NORTH Down have returned to Australia for their new professional with 24 year old seam bowler Tim Ley already signed up for 2013.

He will be joined by fellow Sydney grade cricketer Nick Larkin, a 22 year old batsman, who is an Irish passport holder with ambitions of playing for Ireland.

Larkin comes highly recommended because he scored 124 in a 253 runs partnership last year with Ian Moran, the Comber side’s professional in 2011, and has played in the same line-up as Australia Test players Stuart MacGill and Stuart Clark.

Ley is a club team-mate of David Warner and Brad Haddin and last year took 45 wickets at less than 20 runs each.

The early signings are a strong indicator that North Down are determined to regain their mantle as the top side in the NCU. League champions eight times since 2001, they failed to win to win a trophy last season for the first time for six years.