Jonny Tattersall first played cricket at the age of seven for Knaresborough under-9s.

Almost 20 years on, he is preparing to walk out today at Headingley alongside the likes of England captain Joe Root and internationals Dom Bess, David Willey and Duanne Olivier to play for Yorkshire on the opening day of the season.

Most media attention at today’s match will focus on Joe Root coming up against his younger brother Billy, who plays for Glamorgan.

But cricket fans in the Harrogate district will be keenly following the performance of Tattersall and fast bowler Ben Coad, who also emerged from the Harrogate district cricket scene.

As wicket-keeper, Tattersall is never far from the action. He’s also a useful middle order batsman with a handy knack of counter-attacking effectively when the team is struggling.

Unlike many cricketers that enjoyed the best facilities at fee-paying schools, he went to a state school in Knaresborough and has reinvented himself from being a leg spinner and opening batsman to a wicket-keeping middle order batsman to keep his career alive. Here he tells his story.

Have you lived in the Harrogate district all your life?

Yes. I was born in Harrogate and lived in Knaresborough nearly all my whole life. I moved in with my girlfriend to Harrogate in 2018 but we are now in the process of moving back to Knaresborough. My parents now live in Great Ouseburn and my brother is in London. My parents watch as much as they can.

Which schools did you go to?

Aspin Park Academy and then King James. We lived on the Aspin estate, which was literally two minutes from the primary school. I had a fairly normal upbringing and quiet estate life, playing a lot of football and cricket.

How did you get into cricket?

Dad played at Knaresborough and my brother was into it as well. He went on to play for Yorkshire seconds. My brother is four years older than me and when he was playing under-11 cricket I was chomping at the bit to play so we set up an under-9s team and I ended up playing in it at the age of seven. Dad was the coach at the majority of teams I played in.

How did you get to play for Yorkshire?

I played through the age teams at Knaresborough juniors and first played for Yorkshire under-11s when I was eight. I went all through the age groups predominantly as a leg spinner. I played for the academy at Yorkshire and went on the under-17s programme with England and moulded myself into an opening batman.

Tell us about your England experience

I played for England at the under-19s World Cup in the United Arab Emirates in 2014. We lost to Pakistan in the semi-finals and beat Australia in the third place play-off.

Is cricket taken seriously in local schools?

We played a lot of sport but cricket was low down the pecking order. The games we played were few and far between. The standard isn’t that good compared with private schools. It helps your development when you have that exposure to full-time practice facilities at an early age. It wasn’t the route I took but there’s no reason why you can’t succeed coming from a state comprehensive.

In action behind the stumps for Yorkshire. Pic credit SWPix

When did you start keeping wicket?

I got released by Yorkshire in 2015 when they had two seasons of winning the county championship. I did wicket-keeping to keep myself in the eye of the coaches — with the batting line-up we had in the championship-winning winning side it was difficult to get into the first team. It paid off because I came back. It just so happened Andrew Hodd was going to be retiring and I thought there was a chance to get in the team as a wicket-keeper. My brother and dad are both wicket-keepers so I grew up watching them and I kept in a few games in club matches.

How strange was it last season playing to empty crowds?

Possibly not as strange in championship cricket because you don’t get many people anyway but it was really strange when we played the Twenty20 matches. I remember in the first game we batted first and normally you have that murmur and anticipation that goes around and it was dead silent.

Has it been difficult training during lockdown?

We’ve one of the more fortunate counties because we’ve got in a full pre-season of gym work and cricket. The only downside is we’ve been in fairly small groups because we have to train socially distant and we’ve had to have lateral flow tests twice a week since mid- March.

What are your personal and team ambitions for the season?

They are the same – winning as many games as possible for Yorkshire. We’ve got a really good squad and the team is coming together nicely. If we can keep people fit and avoid covid I’m fully expecting us to put in some strong performances and to be sniffing silverware, especially in the championship.

How demanding is keeping wicket?

It’s just different. It’s more mentally draining because you are always in the game. But I felt more physically tired last year when I didn’t keep wicket and was running around the field and diving after balls.

England are not short of wicket-keepers but do you fancy your chances of getting in on the reckoning?

