Kent wicketkeeper Geraint Jones has told KSN how he is thrilled to see friend Mike Powell join the club.

Powell put pen to paper on a two year deal at Canterbury last week and was formally unveiled as a Kent player on Tuesday morning.

The 34 year old batsman has been brought in to add some experience to Kent’s batting order following Martin van Jaarsveld’s departure and Jones is pleased to see the former Glamorgan player join after the pair played together at Abergavenny:

“I have known Mike for quite a long time, going back to when I was living in Crickhowell and we used to play rugby together. He is a good friend and ultimately for the cricketing side he is a good player.”

“I think it was about 1998 that we first played together and it was around that time that he had started playing for Glamorgan, but we had played against each other out in Australia when he was playing club cricket for a team called Wests.”

“We needed to add an addition to the squad and being a good mate just adds to it. He is a bubbly character, has the right work ethic, so for what we are trying to do for the future he will fit in really well.”

“Replacing Jarra and Joe (Denly) we had to find a senior batsman and he was the best out there that was available.”

With the pair knowing each other so well, it seems obvious that the two talked about the move before Powell signed and Jones told KSN how he had helped persuade Powell that Kent was the place to come and play his cricket:

“He asked me all about the club and actually stayed here with us at home before he had his meeting with Jamie Clifford (Kent’s Chief Executive).”

“Keysey knows how good a player Mike is and he’s got a great character, so I didn’t have to push that hard on that one and the powers that be were keen on him anyway.”

With Powell in the last few weeks of his Benefit year at Glamorgan, the 34 year old is ending his time there in the ring and will go toe to toe with former Wales prop Peter Rogers in a three round boxing match.

Trained by legendary trainer Enzo Calzaghe, the pair will slug it out at the Swalec Stadium, but Jones thinks his friend must be mad to get in the ring and that’s something he’s not planning for his Benefit year in 2012:

“He must be mad! The size of his head is quite big, so it’s a big target! I hope he has been practicing all the bobbing and weaving.”

“I spoke to him about it as he got married at the back end of the summer to Pippa. He’d started his training then and kept coming home with black eyes, so she banned him from training for the three weeks leading up to the wedding.”

“I said he must have a screw loose, but he insists he won’t get another opportunity to do it, so why not?”

“Although, I’m not considering it for my Benefit – not a chance – no way!”

Jones himself will be out of contract at the end of next summer and told KSN that he has started talks with the club about a new deal at Canterbury:

“I’ve been in and had a brief chat with Jamie Clifford about a new deal. There has been a lot going on with sorting out some of the younger guys and signing Mike, so we have agreed that once things have settled down we will have a proper talk.”

“It might take a bit of time to get it all resolved, but there’s no question in my mind about where I want to be playing my cricket.”

Geraint is one of a number of players and staff at Kent Cricket that are doing their bit for Movember, growing a moustache for the whole of November and admits that he has been getting stick about his growing efforts from some of the most unlikely places:

“The lady where we send our lambs to the abattoir knows Jamie Clifford and she’d asked him how my Mo was going as she’d seen his and he told her that mine was pitiful!”

“So when I saw her next she gave me some stick. I always knew my tash was going to be a slow grower and I don’t think it has changed over the past week.”

You can keep up to date with Geraint’s progress as we come towards the end of the month by checking out his Movember page – www.mobro.co/gojones623