PETER Sleep has finally called time on his illustrious career and has hung up his pads at Rishton.

The former Australian Test all-rounder has been toying with the idea of retiring for a couple of seasons but he says this time it is definitely for good.

"My body is telling me not to carry on - utterly and totally," said the 49-year-old Rishton captain. "It is my time to give up although I will still do some coaching at the ground.

"I am hoping to hand over the captaincy to Andrew Bartley, it gives someone else a chance, and I won't play any more games. That's it and my body will be ecstatic!"

At least he finished on a high, as Rishton won the 20/20 Trophy this season, beating Burnley in the final, although he wanted a better league finish than eighth.

"It was nice to win a trophy and we played well in most of those 20/20 games and deserved to win it," he said. "But I do think we should have been higher in the league - the top six - and we probably played well enough to do it but we lost our way in two or three games mid season which we should have won.

"But there have been positives from the season. Opener John Cordingley was new to the club and has won the most valuable player at Rishton, while Shaun Wyse has done well. We have had to have a few pros which upset the apple cart a bit but Lachlan Stevens came in in the latter stages and did well. He is set to come back next season and that is a boost for the club. Generally, the season has been not too bad."

As well as the loss of the captain, Sleep's stepson Richard Rostron is also leaving Blackburn Road as he makes his first step as a professional at Blackrod in the Bolton Association next summer.

Sleep admitted he has enjoyed the final season with a close Lancashire League title battle which was only concluded on the final day when Burnley pipped Bacup.

"I am glad for Jon Harvey (the Burnley pro ) as he is a good friend and it was fantastic for him. When we beat them in the 20/20 he was sick and I said to him to go on and win the league and he has."

But he will be watching from the sidelines next season to see if Rishton can clinch the title - although he has the tiny matter of a trip back home to Adelaide to do some coaching first over the winter.

"It should be okay and I might take in a bit of the Ashes," he said.