THE Lord Lieutenant of Kent and former Governor of the Bank of England, Lord Kingsdown, has accepted Kent County Cricket Club's offer to become club president for the 2002 season.

Lord Kingsdown, 64, who was born in Sittingbourne, has been a cricket lover all his life and maintains a club ground at his home at Torry Hill, near Sittingbourne. He played for various amateur clubs in his younger days and is now Chief of the Band of Brothers. He served as a Trustee of the club with the late Daily Telegraph cricket correspondent Jim Swanton from 1973 through to the club's incorporation in 1999, when he became a trustee of the county's Benevolent Fund.

Last year received honorary life membership of the county cricket club. Commenting on Lord Kingsdown's appointment, Kent's 2001 president Derek Ufton, said: "He has a long-standing interest in cricket and has, of course, made a life-long contribution to Kent through his various roles in the public life of the county."