A new daughter for Jamie and Helen as Mike Burns plans for his trip to New Zealand

There was good news from Australia this morning when Jamie Cox contacted the club to say that Helen and himself were delighted to have a new baby daughter in the family.

He told me: "We have called her Madeleine Grace and all is well. She weighed 6 pounds 9 ounces and was born at 10:06pm on 9/1/03, just as Australia were being touched up by Sri Lanka in Sydney!"

I asked him how older brother Lachlan, who celebrated his first birthday in November was coping with having a new sister. Jamie told me: "He just loves her to death and already loves his cuddles."

Congratulations to Jamie and Helen on the birth of their new daughter and with the number of new babies that have been born recently it looks like the club will have to create a special section for the players and their families.

Meanwhile 2003 captain Mike Burns was at the County Ground this afternoon looking out across the ground that was bathed in sunshine at the time.

He told me: "Looking out there today it makes me look forward to the start of the new season even more."

However before the start of the season `Burnsie' is going out to New Zealand to Nelson where he will be linking up with the former Somerset batsman Richard Harden.

He continued: "I am looking forward to training out in the sunshine and hopefully getting a tan, ready for the preseason photographs! I am also hoping that I will be able to get few games for Moteuka C.C. in Nelson who I played for as a pro ten years ago."