I read an article recently that made me smile at the headline and then shake my head in disbelief at what happened. It was about a Mankad incident in club cricket here in Yorkshire. It wasn’t the first and it won’t be the last – but even so. You’re a knowledgeable lot so you’ll probably […]
Aire-Wharfe Cricket: Rodley & Bingley Congs face off
It’s Saturday morning and I’m scouring around for fixtures, while checking the weather across Yorkshire. Ideally somewhere with a walk, green outdoor space and relatively new for Cricket Yorkshire, decent parking. Rodley’s home match in Division 4 of the Aire-Wharfe Cricket League gets my vote, not least because their opponents are Bingley Congs, my local […]
National Club Championship: The road to Lord’s begins
The ECB National Club Championship is back – and with it comes the prospect of Yorkshire’s cricket clubs showing what they’re made of against the best in the country. The Royal London Club Championship (current sponsor) is 40-overs knockout cricket with a Lord’s final inked in for Saturday 9th September 2023. Here, I’ll share some […]
Birds of prey, boundaries and beeping phones: Cricket is back
Perhaps inevitably, having no firm plan to see any cricket meant I ended up catching two games in the first full weekend of league action. Saturday was a drive over to Knaresborough; the A658 offering ample opportunity (if you’re not driving) to spot red kites circling. One flew low, perhaps 20 feet above our car, […]
Top tips to get the best cricket club insurance cover
As Cricket Yorkshire HQ is battered by high winds yet again and some cricket leagues cancel their entire opening weekend of fixtures due to wet weather, I’m reminded of what a fickle time of year it is. The impact of weather is a chief concern for many cricket clubs as to what extent they’re protected. […]
Forge Valley lose points and fined for late withdrawal
Amongst the cat videos on Facebook and dodgy ads, occasionally something else leaps out. I was scrolling through and a strongly-worded statement from the Scarborough Beckett Cricket League stood out: “The League Management Committee (LMC) has reluctantly agreed to a request from Forge Valley CC to withdraw from the Premier Division for the 2023 season. […]
Heavy Woollen Cup: History, heritage and plenty at stake
It’s particularly in an Ashes year when the Heavy Woollen Cup comes into sharper focus. The England-Australia rivalry is as old as it gets – and yet, this club cricket trophy in Yorkshire first took place less than a year later in 1883. Once limited to 32 clubs who were based within a strict distance […]
Many cricket leagues postpone their season start in Yorkshire
Nothing gets us quite so fired up as the weather – especially when it affects the cricket season. The North Yorkshire & South Durham Cricket League’s decision to postpone the start of their cricket season by a week was a big call. Unusual but not quite unprecedented – and sensible given March was the wettest […]
Paul Cummins: Taking the helm at the Yorkshire Cricket Board
Paul Cummins, the Yorkshire Cricket Board’s Director of Recreational Cricket, is talking to me from Headingley about what lies ahead. Three months into the job, the honeymoon period (if there is one in that role) has seen him zip around the region, meeting some of the staff and no doubt getting a feel for the […]
Pudsey St Lawrence: Primed, proud and ready on all fronts
The last time I saw Chris Marsden or ‘Spike’ as he’s known in Bradford Cricket League circles, was a visit in 2019 to their Tofts Road ground for their rain-affected game against Methley. It was for a feature in The Cricket Paper and a lot has happened for all of us since. I tend to […]