I don’t try to look too far ahead but you’ve always got ambitions of playing for England when you’re a young cricketer. If I can just keep putting in the performances for Yorkshire, you never know.

What are your hobbies away from the game?

I play a lot of golf. I play at Knaresborough golf club. I play off a 6 or 7 handicap but I never seem to play to that! I take an interest in most sports.

Where are your favourite places in Harrogate and Knaresborough?

Knaresborough is a lovely place to go for a walk down by the castle and the waterside and then get an ice cream on a sunny day.

Read more:

• Phoebe Graham to promote women and girls at Harrogate Cricket Club
• Bilton Cricket Club gets backing for new pavilion

Gyms and leisure centres in the Harrogate district are preparing to reopen next week after more than three months of lockdown.

But although thousands of people in the district are desperate to start lunging, pressing and punching their way back to fitness, gym life won’t be completely back to normal.

Ongoing social distancing restrictions mean many group training classes still won’t be available.

Ryan Tansley, owner of CrossFit Harrogate, at Hornbeam Park, said he was looking forward to reopening but because it couldn’t offer structured classes, it would operate more along the lines of an open gym.

CrossFit Harrogate has offered discounted rates to members during lockdown, and provided Zoom classes and various challenges, such as performing the most burpees.

Mr Tansley said:

“People have had to adapt but it will be so good to get back to seeing people.”

No sparring allowed

Contact won’t be allowed at Harrogate boxing and martial arts gym H Hour Boxing and Kao Loi, when it reopens next week, which means no sparring and pad work.

Owner Rob Smith said it will operate predominantly as a fitness gym rather than a combat gym until the situation changes. He said:

“We will do boxing training for fitness but our bread and butter is training people to compete and that’s on hold.”

The gym has produced many champion fighters, including Thai boxer Rachael Jones MacKenzie, but the impact of lockdown has left its future uncertain.

Rob Smith is the head coach at H Hour Amateur Boxing Gym.

Mr Smith plans to skydive to raise £5,000 to keep the gym afloat three days before his 50th birthday next month.

Read more:

• Harrogate boxing and martial arts gym fighting for survival
• Bodybuilding barber David Steca to stage Mr Harrogate

Ripon refurbishment

As owner of Intrim in Ripon for the last 18 years, Phill McKay has been flying the flag for independent gyms at a time when big chains have been taking over. He said:

“We are as excited as our members are. We have air-con going in this week and a gym makeover so we will be ready to receive old and new members. We have also rebranded and have new equipment planned.”

Phill McKay of Intrim

Absolute Fitness in Boroughbridge, run by former World’s Strongest Man competitor Darren Sadler, who now promotes the biggest strongman events on the planet, is also reopening on Monday.

Functional fitness in Knaresborough

“We are so excited to get back to some form of normality and finally have our fitness community back at Black Wolf HQ.

“They are what has kept us alive during this topsy-turvy time, and we can’t wait to welcome them back and celebrate what is hopefully set to be a fantastic summer.”

“We are pretty much going back to the same restrictions as before the January lockdown with the addition of twice weekly testing for all staff.

“We have been on restricted numbers since we were allowed to reopen last year so for use things are similar to before Christmas.”

Pure Gym in Harrogate will open on Monday. The gym will be open 24 hours but studio classes will not begin until May 17.

Leisure facilities managed by Harrogate Borough Council are also due to resume on Monday. But again, things aren’t totally back to normal. A council spokesman said:

“The pool at The Hydro in Harrogate and Nidderdale Pool will reopen on April 12 for lane swimming and family sessions.

“Brimhams fitness centres at The Hydro, Nidderdale Leisure Centre and Ripon Leisure Centre will also reopen to members only.

“Turkish Baths Harrogate will reopen from this date for treatments only.”

One of Europe’s biggest indoor children’s play centres, with the capacity to host 2,000 visitors a day, is set to open at Stockeld Park next year.

Called the Playhive, it will cost £3.5 million to build and is expected to create about 50 jobs.

The Playhive, which will be set in the grounds of the 2,000-acre Stockeld Park estate, near Wetherby, will comprise of themed adventure zones set in a doughnut-shaped building with a 33-foot tower in the centre.

