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Alison Slack wins hearts, minds and funds at Fishlake

February 14, 2019 by John Fuller 1 Comment

fishlake cricket club

Alison Slack from Fishlake Cricket Club is a bit of a legend. There, I said it. Cricket clubs across the country rely on the superheroes that are their volunteers to get things done and this is the tale of someone who goes the extra mile – then kicks on for a marathon.

She has been involved with Fishlake Cricket Club on Pinfold Lane, North of Doncaster, all her life and has been Secretary for decades, as well as juggling many other hats. Sound familiar? In Alison’s case, the list of achievements is something else.

Sourcing funding for 11 members to complete their Level 2 coaching badges to winning a grant an Awards for All grant of £9,750 that improved kit at the club. From running summer camps to negotiating a settlement with British Coal for an easement on Fishlake’s site of £20k and improved drainage.

New tractor? Sightscreens and electronic scoreboard? Artificial wicket? Alison, fancy a crack at rewriting the club constitution?

Alison Slack Fishlake
I won’t embarrass her any more except to say that she caught the headlines in 2018 after winning the YCB Outstanding Services to Cricket Award in the ‘Heartbeat of the Club’ category and went on to claim the ECB’s national award too.

My opening question is pretty simple: how do you find time to do anything that isn’t to do with Fishlake Cricket Club?

“It’s that passion that gets you through. I work full-time, I’ve got two teenage kids but you find the time for what needs to be done. I get an awful lot of joy from seeing the club succeed, go forward and keeping it vital.”

She is driven by the fact that in this climate where there are less cricket clubs, Fishlake Cricket Club doesn’t just aim to exist but thrives as a safe place for kids to be and, in her words, get away from the Xbox.

You only need to fire up Google Maps to see what an appealing setting it is.

Her parents were very involved when Fishlake started 50 years ago and her wider family has a connection too so it’s become something of a second home. Here’s a random question. I wonder how many families are at the heart of cricket clubs across Yorkshire? Bet it’s loads.

Alison’s take is that her volunteering is “a family business that we don’t get paid for” because there’s that much investment in it and I’m sure many others at clubs feel similar.

We’ve only spoken the once but she’s brimming with ideas and there’s always the next project. Installing wifi is something that is one of her missions; yes, it’s another cost but it’s another selling point for a cricket club, perhaps take card payments at the bar and as I investigated, there’s grants in World Cup year for digitisation that could even mean a club streaming its matches live.

fishlake CC Tony Hutton
Photo: Tony Hutton

A cricket club is 365-days-a-year, let no-one tell you different. Alison works closely with the Yorkshire Cricket Board’s Cricket Development Manager for South Yorkshire, Gareth Davis, to be planning ahead and ready for when the next major funding rounds come along. Fishlake have their eye on upgrading their external net bays in 2020; something that doesn’t magically happen overnight.

On the field, Fishlake’s seniors compete in the South Yorkshire Cricket League on a Saturday and opted to put a side in the Barnsley & District Cricket League on Sundays last year. Add in junior cricket from U9s to U15s plus All Stars and there’s lots going on.

So, what’s the secret? Her mantra is the absolute, cast-iron need to have and sustain junior cricket. It’s not a direction for every club in Yorkshire but without it, you’re always having to recruit from outside to replace ageing and injured players.

“If you don’t have the kids coming through, and people don’t see the kids as the future of the club, you won’t have a club. In 10 years’ time, it will not be here. It doesn’t matter how beautiful it is and how idyllic a setting, if you’ve nobody playing cricket there, what is the point?”

On which notes, it’s an apt a time as any to wrap up this celebration of another volunteer plugged into Yorkshire cricket.

Congratulations to Alison for all of her efforts and make sure you keep an eye out over summer for when the YCB’s OSCAs are open for entries as your local cricket club deserves recognition too.

Fishlake cricket (Brian Sanderson)
Photo: Brian Sanderson

PLEASE SHARE THIS ARTICLE

If this article brought a smile, please share it as it helps spread word and get involved on social media. There’s @FishlakeCricket on Twitter or their Fishlake CC Facebook page.

Regular readers of Cricket Yorkshire will know the drill but I’m @cricketyorks On Twitter or leave a longer comment on the Cricket Yorkshire Facebook page. Give a shoutout to your club champions and thanks for reading.

Filed Under: CLUB CRICKET, EDITOR'S CHOICE Tagged With: Barnsley & District Cricket League, Fishlake Cricket Club, south yorkshire cricket league

Hallam Cricket Club aim for national indoor cricket title

February 7, 2019 by Cricket Yorkshire

Hallam CC Champions

For those of you who refuse to fathom the concept of not playing cricket for six long, tortuous months, there’s always indoor cricket – and for one club in South Yorkshire, they’ve developed quite a knack for it.

Hallam Cricket Club is a success story on many levels with a history that can be traced back to 1804.

Their 1st XI play in the ECB Yorkshire South Premier League with other sides in the South Yorkshire Cricket League, Yorkshire & Derbyshire Cricket League, Sheffield Midweek Alliance and so it goes on.

Cricket available at every standard and age group seems to be the ethos and so it should be no particular surprise that they embrace carpet burns and flickering overhead lights in winter.

They used to compete as Dearne but are now entered as Hallam Cricket Club as the rules of the competition state that a side must be affiliated with a Saturday team from the outdoors season and each player needs to have played a minimum of six outdoor games the previous season. As it was suggested to me, not really the best initiative from the ECB if participation is the name of the game.

Here, Joe Cooper offers an insight into the latest indoor cricket adventure for the perennial challengers from South Yorkshire.

hallam cricket club

Hallam have been playing together as an indoor team for nearly 10 years, every Autumn taking part in the Sheffield League. They primarily do this to stay in shape during the winter, an excuse to socialise on a Monday night and plugging the dark gap between the end of the outdoor season and Christmas.

Over the past six seasons, they’ve won the league on five occasions – no mean feat given the strength of some opposition including both university first teams.

In 2014, they went all the way to Lord’s, winning six knock-out matches across the North of England to qualify. In the finals, they defeated Neyland from Wales in the semi before beating Bridgwater by just 2 runs in the final to become National Champions.

indoor cricket at lords

Since then, there’s been a couple of near-misses with defeats losing in Northern Finals. This year, after an incredibly competitive season, Hallam won the league on head-to-head record having finished joint-top with Asian Lions. Another close battle ensued in the Yorkshire Final at Headingley. With the game being tied, Hallam progressed against Warley CC (from the Halifax Cricket League) by virtue of having lost fewer wickets.

Hallam now progress to face Burscough CC, the Lancashire champions, at Ormskirk on February 17th, with the winners facing the Lincolnshire champions and a place at Lord’s at stake.

To find out more about Hallam Cricket Club, visit https://hallam.play-cricket.com, link up with them on Twitter as @HallamCC or Hallam CC on Facebook.

BY JOE COOPER

Filed Under: CLUB CRICKET Tagged With: indoor cricket, Sheffield Midweek Alliance, south yorkshire cricket league, Yorkshire & Derbyshire Cricket League

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