Spoilt for choice on a Sunday that promised not to be chilly or wet for a change, I headed for women’s Premier League cricket in Shipley. Deposited on Platform 1 of the rail station, the lights opposite McDonalds were out so traffic had backed up into other postcodes. An electronic sign advertised ‘Clean Air Day’ […]
Cricket Grounds
The game that wasn’t supposed to happen at Ripley
There’s something uplifting about a cricketer’s refusal to admit defeat to the weather. All the forecasts leading into Saturday’s Theakston Nidderdale League Division Six fixture between Ripley and the higher-placed Thornton Le Moor promised rain, rain, and basically more rain. The sort of forecast that encourages sensible people to stay at home, or since it […]
Bilton defeat Pool to lead Aire-Wharfe Premier Division
There are few feelings quite as reassuring as arriving at a cricket ground convinced you know exactly what you are going to do. There are fewer quite as humbling as discovering, within about thirty seconds, that you don’t. Armed with my trusty camera, monopod, seat, and a level of confidence that only comes from checking […]
Designed for altitude: Queensbury’s custom-made ACS cricket covers
Not all mobile cricket covers are the same. In this feature for ACS Cricket Equipment, we’ll explore the custom design made by Richard Shaw’s team at their Calverley HQ for Queensbury Cricket Club. ACS provides cricket clubs with covers, sightscreens, batting cages, flatsheets and accessories like their pitch water collector. As they have served the […]
Women’s Championship North: Wykeham shade it at Ouseburn
Over the years, I’ve been to Ouseburn many times to cover the men’s team playing in the league or one of the cups. It’s a lovely, compact ground on the edge of Great Ouseburn with plenty of that ‘away from the hustle and bustle of modern life’ vibe. A calmness – if you like. A […]
Harrogate Women’s 1st XI claim win against Bradford Park Avenue
Mark Doherty travels to the Kirbys Solicitors County Ground in Harrogate for the visit of Bradford Park Avenue Ladies in this West Yorkshire Women & Girls Cricket League Premier Division fixture. Despite some dark clouds skirting around the edge of Harrogate, the County Ground was enjoying a longer burst of sunshine and the warmth it […]
Curry and chilling out among the penguins at Stainland
A return to Stainland Cricket Club recently, two years after my last visit, gave a chance to meet everyone again, marvel at the teas and be interviewed by BBC Radio 4. On a cold, grizzling day of rain, we had Halifax League 2nd XI cricket (credit to players and umpires), with appropriate fuss about the […]
Old Leos Women’s 1st XI claim points at The Crag
Mark Doherty travels to Old Leos Cricket Club for the visit of Adwalton in this Division One match of the West Yorkshire Women & Girls Cricket League. Oh boy, I felt tired! Saturday had seen my usual coverage of cricket pivot to something different for me, a work trip to Manchester and what would turn […]
Willow and whispers as Killinghall fell Knaresborough Forest
There are places in Yorkshire where the past feels closer than it should and the land seems to remember more than it lets on. Knaresborough is one of those places. Long before scoreboards flickered and players checked their phones between overs, the forest of Knaresborough was, in the 12th century, a medieval royal hunting forest situated […]
Beckwithshaw start YPLN adventure with Colton victory
So, here we are at the beginning of another summer of cricket. Over the winter months, there have been indoor leagues and then as spring arrived, nets and friendlies. I’ve visited a few clubs, attended a few of those winter tournaments, but now it is time to dust off the silly hat and head out […]