder and batting averages charts in 2016, Ross Laidlaw was key in seeing the Allen Valleys side challenge for both the league and cup championships.

However, they fell just short by finishing second to Stocksfield in the league, and losing out in the final of the Division One KO Cup to Haydon Bridge as they fell foul of a timing rule.

Yet Laidlaw, who made 859 runs and took 41 wickets last year, has again made the trip from his home club Kaipaki, New Zealand, to try take the club to top honours.

He said: “I enjoyed it last season and I wanted to come and win the league. I did well personally, but I would happily trade that in for the league title.

“Allendale haven’t won it since 1992, which was the year I was born, so we need to change that.

“The goal is to be in the mix for the league with five games to go, and then you stand a chance.

“An ideal season would be to win the league and at least get to the final of the cup, and if we can win it, even better. Hopefully, we don’t get timed out this time!”

With the return of Laidlaw, along with the arrival of opening batsman and Australian right arm, off spinner Lachie Donchie, Allendale are tipped for the title.

A couple of players at university in the North-East will also help out, while Ben Lloyd will be vice captain to Tim Raglan after making the move from rivals Haltwhistle.

The changes at Allendale, who have lost promising junior Sam Peter to Tynedale, are the main talking point in what will be a major year for West Tyne cricket due to the many rule changes.

Reigning champions Stocksfield start their defence of the trophy with a new captain, with the experienced Ali Thirlwell taking the place of title-winning skipper Phill Bewick.

Their young guns speared them to the championship by a margin of 10 points, and their consistency in team selection reaped big rewards as their strong team spirit shone throughout. While their starting XI will be very similar to the one that lifted the league trophy in September, they are expected to be without the services of shining star Sam Beedle who has caught the eye of the first team, as has fellow teenager Chris Scandle.

With Graeme Lee taking over as captain from Dan Parker, Haltwhistle , the champions of 2015, will again be looking to mount a serious challenge.

While they’ll be without the services of Lloyd, they have managed to keep the rest of the squad together with Micky Armstrong to feature more regularly a big boost, along with the continued commitment of Dan Kirkup and Joe Barber.

Wylam , again captained by Ben Duncan, finished one place below Haltwhistle in fourth last term, and are hoping for more consistency which would see them right in the mix. A major blow will be the absence of main runs scorer Alex Rayner who is due to undergo a back operation at the beginning of the season, but batsman David Smith returns after three years out of the game.

Humshaugh showed great improvement last year to secure sixth spot under captain Andy Crawford, and their chances of progressing further up the table have only been bolstered by the addition of Jack Garrett, from Corbridge.

As ever, Matfen Hall will introduce two New Zealand imports to the league and it will be interesting to see how all-rounders Alex Tait and Will O’Brien fare.

The club, captained by Alex Pearse, have exciting youngsters to rely on too, including Aaron Tiffin, Max Stephens and the league’s junior player of the year Tom Scott.

KO Cup champions Haydon Bridge remain the same as last year and captain Graeme Pigg is expecting a big year from schoolboy Liam Stephenson, while Dan Toward’s Hexham Leazes , who will be without the services of long term wicketkeeper Andrew Brown, are hoping a strong end to last season holds them in good stead for a more competitive year.

South Northumberland 1864 captain James Moon hopes the youngsters at his disposal will continue their development to first and second team cricket with the club as they mark their return to Division One after last season’s impressive title win.

Benwell Hill III , captained by Dan Hunter, will again be a force for anyone on their day, while Newton , under the guidance of new captain Jim Balkwill, and Ali Poll’s Newcastle III are hoping for improvements on last year.

l Division Two, which is up by one to 14 teams with the arrival of Clara Vale II and the revival of Medomsley in conjunction with Shotley Bridge, starts on April 29.