It is rare to see a female cricket umpire in men’s cricket so when I heard that Jane Pratt and Jo Ibbotson were to umpire the Crowther Cup Final, it was a chance to talk to them both about their journey with officiating. Jane spoke to me for the Cricket Yorkshire Podcast (see interview below […]
Club cricket
Yorkshire Premier League North: York win Battle of Stamford Bridge
Andrew Gallon watches York get the better of hosts Stamford Bridge in the Yorkshire Premier Cricket League North. August is an important month in the club cricket calendar. Lots of knockout cup finals and plenty of league matches affecting championship, promotion and relegation issues. My aim, this late in the season, is to pinpoint a […]
Leeds and Wetherby Cricket League: The Hundred at Scholes
Andrew Gallon enjoys a day out at Scholes to watch Leeds Caribbean, Scarcroft and St Chad’s Broomfield in the Leeds and Wetherby Cricket League’s 100-ball competition. I’m starting to think the Hundred is stoking more debate even than Kerry Packer’s infamous cricket circus did during the late Seventies. Traditionalists couldn’t wait to be offended by […]
Foss Evening Cricket League: Rufforth host Londesborough Park
Andrew Gallon takes in a Foss Evening Cricket League match at Rufforth where Londesborough Park were the visitors. Unusually, I’ve left it very late – the third week of July – in the midweek season to catch a game in the Foss Evening Cricket League. This is partly because of being diverted by other evening […]
How Chance to Shine Street launched a new cricket club in Sheffield
Shahid Ali’s journey into cricket coaching in Sheffield only began because a friend suffered a heart attack and he offered to help with Chance to Shine Street sessions. He might not have known it then, but it was the start of something incredible. Chance to Shine Street is a fast, frenetic format: free cricket sessions […]
Nick Briggs: 2,000 wickets and counting
In my line of work, I see a lot of seriously impressive performances in recreational cricket. One, well two, that spring to mind of late are Ben Morley’s record-breaking 237 not out off just 143 balls for Rawdon in the Aire-Wharfe Cricket League, followed by 199 the next day in the Waddilove Cup Final. A […]
NYSD: How The Hundred made its debut…in 2019
Whenever the professional game comes out with a ‘radical’ new invention, it’s probably been happening for years in recreational cricket. I also tend to run it through the NYSD filter. Has the North Yorkshire & South Durham Cricket League already thought of it? In a progressive cricket league that isn’t afraid to innovate, teams are […]
Bankfoot and Burythorpe illustrate the breadth and bounty in Yorkshire
Andrew Gallon watches cricket at Burythorpe and Bankfoot; two clubs reflecting the diversity across Yorkshire. B is for… Well, in terms of my recent cricketing travels, Burythorpe and Bankfoot. Two very different cricket clubs in hugely contrasting settings. Burythorpe Cricket Club haven’t, I learned, played weekend cricket for a couple of decades. Their village sports […]
How cricket clubs can fund a Flicx cricket pitch
Cricket clubs can fund their Flicx pitch in all kinds of ways from grants to crowdfunding campaigns but sponsorship can be very effective. Shadwell Cricket Club teamed up with Harpo’s Pizza to enable them to buy a 2G Flicx pitch. It’s an obvious route for recreational cricket to tread and for clubs to leverage local […]
Rob Laycock hits two hundreds in a day as Booth retain T20 trophy
On 18 July, the Halifax Cricket League’s Vocation Brewery T20 Finals Day produced a showstopper. How many cricketers in Yorkshire (or across the world for that matter) have hit two hundreds in a single day? Rob Laycock of Booth Cricket Club did just that as his club retained their T20 title. For those that appreciate […]