A teenager from Wallingford earned his place in the history books after becoming the youngest qualified umpire in Britain.

Ethan Peel, 15, has been studying for a BTEC intermediate certificate in cricket umpiring at Oxford Brookes University as part of an initiative by the International Institute of Cricket Umpiring and Scoring (IICUS) to recruit young officials.

GCSE student Peel, from had already completed modules on the laws of the game and field management, man management and duty of care.

And on Saturday he finished the final phase of the qualification when he independently umpired a friendly match between Tiddington and London-based NomadsTiddington won by four runs.

Afterwards, Ethan, a year 11 student at Wallingford School, said: “It's a good job that I've got parents who get me to games and a supportive coach who has really helped.

“I hope that what I've achieved will lead on to other young lads getting involved in umpiring. I only started out last year after my father told me about the course.

“I've rolled on from there, doing classroom-based studies and then umpiring 15 to 20 games at adult and youth level this year. It has been good.

“It would be nice to progress on to umpiring professional cricket but I'm taking it all one step at a time.”

“I've always been a huge cricket fan but it was never something I thought I would actually be able to get a qualification in.

“I’m really looking forward to getting my certificate next year so I can get stuck in and, you never know, maybe become the next Dickie Bird.”