A CRICKET goods retailer hit for six by the sodden summer has found a buyer.

Now the new owner of Romida Sports Ltd is creating 12 jobs by re-opening its Brighouse store on Monday along with others in Rochdale and Leatherhead, Surrey.

Rochdale-based Romida has been bought from the administrators by Extra Cover Cricket, based in Hertfordshire, for an undisclosed sum.

Extra Cover Cricket, which was founded in Hemel Hempstead in 2010, will re-open the former Romida stores under the name Romida Cricket Ltd.

Andy Woodard, founder of Extra Cover Cricket, said two full-time jobs and a number of part-time posts had been created at the Wakefield Road, Brighouse, store.

He said: "Romida is massive in the industry and is a very well-respected name.

"When the opportunity came up to buy the business it seemed like a good fit for us. We wanted to expand our business and Romida needed a lot of investment, which is what we have done."

Mr Woodard said he hoped to retain Romida’s sponsorship of the Sykes Cup and the Drake’s League Twenty20 competition, but said he needed to speak to the organisers to find out about Romida’s financial commitment.

"We will be keen to carry on these links with the competitions if we can," he said. "We have sponsored tournaments before and we have sponsored a couple of clubs. It’s a win-win situation because you are rewarded with customer loyalty."

Mr Woodard said Extra Cover Cricket had prospered despite the downturn by balancing excellent customer service and competitive prices.

He added: "Romida is a great brand and has given customers outstanding service over many years. We look forward to building on this.

"We are delighted to be able to create 12 jobs on the back of this takeover and look forward to serving Romida’s loyal customers."

Joint administrator Kerry Bailey, a partner in PKF’s corporate recovery team in Manchester, said: "We are pleased to announce the sale of the assets of Romida Sports Ltd.

"We believe that the deal represents the best possible outcome and it also ensures three of the former Romida stores will reopen."

On its website, Extra Cover Cricket describes itself as a "proper cricket shop" stocking all cricket equipment including bats, gloves, pads, wicket keeping kit, balls, clothing with brands including Puma, Kookaburra, Gray Nicolls, Gunn and Moore and Slazenger.

The administrators at financial services firm PKF were appointed to Romida Sports Ltd just a month ago and set about trying to sell the family business as a going concern.

At the time, they blamed Romida’s demise on the combination of the rain-sodden summer and cricket being eclipsed by other sporting events such as the Olympics, the Tour de France and football’s Euro 2012 tournament.