Recently, I spotted news on The Stray Ferret about the fact that Glasshouses Cricket Club in the Nidderdale Cricket League was in danger of folding. I was horrified. ‘No, this will not do!’ I said out loud to no-one in particular. Our cat looked up a little concerned. You see, Glasshouses Cricket Club is one […]
Cricket Grounds
Why the Leeds & Wetherby Cricket League is no more
The demise of a cricket league is always a moment to pause. There’s usually a lot of history and memories jumbled in with that reluctant decision to call time. Inevitably, there’s also reflection on whether another league gone is a sign of a wider shrinkage of club cricket and what the landscape will look like […]
Bradford Park Avenue: Our hybrid cricket pitches
It was a relentlessly hot day at Bradford Park Avenue cricket ground for Interlink versus Cookridge in the Dales Council Cricket League. For this content collaboration with SIS Pitches, I returned to the city of Bradford to learn how hybrid pitches are helping this famous cricket site. *** Once a neglected former county ground, Park […]
Yorkshire clubs at the forefront of hybrid cricket pitches
Hybrid cricket pitches are an exciting new opportunity for club cricket. In this partnership with SIS Pitches, we’ll look at what they are, the benefits and which clubs in Yorkshire are already using them. What is a hybrid cricket pitch? Hybrid grass is a blend of natural grass with artificial fibres. SIS achieve this by […]
Watching from the boundary rope: Looking back on 2022
Charles Cowling looks back at his summer of exploring club cricket in Yorkshire and picks out some favourite memories from the 2022 season. Every time, the same thrill and the same intensity of thrill. My satnav intones ‘You have reached your destination.’ My eyes rake the hedgerow. And then I glimpse them: white figures on […]
Cricket pitches: Can you water them during a hosepipe ban?
As of August 2022, parts of England are now in drought, according to the Environment Agency – but what does that mean for cricket clubs? Different parts of the country are seeing temporary water restrictions – and that includes from Yorkshire Water whose ban began on 26 August. The focus is on household water consumption […]
SIS hybrid cricket pitch helps Sowerby Bridge Cricket Club
Hybrid cricket pitches are still relatively new to club cricket but they’re catching on fast as word spreads. For this content collaboration with SIS Pitches, I went along to Sowerby Bridge Cricket Club to find out how they are using theirs. It was so good to return to this Halifax League ground, tucked away beyond […]
Easingwold make Hunters Cup Semi-Finals
After a Saturday drive up to County Durham, to watch a game in the North East Premier Cricket League First Division, at the splendid Philadelphia Cricket Club, overlooked by the Penshaw Monument, I fancied something closer to home the following afternoon. Forecasters indicating a continuation of the summer’s indifferent weather – cloudy and breezy albeit […]
Rothwell Cricket Club: Rhubarb and rockets at Royds Lane
Despite a lifelong sweet tooth, I’m not overly keen on rhubarb. In common with gooseberries (unfortunately, the only edible thing that grew in our South Pennine childhood garden), its bitterness makes me shudder. Adding custard helps. Rhubarb – vegetable not fruit – was on my mind as, courtesy of a courtesy car, I trundled, west, […]
How to Prepare a Cricket Ground for the Season
How to prepare a cricket ground for the season is a comprehensive guide by Brian Sandalls, Award-winning Groundsperson at Sussex Cricket and founder of TurfCareBlog. It covers the transition from a cold and wet Winter, hopefully into a warmer pre-season period, with guidance on preparing squares and outfield. Preparing the Square Cleaning up of the […]