Ken Welsh Cup: Friday night T20 from Yarm

The North Yorkshire & South Durham Premier League appears to have more cup competitions than you can shake a stick at. Spectators are spoilt for choice!

Always keen to try something new, in this case the Ken Welsh Cup, I had a drive up the A19 to Teesside, an old stomping ground of mine, for a Friday evening, second-round – of 16 – tie between Division Four rivals Yarm and Skelton Castle. Each had been given a first-round bye.

The Ken Welsh Cup, a pink-ball-and-pyjamas, T20 competition, is contested by clubs in the NYSD’s third and fourth divisions.

Part of the attraction of landing within a few hundred yards of the south bank of the Tees was watching two First XIs. Other than Yarm and Skelton Castle, the only other First XIs in this round were Blackhall and Northallerton. 

In the most magical mellow light, I arrived at a sun-blessed Yarm Recreation Ground – a multi-sport site, off Leven Road, somewhat more impressive than its name perhaps implies – to find the home team stripped, limbering up and generally ready for action. 

The mighty Tees may grab the attention, but the Leven borders Yarm to the east. Yarm, an oddity of a name, derives from Old English and means ‘at the place of the fish pools’.

More than 30 years ago, shortly after starting a new job in Middlesbrough, house-hunting with my then-partner took me to Yarm. We’d spotted what looked like a bargain property.

Only when we inspected did we discover it had an electricity pylon in the back garden. I felt like Jack stumbling upon the beanstalk! Naturally, we didn’t purchase.

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Back to the present: Yarm were wearing a new, super-smart claret and gold kit, and were only too obviously keen to get stuck into their opponents. Skelton Castle Cricket Club hail from Skelton-in-Cleveland, a village southwest of Saltburn.

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In 2023, Yarm reached the Ken Welsh Cup semi-finals, in which they were beaten by Wolviston’s Second XI. In the final, Wolviston lost to Normanby Hall’s Second XI.

The Skelton Castle players, clad in maroon and black, seemed happy with the glorious conditions – likely, because their previous evening’s fixture, at Marske, in the NYSD’s Arthur Sanders Cup (see what I mean?), had been cancelled owing to poor weather.

Founded in 1814, Clubmark-accredited Yarm Cricket Club run three senior and six junior teams, in addition to offering All Stars and Dynamos sessions. Indeed, on the evening of my visit, a well-attended junior nets session was taking place.

Yarm Recreation Ground is in the care of a charitable trust. Located in an affluent part of a town famously bisected by a 43-arch, half-mile railway viaduct (built between 1849 and 1851), and laid out within a crazy meander of the Tees, it caters for cricket, squash and tennis. The synthetic tennis courts were busy. Wimbledon must be coming up!

Parking may be limited, but the flat cricket pitch is appreciably large. All but the west side of the ground is edged with mature trees. Given the amount of spare turf at the north (Leven Road) end, it could be even bigger. 

Tellingly, the teams got through 40 overs with only two sixes being clobbered. Take a bow Alex Dunne (Yarm) and Ewan Found (Skelton Castle).

Despite the on-site presence of a bar and social club (busy, with Friday night revellers), Yarm have their own pavilion, dazzling white in the brilliant sun, positioned in the southeast corner.

Of traditional design, it boasts a central clock gable, above a clubroom, with dressing rooms either side. Seats – for sunseekers – are provided on its paddock. 

Plaques in the clubroom commemorate services to Yarm Cricket Club given by Syd Gill, a former player, club secretary, groundsman and NYSD umpire, and Bill and Marion Precious.

Syd is a NYSD Hall of Fame inductee. A larger plaque salutes those responsible for making possible the pavilion’s recent (I’d guess) refurbishment.

Two fairly young XIs might have contested this tie, but I was hugely impressed by the athleticism and cricketing ability on display. 

Yarm won the toss and elected to bat. Thanks chiefly to opener Harry Carter (48 off 51 balls) and No 3 (and captain) Tom Crack (30 off 30, including four fours), the Claret & Golds moved along at a brisk rate, posting a challenging 156-5 from their allotted 20 overs.

The assured Carter, with No 1 on his back, was included amongst the victims of Angus Twiby (3-20 from three overs).

As things turned out, Yarm had made hay whilst the sun shone. During the between-innings interval, what seemed to be a sea fret descended upon the ground. The sun, when visible, became a white disc. And the temperature plummeted.

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Pre-match, whilst parking, I bumped into one of the umpires, who had driven over from Darlington. The murk hadn’t cleared until he was well on his way to Yarm. “It’s Friday night,” he said, “so we’ll have to get on with it. Then, we can all have a beer.”

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Having survived two sharp catching opportunities in the first over, Skelton Castle, at halfway, were neck-and-neck: 66-2 against Yarm’s 66-1.

Unfortunately, the visitors then lost a little momentum, which meant during the closing overs they had too much ground to make up. They finished on 134-6, giving Yarm victory by 22 runs.

During the gloomy second half of Skelton Castle’s innings, the pavilion light, and those on the squash club, shone extremely brightly.

Took me back to watching Test cricket, as a kid, in the 1970s, when Jim Laker and Richie Benaud et al were prone to commenting on the brightness of pavilion lights, to illustrate to the viewer just how dark it was getting. 

Opener Ben Malbon-Green reigned supreme with a superbly judged 52 not out off 51, including four fours.

Lower down the order, Peter Hobson chipped in with 19 off 19 and wicketkeeper Ewan Found 16 off 20. Hoshang Noria (4-32 from four) and Jude Crack (2-22 from four) were the pick of the Yarm bowlers. Clearly, winning meant a lot.

In the next round, the quarter-finals, of the Ken Welsh Cup – scheduled for Monday, June 3rd (6pm) – Yarm are at home to Marske Seconds. Yorkshire is represented in two of the other ties: Wolviston Second XI versus Thornaby Second XI and Stokesley Second XI versus Normanby Hall Second XI (the holders).

For those of you wondering, the North Yorkshire & South Durham Premier League’s other named cup competitions include the Kerridge, the MacMillan, the Haith, the Readman, the Brunton, the Robinson and the Hornby. Phew!