PEARS boss Kevin Sharp has hailed the return of skipper Joe Leach to the ranks as ‘like another signing’ for the 2019 season.
The county captain, who had taken 193 Championship wickets in the previous three years, missed two third of last season with a stress fracture of the back.
But the 27-year-old has been going through his paces with no ill effects since the players reported back last week.
Sharp said: “Joe is back in full training. He has looked great. I had a good chat with him and he has been able to do everything that everyone else has been able to do.
“It will be like another signing. It was a bit of a freak last year with all of the injuries. We lost Joe before the T20 campaign and managed to get Luke Wood in on loan and also Andy Carter and they did a great job for us.
“It was a bit freakish last year. Certainly over the last five years, there have been very few injuries but that’s the way it goes sometimes. It is almost like a wheel of fortune.
“You seem to have a good spell and then you can get a few injuries altogether and that is what happened. Hopefully next season we will have another clean spell.
“If that is the case, we’ve got some depth in the squad in all departments.”
Sharp added: “We missed Joe. His record in Championship cricket is prolific and I’m sure he would have had another good season had he been able to complete it.
“But it enabled more experience to be given to younger bowlers so they’ve got that in the bag.
“Ultimately when we go in with the squad next year, even the young lads have had a taste of it now and that is only going to be to our benefit.”