The outer ring of the Playhive will be the equivalent of travelling the length of a football pitch.

Children will be able to enjoy the wooden play pieces themed around four zones: space, aeronautical, subaquatic and jungle.

Peter and Susie Grant, who own and run Stockeld Park, took out a loan to build and design the Playhive.

Mr Grant said:

“The Playhive is a passion project. We didn’t want the usual soft play scene, but one that truly inspires imaginations.

“There will be some really spectacular features and we’ll be announcing these on the run up to the opening of the Play Hive.

“It has capacity for 2,000 visitors per day and is expected to bring significant additional revenues to the area, as well as supporting local suppliers.

Read more:

• Stockeld Park opens Christmas tree site in heart of Harrogate
• Ripon’s Quarry Moor play area to be upgraded for summer

‘We need to come back fighting’

Mr Grant said covid had hugely reduced Stockeld’s capacity and the natural reaction would have been to reduce spending but lockdown reconfirmed their commitment to the project. He said:

“Now more than ever, our tourism sector needs to come back fighting, and after the isolation and anxieties of the last year, families desperately need to get away and have some fun. We need this good news story.”

The Grants started the tourism business at Stockeld Park in 2006 to attract visitors at Christmas.

The initiative grew into the Christmas Adventure and since then the Easter Adventure, Spring Adventure, Summer Adventure, Halloween Adventure and February Fun have been added to its offering.

In 2019, over 200,000 guests visited Stockeld Park.

Famous Harrogate fish and chip restaurant Graveley’s is to re-open under its new name Catch in a fortnight.

The business was sold two years ago to Harrogate-based Catch Seafood, which owns four other fish and chip restaurants in Yorkshire.

The site on Cheltenham Parade has undergone a £250,000 transformation during lockdown, and will open as a takeaway on April 19.

The restaurant is due to open in May in line with government restrictions.

A press release by Catch today said the kitchen had been upgraded and the menu would be broadened.

It added:

“A new bar area has also been incorporated into the refitted restaurant, which will serve a range of draught products, delicious cocktails and fantastic wines.

“Exclusive to Catch Harrogate is a champagne and oyster bar for diners to enjoy.”

Read more:

• Graveley’s fish and chip restaurant to be renamed Catch Harrogate
• Ripon’s Grantley Hall restaurant wins first Michelin star

Sarah Stuttle, managing director at Catch, said:

“Graveley’s has been a part of the local community for a long time, and we’re excited to welcome these loyal customers to Catch, as well as some new faces, when we reopen.”

The Catch group also has fish and chip restaurants in Holmfirth, West Vale, Headingley and Street Lane.

The company, which describes itself as ‘a casual seafood dining experience built on family values’, is owned by three Yorkshire-based entrepreneurs — Patrick Allen, Andrew Bartle and Philip Rushfirth.

The 10-day International Gilbert & Sullivan Festival is returning to Harrogate this year, in a major boost for the town’s economy.

Harrogate hosted the event annually from 2014 until last year, when it was cancelled due to covid.

The festival, which will take place from August 8 to August 18 at the Royal Hall, attracts thousands of visitors from around the world.

Covid restrictions require the productions to be adapted to ensure the safety of performers, audience and backstage staff.

Janet Smith, festival director, said:

“After the horrible year we have all endured, we cannot wait to get back into the theatre.

“Our seating plan in the theatre is socially distanced, and only 40% of the usual Royal Hall seats are available, so we expect tickets to sell out quickly.

“We will have to wait to hear the government announcements about easing restrictions on June 21, when hopefully we will be allowed to open up more seats.”

The National Gilbert and Sullivan Opera Company will open proceedings with HMS Pinafore.

Other highlights include Simon Butteriss directing and starring in The Mikado. The opera company will also bring along a brand-new production of Patience.

Read more:

• Harrogate bed and breakfast diversifies to survive coronavirus
• Jimmy Carr first confirmed show at Royal Hall

Charles Court Opera will present its production of Iolanthe and Charles Court Opera also give two performances of its new G&S Express.

Forbear! Theatre, directed by Rachel Middle, will bring two productions of The Pirates of Penzance and The Yeomen of the Guard.

