Trophies and transformation at Stainland

The revival of Stainland Cricket Club was on my mind as we headed into Halifax en route to the Calderdale village. The trip was partly to drop off a brand-new trophy as the club had won the world-famous Cricket Yorkshire Tea of the Year.

Competition sponsor Yorkshire Tea had designed a new trophy and I was delivering it to the 2023 winners, learning more about the club’s resurgence over the past decade and catching some of the second team’s game in the Halifax Cricket League against Low Moor Holy Trinity.

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It was a match symbolising Stainland’s upward trajectory as this was the first time that the home side’s Saturday side were playing in the league on Saturdays since their senior team had folded years ago.

At the time, Stainland risked losing its ground altogether, then owned by Calderdale Council, unless there was cricket being played so a group of six under-elevens formed its only team before new members gradually joined and everything began to look rosier.

A Sunday 1st XI and three women’s teams have followed as well as under-nines through to under-15s.

I had to pause in this reverie as we had arrived at the Halifax Triangle. As ominous as its Bermuda relative but this one sucks in cars and spits them out in places they didn’t want to be.

Actually, the roads leading into Halifax tend to include a couple of roundabouts that look like a child has been scribbling with a crayon.

Not often going through town, we very nearly took the left-hand lane off a roundabout that leads immediately into a car park; a new one for traffic management.

Around five miles South on the B6112 (spelt out as bee-six-thousand, one hundred, eleven by the friendly American running our sat-nav), we turn into the car park at the 1885 restaurant.

A short walk into Stainland Recreation Ground takes you to what I think of as the quintessential Halifax Cricket League experience.

Whitewashed walls, exposed position with striking views of the hills – but not as small as some grounds are in these parts. In fact, it’s a very sizeable playing surface on one side.

Founded in 1884, the cricket club moved to The Memorial Ground in 1922 when it was gifted so that the community had a new place to exercise and what a handsome spot.

There’s quite a slope that runs downhill as I discovered while photographing from the ‘Fields End’ so you get some fun perspectives of the bowler running from the top end.

The pavilion is up a central set of stone steps, flanked by a broad white wall. The overhang of the tiled roof means there’s a terrace to sit outside while the eye is drawn to the Y-shaped supports, painted canary yellow, that prop up this giant bungalow.

Inside, we meet Trish (above) whose stellar teas are the primary reason we’re here and Leah, Stainland’s Secretary.

🍰 TEAS COMPETITION ALERT! Our 2024 competition is open for to clubs, enter here!!

From the outside, Stainland’s ground and pavilion looks similar to many others I’ve been to down the years.

Inside, they’ve worked wonders to create a stylish, modern space that has impact with relatively few square feet. I learn that it was once snugly divided down the middle between cricket and bowling clubs but that has been knocked through.

Visitors now get a twin-sport experience with full panes of glass that run right across the wall offering grassy views wherever you look. The bar has had a makeover with wood panelling that looks the business too.

To refuel, we first opt for a late lunch back at the 1885 Restaurant and as soup experiences go, it was off the charts. Bowled over by carrot and coriander you could say.

The bread was warm and volcanic, infused with a spice mix that stained it with a satisfying mustardy tone. Heads up, if you get a chance to eat there, don’t miss out.

Meanwhile, in this Second Division fixture for Second XIs, Stainland’s captain and opener Marc Proctor hit 47 and Ryan Severn’s 56 saw the home side at 112-2 – but there was a clatter of wickets as they were dismissed for 158.

A moment caught my eye when one wicketkeeper stumped the other after wandering from his crease. The umpires were Tom Jenkins and Kenneth Adair with the former tweeting me that he had a connection with both sides. Nonetheless, that particular decision seemed fairly straightforward.

For Low Moor Holy Trinity, Connor Briscoe bowled 14 overs in his spell of 3-34 while Martin Jenkins claimed identical figures, albeit off a shorter stint with the ball.

On an overcast but relatively becalmed afternoon weather-wise, the chirping was heard in the trees and on the pitch. It was all good-natured as far as I could tell and there was laughter on both sides.

At one point, a visiting fielder went to sit on the bench for a rest. “That’s a fine!” came the immediate observation from his team-mates.

There was also a moment where both Stainland batters turned for a sharp single and slipped over, pausing in the crease to smile ruefully.

The tea break was a chance to chat more with Trish, who has been a central figure at Stainland, beyond her award-winning teas (the Yorkshire Tea trophy was proudly on display at the interval).

There is more good news; symptomatic of where Stainland Cricket Club’s fortunes lie. They have taken on a new lease from Calderdale Council and have more control of their own future. It means they have full responsibility for the clubhouse, cricket grounds and some wider areas of the Recreational Ground.

Behind the scenes, Stainland are working toward a Community Asset Transfer that would give them full control and guardianship for generations to come.

I also had a natter with Johnny Barnett who helps to coach the women’s sides and showed me a cricket bat that could probably tell a few stories in that it was stained that dark mahogany and taped up from a lifetime of matches.

I think he said it was his dad’s bat. Striking how small and thin compared to the bulk of modern cricket bats now.

Johnny told me that Stainland’s women’s softball team got to the county finals last year at Headingley and they’re a great example of building momentum with new teams slotting in to cater for experience and comfort levels.

Having thawed out a bit, it was time to catch a bit of Low Moor Holy Trinity’s batting and they were indebted to Tom Lamb’s knock of 49 at the top of the order for a flickering of hope.

That was extinguished by a quartet of Stainland bowlers who combined economy with wickets. Sachin Arora (3-26), Eoin Doran (5-39) claimed the bulk with Amol Singh (1-21) and a run-out accounting for the others to fall.

It meant a 41-run win for Stainland and 12 points to Low Moor Holy Trinity’s four. You often bump into other like-minded spectators in club cricket and so I had a chat with two guys on the boundary:

“We’re from the Institute!” I think they said, by way of introduction.

Did Stainland have an Institute? Maybe there’s a cricket one in Halifax? I scrabbled to think while something was tugging at the grey cells. They meant Sowerby Bridge Church Institute.

It turns out the pair had missed Thornton first team’s only defeat since 2022 but a trip to Stainland was surely a satisfying substitute.

Scorecard: https://stainland.play-cricket.com/website/results/6307165

MATCH PHOTOS