Lowerhouse CC calls for Jimmy Anderson statue in town centre

Writing on the Lancashire League club's web page, Lowerhouse's Website and Social Media Representative, Adam Hope, sounded the call for the Burnley-born Anderson - now England's highest wicket-taker in Test match history - to be celebrated with a statue in the town centre.

Anderson started his cricketing career with Burnley Cricket Club - a founding member of the Lancashire League in 1892 alongside Lowerhouse - before progressing on to play First Class cricket for Lancashire in 2002 and then Test cricket for England in 2003.

"Arguably, Jimmy is the town’s greatest ever sportsman," wrote Adam. "Whilst I accept that we are a town that usually underplays itself, we cannot simply ignore Jimmy’s achievement. My suggestion is that we erect a statue in the town centre, perhaps with Jimmy bowling towards Turf Moor."

Anderson took his 384th Test wicket in 2015 to leapfrog Sir Ian Botham and become England's highest wicket-taker in Test history, and recently became just the sixth bowler in the history of the game to take 500 Test wickets.

"I think that every cricket loving-person in Burnley and Padiham - and indeed far beyond - must feel an immense surge of local and national pride in the astonishing feat that Jimmy Anderson has joined the elite 500 Test wicket Club," said Adam.

"Lowerhouse Cricket Club will fully support this. What Jimmy has achieved allows all coaches in this town to tell any aspiring cricketer, 'you too can achieve this'. Cricket in this borough - through its four clubs of Belvedere, Burnley, Lowerhouse, and Padiham - is a hotbed of cricket," Adam added.

"How lucky are we to have James Anderson as its icon?"