New Contract for Thomas
Somerset County Cricket Club can today reveal that wicketkeeper/batter, Thomas Rew has agreed terms on a new and extended contract.
The 18-year-old, who signed an initial deal in July and plays his club cricket for Taunton St Andrews, has now committed his future to the Club until at least the end of the 2028 campaign.
Thomas made his First XI debut for the Club in last season’s Vitality Blast before featuring in two further games in the competition. He also made 10 appearances in the Metro Bank One Day Cup scoring 308 runs at an average of 44 with a best of 84 not out. His First Class debut came in the recent Rothesay County Championship fixture against Yorkshire.
Thomas, who joined the Somerset Pathway at Under 11 level, worked his way onto the Somerset Academy via the Somerset Emerging Player Programme, made his Second XI debut for the Club in 2023 and has gone on to captain England Under 19s, leading the side to the World Cup final this winter.
After signing his new contract, Thomas said: “I’m very happy and proud to be signing this extension to my contract. I’ve worked really hard at my cricket to get to this point in my career and to be spending the next three seasons playing for Somerset after leaving school is a great feeling.
“Opportunities such as those with the England u19s and the England Lions have arrived pretty fast for me in the last 12 months and events have happened in my cricketing journey so far that I wasn’t necessarily expecting. I’m grateful to Somerset for all the opportunities they have given me so far. I just try to take one match at a time and not look too far ahead, an approach which really helped me last year. I’ve spoken to a lot of different people at Somerset about how to deal with the pace at which these opportunities came and I’m just setting myself small, short-term targets. That’s been a really useful approach, and Somerset players and coaches have been very supportive.
“I’ve played at Somerset all the way through the age groups from the Under 11s upwards and I’ve grown up here in Taunton. It’s such a great club to be a part of – it’s just like one big family. I watched Somerset play a lot when I was younger, so now getting to play in front of a packed house at the Cooper Associates County Ground is a fantastic feeling. My goal over the next three seasons is to work hard to get into the First Team and then help bring silverware to Taunton in all three formats of the game.”
qSomerset Head Coach, Jason Kerr said: “Thomas has an innate ability to be incredibly competitive and read situations effectively. There’s a maturity in his cricket that not everybody has and that’s combined with ability and talent. We’ve already seen with the opportunities that Thomas has had within the Lions and Somerset environments that his contributions can be significant and it’s easy to forget how young he is.
“It’s going to be really exciting to see how he develops but I think it’s important that we’re patient. We’re absolutely delighted that Thomas has signed this extension because it’s imperative that we secure young players with prodigious talent.”
Somerset Director of Cricket, Andy Hurry added: “Thomas is a player of high potential and someone we see playing a key role across the formats for the Club.
“His transition into the First XI environment last summer was seamless, and he made some very valuable contributions. He also impressed at the Under 19 World Cup and with the Lions during the winter and we are extremely excited to be playing a part in his continued development for the foreseeable future.”
