Grassroots cricket is not dying - but it is changing

The Telegraph’s recent article by Chief Sports reporter Jeremy Wilson with the headline: ‘Grass-roots sports clubs are dying out’ has got me hot under the collar.

I am particularly twitchy as it’s another national newspaper making depressing, sweeping statements about the state of recreational sport.

The sub-heading states: ‘With life habits changing and the effects of Covid still being felt, many community clubs are fearing for their future.’ I don’t believe that either; some may well be fearful, some are getting by and some are prospering. As ever, it’ll depend on who you ask, where you look and what mood they’re in.

Quite a few cricket clubs told me, whispered under their breath, that while Covid was undoubtedly tough in many ways, they emerged from it financially better off. The challenge, of course, was that not all players, umpires or volunteers returned to the game.

I ought to say that The Telegraph article is not just about cricket but looks at grassroots football and rugby too. It is well researched, has multiple interviews and the gloomy outlook certainly has some truth to it. These are volunteers who live and breath the game after all.

Jeremy writes: “It is a story that can be heard across the country not just in men’s cricket but 11-a-side football and 15-a-side rugby as costs soar, work patterns evolve, volunteering declines, and decades of community tradition breaks down.”

It’s a nostalgic look at a debate that I saw coming a mile off.

Incidentally, Jeremy reached out to me, we had a chat by phone and he asked for a quote to understand more about recreational cricket in Yorkshire. That none of it was used in his feature is no problem at all but I can’t help but wonder if it’s because my optimism didn’t fit the narrative.

Glass(houses) half empty?

Yes, there is a humbling truth that recreational cricket in one of its traditional heartlands (here in Yorkshire) has seen the loss of clubs and leagues as many have disappeared over decades.

There are many reasons for this from fewer cricket grounds to changing behaviour to technology, travel and greater competition than cricket once faced. Comparing the post-war prosperity of club cricket to 2025 is unsurprisingly going to yield some massive change.

A problem with an article like this is that it paints the same forlorn picture while conveniently ignoring any of the success stories that are out there. What about new teams, new clubs, new leagues, new formats? What about the incredible volunteers in club cricket who are doing so much for their communities?

However, my biggest gripe is that someone I have the greatest respect for, Ken Hainsworth at Glasshouses Cricket Club, is the poster-boy for The Telegraph article. The stories Jeremy has teased out about Ken’s life are beautiful like the six that ended up in Harrogate, courtesy of a cargo train. Yes, it celebrates him – but in the context of crisis.

His devotion to Glasshouses is phenomenal, something you’ll already know well if you are a regular reader of Cricket Yorkshire or my books.

The challenges facing recreational cricket – cost, volunteers, competition for attention and time commitments – aren’t new but they are nuanced. In this shifting climate, some work out a way to thrive regardless and other clubs don’t. I say that without any judgement whatsoever.

Two of the clubs I have played cricket for have folded – but I am nearly 50 not out. There are lots of examples of village cricket teams doing well too. I can back that up as I’ve done hundreds of interviews over decades. It also depends how you judge the health of a sport, doesn’t it? Purely numerically or in other ways?

Ken is a legend. Not a term I ever really use. It would be tragic if the glorious Glasshouses ground disappears but I’d be surprised to see that happen because teams will travel far to call it ‘home’. Meanwhile, one team clubs with no juniors like Glasshouses are as important as any other but are always going to be on a potential knife-edge.

So, yes, SOME grassroots sports clubs are dying out – but that’s inevitable for a myriad of reasons and not the complete picture.

What Jeremy’s article does do is encourage debate about the state of the game which is no bad thing. Club cricket is getting ever-more bureaucratic and volunteers are being crushed under the weight of admin. It is increasingly expensive to offer cricket at grassroots at a time when we’re trying to encourage more to give it a go.

Quite a bit of funding is naturally skewed towards national strategic objectives and while supporting say women and girls’ cricket or opportunities for disability cricket is absolutely right, it is creating a sense in some communities of being left behind or ignored if they don’t tick certain boxes.

There is also a relentless drive for participation – and why wouldn’t you want more adults and children to discover cricket – but starting something and maintaining it over years needs careful thought. How can volunteers be better supported to deliver all of this cricket?

What the example of Glasshouses – and many before it – shows is that the contraction of club cricket leaves gaps. What you get are bigger clubs with more teams and bigger leagues but areas of Yorkshire and elsewhere without. A re-mapping of recreational cricket has already happened and will continue to shift.

That creates its own pressures. Just organising leagues in a way that is fair, keeps travel distances down where possible and maintains standards is not one for the faint-hearted.

Overall though, I am (frustratingly perhaps) upbeat about the prospects for grassroots cricket in Yorkshire. Maybe that’s because I no longer volunteer. Maybe because I believe in people. Either way, your own experience and points of view are always welcome if you want to leave a comment here.