A CRICKET enthusiast has been praised by judges of a Devon-wide sport ceremony for the hard work he puts in at Budleigh Salterton Cricket Club.

Kevin Curran, secretary at BSCC, was highly commended in the Volunteer of the Year category at the Devon Sports Awards, organised by Active Devon, the county sport partnership, held at Sandy Park, Exeter, last week.

The nominees shortlisted covered a variety of important roles such as volunteers, officials and coaches – seen as the driving force behind the scenes in local sport.

Competition was stiff with 31 finalists covering more than 20 sports competing in 10 award categories.

Mr Curran, pleased at being named runner-up in the category, said: “It is nice to get the top prize, however, to come runner up was brilliant because this was an award ceremony for all sports in Devon.

“It is a nice thing for me, my family and, of course, for the cricket club.”

Neil Roberts, chief executive of Active Devon said: “We ensure the Devon Sports Awards are firmly on our calendar each year to acknowledge all those unsung heroes across the county who offer their time and expertise, more often than not for free, for the good of Sport in Devon.

“From those that train and develop our athletes to those who wash kits and ensure playing facilities are clean and safe, every one of them plays a valuable role and is integral to the continuing development of sport across our county”.

Mr Curran, in his 11 years as club secretary, has been instrumental in seeing through large-scale changes and the fortunes of the club.

During this period, the clubhouse has been rebuilt, as has the groundsman’s shed; an electronic scoreboard has been added plus new practice nets as well as artificial wickets.

On the playing side, the senior team have progressed to premier cricket including being County Champions in 2006. And the colts organisation has grown from one to more than five successful teams.

The club has also gained ‘Clubmark’ status during his tenure.

In addition to being recognised at the Devon Sports Awards, Mr Curran was presented with an award at NatWest Cricket OSCA’s for outstanding services to the sport.