Do you like the idea of owning your own cricket ground? Well, now you can, if you’re quick.
The former home of Haworth West End Cricket Club, high above the village of Haworth in West Yorkshire is for sale – by informal tender.
The deadline for sealed bids to Dacre, Son & Hartley Keighley is Friday 12 August 2022 at noon with a guide price of £15,000, if you’re tempted to have a rummage down the back of your sofa.
You get a former cricket field and pavilion that amounts to 1.65 acres, a couple of miles from Top Withens, the ruined farmhouse said to be the inspiration for Wuthering Heights.
If the literary connection doesn’t grab you then its cricketing appeal certainly will.
In a region that boasts plenty of breathtaking cricket grounds, this particular site on Penistone Hill is an absolute showstopper.
It is a shame it’s come to this but its demise began, as Director Ian Bradbury (who played for Haworth West End) told me, with a struggle for players.
The cricket club, over 1,000ft above sea level, struggled to retain its juniors and two teams became one team until it folded.
I have walked up there with Mrs Fuller but retired just too early to play at Haworth West End; the ground was used by my club, Bingley Congs, for a season and latterly Keighley 3rd XI and Oakworth 3rd XI.
I understand the ground was offered to local clubs and the Craven League to take over but without someone to maintain the ground and the responsibilities that come with it, there wasn’t interest.
It has been used by a fell running club as a base and none other than the Brownlee brothers, Jonny and Alistair, used to run the Auld Lang Syne Fell Race up there for years.
There is interest in this piece of cricket heritage at Penistone Country Park before the Friday midday deadline, with plenty of closed bids already lodged with the estate agent.
Proceeds from the sale are expected to go to charitable causes and local community groups – so while we may lose a cricket ground, some good will come of it.
Indeed, its purpose is earmarked to stay as one that’s for the local community.
I’ll be honest, I have thought of little else since I saw the news that it was for sale. I don’t have £15k sitting around (it’ll surely go for more) but saving a cricket ground has its appeal.
I’d certainly be tempted to chip in if someone needs backers for an audacious last-minute bid.
If buying a cricket ground above Haworth just shot up your to-do list then get in your bid before Friday.
Any questions, contact Ian Bradbury at the Keighley office of Dacre Son & Hartley on 01535 611511.
Full details can be found here: https://www.dacres.co.uk/properties/15810718/sales
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Hi, Is this cricket club at Haworth still available?
Hi Raj, this cricket ground was sold last year – it’s no longer being used for cricket but is still a club for the local community (pony trekking I seem to recall).