The phone chimes up just at the moment that I am making a conscious effort to burn dinner. It’s groundsman David Hodgson – universally known in cricketing circles as ‘Hodgy’ – who has returned my call around an interview after a day at a turf management exhibition in Harrogate. Discarding carbon-infused chicken in favour of […]
Yorkshire cricket outdoors in January: St Chads Charity Cup
The fielder stationed at short third man wore a red woolly hat while the umpire live-scored the match from his tablet. Welcome to cricket outdoors in mid-January. This charity fixture, in aid of the Sue Ryder Wheatfields hospice, who provide end-of-life care for patients with any life-limiting illnesses including cancer, was held at St Chads […]
Maryam Ali inspires girls to play cricket
We all know a cricket coach that has proved pivotal whether for a team we support, our own relationship with the game or who has been instrumental for someone we know. For Leeds-based community coach Maryam Ali, her journey in cricket is only really starting but yet for those girls whom she’s encouraging to connect […]
Does Kolpak strengthen or endanger county cricket?
The immediate answer (how often do you get that in an opening paragraph?) is that it depends if you’re a fan worried about the potential roadblock for young English county cricketers, a county coach looking to bolster an under-strength squad or a professional cricketer after financial security and a new chapter in life. Kolpak has […]
Gary Ballance captains Yorkshire’s renaissance
Well, well… Yorkshire County Cricket Club’s captaincy roll of honour now officially spans from Lord Hawke to Gary Ballance. Ballance has become Yorkshire County Cricket Club captain across all three formats after being approached by new First XI Coach Andrew Gale. The 27-year-old England batsman described the Yorkshire captaincy as “impossible to turn down” and […]
Cricket Yorkshire’s winter reading shortlist
The countdown to Christmas is well underway in the Cricket Yorkshire office. Caramel-infused mince pies have bitten the dust and thoughts turn to the choice of cricket reading out there to look forward to. Whether autobiographical journey, historical retrospective or light-hearted page-turner, the publishing houses have a raft of titles lined up to tempt you […]
The life of the Yorkshire Academy cricketer with Richard Damms
Richard Damms, Yorkshire County Cricket Club’s Academy & Development Coach, is juggling a phone interview with Cricket Yorkshire while doing the Christmas shopping in Barnsley. It’s an opportunity, as he circumnavigates the mayhem around Black Friday, to reflect on the Academy’s debut in the inaugural season of ECB Yorkshire Premier League North. The Academy is […]
Have cricket clubs recovered from last winter’s flooding?
There is nothing more likely to chill the blood of those involved at cricket clubs than the imminent threat of flooding. The devastation caused by the floods of 2015 is still being felt today. As Storm Angus battered the country this week with severe gales and heavy rain, there was the reminder that this could […]
Meet the man at the ECB tasked with reviving grassroots cricket
Even before my debut question to Matt Dwyer, Director of Participation & Growth at the England & Wales Cricket Board (ECB), there is a surprise. He asks me what I think about the recreational game in Yorkshire. It’s pleasantly unusual. This from the ECB, the governing body who so irk cricket fans and are routinely […]
What’s on the agenda for Andrew Gale as Yorkshire’s first-team coach?
Embed from Getty Images One of the burning questions of the autumn has been resolved as Yorkshire County Cricket Club captain Andrew Gale announced his retirement to become the successor to Jason Gillespie as first-team coach. This bold move by the county sees continuity within the club with Gale taking over, having led Yorkshire to […]