Former England captain Mike Gatting visits Leeds & Broomfield CC before their National Village Cup final appearance at Lord’s

Leeds & Broomfield had a former England captain in their corner as they prepared for their big day at Lord’s.

Mike Gatting went to the club on Wednesday to watch the final training session before Leeds take on Staffordshire side Milford Hall in the National Village Cup final on Sunday.

Victory this weekend would complete a memorable double after clinching the Kent League Division 1 title last weekend - the club’s eighth promotion in 15 years.

“The MCC organised for Mike Gatting to come down,” said Leeds chairman Chris Davis, speaking on Tuesday.

“It should be a good prelude for the weekend.”

Leeds beat Harvel by 10 wickets to seal the first leg of the league and cup double on Saturday.

They bowled out their opponents for 78, with Tom Parsons taking 4-20.

Leeds immediately turned their attention to Lord’s, where they will be followed by more than 600 fans.

“Everyone’s still saying it doesn’t quite feel real,” said Davis, who also plays for the side.

“I don’t think it will feel real until we get there.

“Since the semi-final, it’s been heads down in the league.

“Results went our way and we managed to become Division 1 champions on Saturday.

“That’s ticked off, so our full focus is on Lord’s now.

“We did worry the cup might be a distraction, and vice-versa, but we've managed to win the league and we’re in the cup final.

“It’s a pretty good achievement, to be honest.

“It’s a unique season - I’m sure it won’t happen like that again for a few years.

“I don’t think we entered the National Village Cup for 20-plus years.

“We re-entered in 2021 and last year we got to the last 16 and we felt we were unlucky in that game.

“We thought we could do all right this season but it’s one of those where you get a bit of momentum and,