In something of a repeat of last year, the wet weather has played havoc with pitch makers who face the usual race to be ready for April fixtures. In 2023, my article on Yorkshire’s leagues postponing fixtures caught the attention, on account of the fact that we’d had record-breaking rain and many clubs had been […]
Cricket leagues
Straight Drive to Survive: Vinesh’s Story
Vinesh Patel is this year’s Cricket Innovator Award winner at the YCB’s Cricket Collective Awards. They celebrate the efforts of volunteers across the grassroots game and are organised by the Yorkshire Cricket Board, in partnership with Yorkshire County Cricket Club and the Yorkshire Cricket Foundation. Vinesh or ‘Vinnie’ as he’s known, has done something pretty […]
Woodlands out of National Club KO but doubling down on workload
Bill Marshall interviews Woodlands’ opening bat Sam Frankland about the volume of cricket that success brings and how the season is going. Remember the days when overs cricket had just replaced timed cricket? Or when a top edge into the face meant a visit to the local A&E rather than a replacement helmet? Or when […]
Many cricket leagues postpone their season start in Yorkshire
Nothing gets us quite so fired up as the weather – especially when it affects the cricket season. The North Yorkshire & South Durham Cricket League’s decision to postpone the start of their cricket season by a week was a big call. Unusual but not quite unprecedented – and sensible given March was the wettest […]
Aire-Wharfe abstentions in spotlight as Pool Cricket Club protest
When is a majority not a majority? That was the question that exercised minds after the Aire-Wharfe League’s special general meeting last Wednesday at Otley RUFC. Pool, unhappy at their second team being relegated when they finished ninth in a 12-team division, forced the meeting at the second attempt by garnering the support of the […]
Have Your Say: Cricket Yorkshire Reader Survey
Have you enjoyed reading Cricket Yorkshire? It’s been a strong year for the website in terms of numbers of visitors as well as the widest-ever coverage of clubs and leagues since we started in 2011. There have also been more competitions, offers and deals for readers to take advantage of. But we can always improve. […]
Should First XIs be allowed to play Second XIs in club cricket?
Bill Marshall explores the conundrum of first XIs and second XIs Watching Hoylandswaine’s second team win the Solly Sports Crowther Cup in rapid time on Sunday at Sandal, defeating Farsley seconds by seven wickets, reminded me of a long-forgotten conversation I had with Matthew Anderson. He was then captain of East Bierley’s second team, and […]
Aire-Wharfe Cricket: Beckwithshaw vs Bolton Villas
Visiting Beckwithshaw Cricket Club has been on my radar for years. Those of us who hop around cricket club grounds tend to rub shoulders and recommendations get passed on. On a scorching Saturday, it was time to put that right with their Second Eleven at home to Bolton Villas in Inter-Division 5-6 of the Aire-Wharfe […]
Craven Cricket League: Time to shake things up?
Bill Marshall talks to Craven League secretary, Peter Foster, about the challenge of losing clubs and the committee’s plans to give the league a new lease of life. Just how does a grassroots cricket league stop the haemorrhaging of clubs from within their membership? Of course, some leagues react too late to the bleeding, while […]
Yorkshire Premier Leagues Roundup: Who will be crowned Champion Club?
We now know the four champions of Premier League cricket leagues in Yorkshire after a final weekend of drama. Bradford Premier League Woodlands 356 ptsTownville 345 ptsNew Farnley 307 pts Woodlands claimed the Bradford Premier League with 112 from Brad Schmulian in their away win at New Farnley. The New Zealander had meant to fly […]