Dan Redfern signs for Shropshire

Shropshire have signalled their intent to challenge for honours in the Unicorns Championship next season by signing former Derbyshire and Leicestershire batsman Dan Redfern.

Cumberland lifted the trophy in 2015 after winning the Eastern division with Shropshire finishing third in the Western but Redfern, 25, is the second exciting addition to the squad, following David Wainwright in to the squad.

Redfern, a former England U19 international, played for Shropshire earlier in his career, scoring a century on his senior debut against Northumberland at Oswestry as a 17-year-old in 2007.

He had made his first-class debut for Derbyshire a year earlier aged 16 and remained at the club until 2014 when he signed for Leicestershire, spending the last two seasons at Grace Road.

Redfern is looking forward to working with Shropshire’s director of cricket Karl Krikken, his former coach at Derbyshire. He said: “Krikk has been a massive influence on me since I first met him when I was 13 in the Derbyshire academy.

“I’ve got a lot of time for him and I respect him a great deal.

“So to have him at Shropshire it felt like a no-brainer to sign. I’m really looking forward to playing for Shropshire and working with Krikk again.”