Kieran Coyne has been reappointed as the Banbury 1st XI skipper for the 2025 season following the club’s annual general meeting.
The club has confirmed that Coyne will no longer be classified as an overseas player as he returns for his fourth season at White Post Road.
After Lloyd Sabin stood down following a successful eight-year spell at the end of 2023, Coyne took up the captaincy.
Coyne originally joined Banbury as their overseas for the 2022 season, and returned in 2023.
The skipper played twice for Surrey 2nd XI on the road in the second half of the 2024 season; versus Yorkshire 2nd XI (27/8/24) at Clifton Park, York, and against Warwickshire 2nd XI (16/9/24) at the Edgbaston Foundation Community Sports Ground. This followed an appearance (18/7/23) for Somerset 2nd XI against Hampshire 2nd XI at the Ageas Bowl.
Banbury have been proactive over the winter as they have strengthened with the additions of George Tait and Arjun Ramkumar.
Tait, rejoins from Oxford, where he was captain and won the Romans’ player-of-the-year for the 2024 season.
Having captained Oxfordshire’s Under-17 side, Tait made his senior county debut in July 2018 and has been a regular since competitive cricket returned after the 2020 season was lost to Covid.
Tait was a member both of Oxfordshire’s side that won the Durant National Counties Championship in 2021, beating Suffolk in the final, and their National Counties T20-winning side in 2023.
He made a brilliant century for the National Counties XI in their annual match against MCC at Banbury in August 2022 and demonstrated his all-round talent by taking a maiden five wicket haul with his off-spin in Oxfordshire’s opening Championship match of last season against Herefordshire at Eastnor.
Tait performed with aplomb after being selected for the Challengers side, the National Counties side, against the touring Zimbabwe Emerging side at West Bromwich Dartmouth Cricket Club. He impressed as he made 172 from 146 balls with six sixes and 21 fours in August last year.
Joining with Tait is his Loughborough UCCE team mate Ramkumar. The talented batter has been a consistent run scorer for Harrogate in the North Yorkshire Premier League, Premier Division, having also played for the Yorkshire 2nd XI in 2019. He played twice in the Second XI Championship and three times in the Second XI Trophy, having come through Yorkshire Academy.
Image: Jack Brooks
The club gave an update on the position of Jack Brooks after he was appointed as a Bowling Consultant for Surrey in November 2024. They have told us, “Jack Brooks isn’t involved in an official capacity as Head Coach due to his new role at Surrey, but still involved with the club unofficially and supporting where he can.”
Neil Megson – Image courtesy of Banbury Cricket Club
The annual general meeting also saw Neil Megson, the winning captain for Banbury in the Home Counties Premier League’s inaugural season (2000), confirmed as the new President for the 2025 and 2026 seasons.
The full list of 2025 captains can be found below:
1st XI: Kieran Coyne
Women’s 1st XI: Zoe Pugh
2nd XI: Mike Jones
3rd XI: Luke Wetherill
4th XI: Craig Haupt
Sunday XI (Manager): Matt Miller
