Roast beef, Waifs and Strays at Glasshouses in new beginning

We don’t tend to run match reports on Cricket Yorkshire but this ticked a few boxes and had some classic lines. The captain of Waifs and Strays CC Tom Saunderson let me know the welcome news that their freshly-formed team is calling Glasshouses, outside Pateley Bridge, their home for friendlies.

Tom, Amy Burton and Jack Edwards are all ex-Glasshouses players and there was an inaugural fixture against Harrogate Casuals. Paddy Lambert rustled up some thoughts which are shared below because they made me chuckle.

If you enjoy the ebb and flow of friendlies then this is a good read. Waifs & Strays are looking for future opposition who will play them home or away. Get thee to Glasshouses, you won’t regret it.

On a grey-but-hopeful Sunday, Waifs & Strays CC took to the field – not just for cricket, but for camaraderie, memory, and perhaps to rewaken long-forgotten cricketing joy.

For some of us, this was a return to where it all began: Glasshouses Ground, a place where we first donned whites over 25 years ago. Back then, we were young lads with no idea what lay ahead.

Enthusiasm, imagination, and snacks

Our skipper Tom Saunderson, part dreamer, part magician, assembled a team of seasoned veterans, cricketing irregulars, and several players who’d only recently remembered where their pads were. We’d never played together before. Some hadn’t played in years. But what we lacked in form, we made up for in enthusiasm, imagination, and snacks.

The night before, weather apps were being refreshed like slot machines. Heavy rain was predicted, and talk turned pessimistic. But the cricketing gods smiled upon us – the skies stayed grey, but the ground stayed dry. It was game on.

Having lost the toss (classic), we were sent in to bat first. What followed was a heartening mix of brilliance, bold swings, and beautiful chaos. The skipper led from the front with an innings that can only be described as “inspired” (and possibly career-defining), putting on 81 with elegance and purpose.

The rest of the team followed suit – not with towering scores, but with boundary after boundary. Somehow, every single player hit a four. Statistically rare. Emotionally satisfying.

A team held together by hope and old hamstrings.

There was, however, a moment of drama – DB given LBW by Bobby, who was umpiring at the time. “Plumb,” Bobby claimed with the confidence of a man who might now need to check under his car before driving home.

Still, we pressed on and ended up posting a total of 219 – not bad for a team held together by hope and old hamstrings.

Then came tea. And what a tea. It had the kind of reverence usually reserved for weddings.
George, in a scene straight out of Downton Abbey, carved topside of beef with the precision of a
surgeon.

Sandwiches were devoured. Cakes demolished. At one point someone was spotted hugging a pork pie. The whole affair deserved its own match report.

Harrogate Casuals came out to chase, but early pressure was applied. Bobby opened with probing medium pace, followed by a rotating cast of canny bowlers, guile, and occasional surprise.

But then – the moment. George bowled, their batter connected, and Sam soared into the air like a salmon in spikes, pulling off a phenomenal one-handed catch. It was a thing of athletic beauty.

‘You had to be there!’

The sort of moment you try to explain to people later, only to say, “You had to be there.”

From that point on, the wickets began to tumble. And no one made them tumble more stylishly than Pete Davies, whose spell was as clinical as it was classy: 3 wickets for just 11 runs, turning the screws with the composure of a man who’s been bowling leg-spin in his head all winter.

A spinner with style. Pure poetry.

Eventually, the Casuals were reeling – and then, fittingly, came the final wicket, delivered by none other than Oscar Brooks, local lad and cricketing soul.

It was a full-circle moment. A lot has happened between being 11 years old at Glasshouses and this moment – but some things remain the same: Oscar, clinical with the red ball, wrapping it up just like he did all those years ago.

Special mention must go to Tim Bainbridge, who defied logic, medical science, and common sense by playing just six weeks after ACL surgery. Heroic? Definitely. Wise? Debatable.

Inspirational? Without question. Some say the physio wept.

The buzz is real – and we’re already looking for our next opponents, buoyed by the idea that we’ve quietly assembled a very capable and balanced squad. Even more excitingly, several of our players couldn’t make this one and are lined up to return for the next outing.

The Waifs & Strays are just getting started.
Here’s to more matches, more magic, and more roast beef between innings.

Want to play for or against the Waifs & Strays CC at Glasshouses?

Contact Tom Saunderson on [email protected] – I’m sure they’d welcome cricketers who want to return to the game, those who like roast beef and beautiful village grounds and IPL mercenaries.

You can also read more articles on Friendly Cricket here on the Cricket Yorkshire website.