Hollywood sequels and eclipsed by a comeback

A round-up of club cricket news in Yorkshire that caught my eye from Hollywood sequels to a comeback eclipsing a rare cosmic show.

Woodlands vs New Farnley IV

Quiz question… how many times have Woodlands 1st XI played New Farnley 1st XI this season?

I make it three so far which is bordering on Fast and Furious franchise territory. Can anyone else picture Vin Diesel batting stoically for 0 off 108 balls to secure a draw? Just me then.

The record reads New Farnley 2 – Woodlands 1 across the Bradford Premier League and ECB National Club Championship.

Woodlands defeated New Farnley by five wickets at their Albert Terrace HQ – a source of confidence as the two squads get ready for the Bentley Drains Priestley Cup Final this Sunday at Lightcliffe.

New Farnley only lost once across 2025 so their impeccable standards are slipping with three reverses in 2026 so far.

In their defence, New Farnley tend to play an extra 984 matches due to an irresistible winning formula across formats and competitions.

After the Priestley Cup (Sunday 16 August), there’s the Heavy Woollen Cup Final at New Farnley between the two on Monday 31 August – so a pentalogy beckons for five match-ups.

It’ll be no hardship to either club that they seem to be bumping into each other so often. It means you’re in the mix for silverware. For the neutral? Top-notch club cricket with stacks of talented players on show.

I recommend the Bradford League’s website for stats and previews. Photo above by the one-and-only Ray Spencer.

Eclipsed?

Where were you for the solar eclipse? Did you have the glasses or use a colander to beam the light into a funky pattern?

We opted for pinhole projection before sitting out on the balcony and savouring a sunset that gradually melted and splashed shades of pink across the skies.

It offered an opportunity for cricket clubs to bring everyone together and at Crayke, there was an impressive turnout to view stars on and off the field.

Judging by this Crayke Sports Club and Village Community update on Facebook, the Pilmoor Evening League game against Easingwold successfully combined burgers, beers and a rare celestial event.

The real headline-grabber? That Crayke Cricket Club, who folded in 2009, are back and playing in Yorkshire Premier League North. Terrific to see.

The magic of stats capped

Congratulations to Mark Atkins-Sloan who has reached 602 wickets and counting to become the leading bowler in the history of Haxey Cricket Club.

It got me thinking about landmarks in club cricket and how we acknowledge them.

I spotted that Osbaldwick had handed out heritage cap number 260 (well done Mike Jobling) while Illingworth St Mary’s not so much doff a cap as positively luxuriate in their stats.

How does your cricket club do this with landmarks? Anything similar for scorers, umpires, tea-makers or committee members?

970 Charity Challenge at Brid

Asish Kundi of Bridlington Cricket Club is going to face 970 deliveries on Friday 14 August. This Herculean effort is to raise money for two charitable causes.

YouWeCan supports those with cancer while funds will also go to the cricket club to support their development work. I’ve seen record nets marathons before but it’s usually a rolling event between a group of players rather than one epic, individual feat.

You can check out the 970 Ball Batting Challenge on GoFundMe and it reinforced – yet again – how cricket clubs are plugged into their communities and the impact they have.

An example is Mark Sugden of Thackley CC who is (once again) walking from Yorkshire County Cricket Club to Scarborough Cricket Club for Yorkshire disability cricket.

I covered his first Leeds to seagulls endeavour here on the website and best of luck to him. You can find out more about walk for Yorkshire Disability County Cricket Club. Mark’s son Curtis recently struck 100 off 84 balls for his county (Yorkshire D40) against Sussex.

Best of luck to Ash and Mark as well as all of the cricket clubs who support causes close to them across the year.

What did you think of this report?

This is something of a departure from the usual travelogues, opinion here on Cricket Yorkshire? What did you think? Leave a comment if you can – as I decipher whether this kind of round-up has interest for a series.

Thanks for reading… John.