CRICKET mad five-year-old Danny Thexton was bowled over when he was asked to make up the numbers for his local village club's under-15 team.

He was even more thrilled when the Esh Winning skipper asked him to bowl what turned out to be the last over of the game, as visitors Mainsforth eased to victory.

But there was a sting in the tail as Danny shocked the Mainsforth batsman by taking a wicket, with a stumping, and only conceding four runs.

Just turned five, Danny has not stopped talking about his bowling feat since, and he can hardly wait until he's a little older to play on a regular basis for the club's under-13s team.

Danny, born into a cricket-loving family, could be destined for great things.

His dad, former Crook and Esh Winning batsman Steve Thexton, is so confident of his son's ability that he has placed a £10 bet on Danny to play for England before the age of 20, at odds of 1000-1.

"He was only three at the time, but he was already mad keen then. It was just a bit of fun and who knows if he'll still be as interested in ten years? He's never away from the ground just now. He's there with his whites on for all the games, and when a wicket goes down he'll ask if he's in next.

"At the moment he's still a bit young and I'm holding him back playing with some of the older boys."

While Steve, 45, has now given up playing, to concentrate on umpiring, the family, who live 200 yards from the Esh Winning ground, is steeped in cricket.

Danny's mother Caroline makes the teas at Esh Winning and is a former first team scorer, which is how she met Steve when the club was playing Crook.

Her dad, Ray, is Esh Winning treasurer and league umpires secretary, while mother Mary has been umpiring for 15 years.