NINE Radcliffe factory workers have scooped an amazing £3,351, 326 on the National Lottery.

The workmates from flooring company James Halstead Ltd have swapped lino for lotto and will each receive a £372,000 share of Saturday's jackpot.

The syndicate have been putting 27 lines a week on the lottery since it began and they say they will continue to keep playing with the same numbers.

The champagne flowed as they toasted their win in the sunshine at Worsley's Marriott Hotel on Tuesday (May 2). Syndicate spokesman Mr Tom Farley (39) said: "We are all chuffed to bits . All of us are ordinary working lads with overdrafts so this is going to make a big difference to our lives and the lives of our children."

He added: "No-one's going to make any rash decisions about what to do with the money but we will probably get together for a celebration party at some point."

The winners, who live in Bury, Radcliffe and Whitefield, were: Mark Greenhalgh (33), Dave Ramsden (44), Malcolm Hayes (51), Tom Farley (39), Bob Layton (42), Les Atkinson (50) and Paddy Slaven (45), who are pictured during this week's cheque presentation.

There were an additional two others in the syndicate but they have opted for anonymity.

It was Les Atkinson (50) who placed the winning ticket at Radcliffe's Asda store. When he found out it was a winner he was so scared of losing it that he hid it under the carpet at his home.

He said: "We're ecstatic. We've really hit the big time."

The overjoyed workmates are not making any immediate decisions about what to do with their win and hope to keep their feet on the ground.

In fact, they are so determined to remain "normal" that many of them worked their Bank Holiday shift as usual!