FORMER Notts and England star Chis Read was the surprise star guest when the end-of-season awards for the Devon under-15 cricket team were handed out.

Read, a former Paignton CC player, went through the Devon youth cricket pathway from under-11 upwards .

He retired in 2017 after a 20-year first class career that saw him play for England 52 times and take 1,000 dismissals as a wicketkeeper and score 16,000 runs.

Read was visiting friends and family in Torbay, including Paignton club-mate Tim Ward who is the coach of the under-15 side. He agreed to present the season's awards after a T20 friendlies day against his former Notts county under-15s team.

The honours were shared in a double-header day for the teams.

Just a day earlier the Devon15s had beaten Oxfordshire and were only denied a possible slot in the ECB Championship play-offs when they were not allowed to-arrange a weather-hit game with the Isle of Wight. 

They finished runners-up to group winners Dorset who had managed to play all their matches.

All-rounder Archie Farkins picked up the Player of the Season award and the batting trophy after scoring 246 runs with an average of 35.14 and taking 10 wickets.

Skipper Jasper Presswell won the bowling award, taking 12 wickets with an average of 16.91.

Rory Medlock and Charlie Presswell both took 10 wickets in the ECB games.

James Hayter (244), Sam Russell (205) and Ciaran Gray (201) also notched up 200-plus runs.