It took just one chat with Ashley Giles to convince him that Warwickshire is the place where he wants to play
Liam Norwell admits that it took just one chat with sport director Ashley Giles at Edgbaston to convince him that Warwickshire is the place where he wants to play his peak years as a cricketer.
The 26-year-old seamer, who has been with Gloucestershire for eight years, will join up with the Bears in November after signing a three-year contract.
I want to make myself the best I can possibly be and Pop (Welch) has a proven track record of getting the best out of bowlers.
Liam Norwell
He sees the move as the perfect catalyst for him to make the most of a fast-bowling ability which has so far brought him 248 first-class wickets at 26.97 apiece in 68 first matches.
“I have really enjoyed my time at Gloucestershire but thought it was time to look at my options if I really wanted to try to push on in my career,” Norwell said. “I have had three really good seasons out of the last four and just want to build on that to achieve all I can achieve in the game.
“To do that I felt I needed to play at a Test ground. I spoke to Ashley Giles and came to have a look at Edgbaston and as soon as I did that my mind was made up.
“Straight away the ambition of the club was clear and I found that very appealing. There is a real sense of something building and I can’t wait to be part of it.
“Warwickshire is a club which wants to challenge for trophies in all formats and that’s really exciting. At Gloucestershire it was mostly about white-ball cricket which means you are only really competing for two trophies.”
With Warwickshire and Gloucestershire having met infrequently in recent years, Norwell has hardly set foot on the Edgbaston turf before, but intends to do so a great deal in all formats over the next three years.
He admits that another big attraction of signing for Warwickshire was the chance to work with bowling coach Graeme Welch.
“Pop is one of the most respected bowling coaches in the game and the prospect of working with him was a big lure,” Norwell said. “I want to make myself the best I can possibly be and Pop has a proven track record of getting the best out of bowlers.
“I just can’t wait to get cracking. I’m out for the rest of this season with a hamstring injury but will be ready to step things up when I join up with the Bears at the start and November and will be fit and firing by the New Year.
“I haven’t played much at Edgbaston, just a pre-season game there a year or two ago, but everyone knows the pitches there are great for cricket and I’m just delighted to have signed a three-year contract with the Bears.”
