If I had a pound for everyone who assumed that winter means a quiet few months for all of us involved in the grassroots game, I could buy a lifetime supply of cricket teas. The truth is, as I tussle with a cricket book chapter, those in club cricket are planning for the 2019 season […]
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Driffield Town Cricket Club nets deliver for the community
Driffield Town Cricket Club’s new ’tp365’ Non Turf Cricket Practice Facility, installed by total-play, has been a slow burner; a patient journey but it is now pride of place. On my travels around Yorkshire, I see superb facilities spring up year-on-year but the dedication and collaboration to make it happen can often take years. Discussions […]
Disability Cricket: Super 1s has arrived in Yorkshire!
Super 1s is a recent cricketing success story that has now come to Yorkshire. It offers young people with disabilities, aged 12-25, the opportunity to regularly play cricket and had its official launch at the end of May in London, backed by none other than Joe Root and Jonny Bairstow. Through the creation of community cricket […]
Glyn Pearson on cricket umpire challenges for the recreational game
The ECB’s ACO Education Officer Glyn Pearson was my guest for the Cricket Yorkshire Podcast recently and on form as we debated the challenges facing umpire recruitment in the recreational game. Glyn umpires in the Bradford League and is very well known in umpiring circles for his training and expertise – so who better to […]
Restrictions on overseas cricketers are damaging club cricket
The news that Frinton-on-Sea Cricket Club lost their appeal to a Tribunal of the Two Counties Cricket Championship (TCCC) over the eligibility of their Australian player, Blake Reed, could have far-reaching implications for club cricket. If you’re unfamiliar with the saga to date, it revolves around an Essex club defending the status of one of […]
Bradford Park Avenue cricket nets signal transformation
Crunching along the gravel path at Bradford Park Avenue’s cricket ground off Canterbury Avenue took me to the newly installed eight-lane, non-turf cricket nets. Walls of chipboard and construction detritus highlight that this ambitious £5.5m project to transform a much-loved former county cricket venue into a top-class sports facility are ongoing but that in itself […]
How to upgrade your cricket bat
Picture the scene. It’s Saturday morning and the prospect of cricket puts a spring in your step. Your fixture at Upper Cragdale 3rd XI is looming and you gingerly prize open your dormant kitbag that reveals muddy, stale whites, several entirely new forms of bacteria and other treasures. Sound familiar? Ok, so some of you […]
Climate Cover helps Get The Game On
As the frost crackles the leaves and we all cross our fingers against winter floods, spare a thought for the groundsmen around the country safeguarding sporting facilities from the elements. Based in Northampton, the company total-play has been working with those professional and amateur groundsmen, designing and installing top-quality sports surfaces, including cricket covers, since […]
Dickie Bird: My Life in Cricket
Harold “Dickie” Bird, he of the iconic white umpire’s cap and mischievous humour wrapped in a broad Barnsley accent, has had many honours bestowed over the years from MBE and OBE to Yorkshire County Cricket Club President. The latest focus on the charismatic octagenarian sees an exhibition entitled ‘Dickie Bird: My Life in Cricket’ in […]
Three cracking cup finals in a day at Scotton
While not my final destination, the 9.54 Sunday service through to Knaresborough was swelled with Yorkshire fans off to watch their heroes against Surrey in the cup semi at Headingley. As we all gathered waiting for permission to board, a man caught my eye for his commendable T-shirt with YORKSHIRE plastered across his belly in […]