For something completely different, on August 6, Simon Butteriss will premiere The Diary of a Nobody comedy.

There will be an additional fringe programme of morning talks, masterclasses and afternoon concerts.

Tickets go on open sale from May 5 and can be ordered on 01422 323252 or online at www.gsfestivals.org.

Stray Views is a weekly column giving you the chance to have your say on issues affecting the Harrogate district. It is an opinion column and does not reflect the views of the Stray Ferret. See below for details on how to contribute.

Harrogate’s Army Foundation College saves young people

Network Rail has questions to answer about tree felling

Your journalist reports that ‘some trees have been felled’ at Hornbeam Park. As a Harrogate resident living on Tewit Well Road, I want to report that all the trees have been felled. Tell it as it is, please.

We now have a situation where residents are having to prevent some of the young people of Harrogate putting themselves at risk and using this newly cleared area for their own purposes. When the line had mature trees, we may have the occasional leaf on the line, but we certainly didn’t have youngsters jumping over to sunbath, party etc.

I’m afraid Network Rail has a lot to answer for here. A poor ecological management decision has left local residents policing an area that was once a mature habitat for local wildlife.

Who was the ecologist who advised Network Rail? Are they not accountable for the habitat decimation that we have been left with? How can they say anything other than recovery will take years? Is Network Rail pleased with the result?’

Not impressed.

Charlie McCarthy
Local resident

Questions that need answering about Beech Grove

As a resident and local business owner of 11 years, I and many others strongly believe the Low Traffic Neighbourhood experiment on Beech Grove creates more congestion, longer car journey times and increased carbon emissions on surrounding roads.

Otley Road currently has major road works and the planned 20-week cycle lane construction will cause further disruption and congestion.

There are many unanswered questions for North Yorkshire County Council:

1. What is the overall aim of this Low Traffic Neighbourhood?
2. In the latest council meeting we were told that the cycling groups are being consulted to make these decisions. Why are the cycling groups being consulted and the residents and businesses, who pay taxes and rates, not consulted?
3. How do you measure success or failure?
4. What data are you collecting and where from?
5. Which company are you using to analyse this?
6. Did you count how many cyclists and motorists use the roads, before you closed them?
7. Is information collected during the same months of the year, so you can directly compare activity in all seasons and weather?
8. Is it the best time to do this during a lockdown?
9. Why did NYCC approve all the housing developments, each with 2-3 cars, when 84% of people expressed that Harrogate was congested in the 2019 survey?
10.  What’s the projection of people who will swap their cars for bikes and what is this based on?
11. Far more people walk than cycle and yet the pavements are shocking, they are left for months after the Autumn leaves fall without being cleared and go untreated in ice and snow. How does this encourage people to walk?
12. Where is the evidence that there is an appetite for more cycling?

I have spoken to many residents and businesses and cars are critical for the school run, appointments, visiting relatives, holidays, tourism but, most importantly, to access businesses.

Cars are the lifeblood of many businesses and thousands of jobs depend on them. Banning them cannot be the only solution.

Lucy Gardiner, Harrogate Residents Association

Why is government spending so much on roads?

Got an opinion on the Harrogate district? Email us at letters@thestrayferret.co.uk. Please include your name and approximate location details. Limit your letters to 350 words. We reserve the right to edit letters.

An overnight fire has devastated a home in Ripon.

Crews from Ripon, Harrogate and Boroughbridge were summoned to deal with the blaze, which occurred in Westgate at about 1.45am this morning.

Smoking has been identified as a possible cause.

The fire broke out in a first floor bedroom.

North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service‘s incident summary said:

“The fire caused 100% fire damage to the bed and 60% fire damage to the bedroom, 100% smoke damage to the first floor and light smoke damage to ground floor.

“Crews used four breathing appartaus, one hose reel, small tools and positive pressure ventilation.

“The cause is unknown but may have been caused by smoking materials.”

Harrogate firefighters were also called to a fire in a children’s play park on Jenny Field Drive.

A bucket of water used to extinguish the fire, which occurred at about 6.15pm last night.

Read more:

• Wildfire fears over Easter weekend
• Starbeck home owner ‘absolutely devastated’ after fire

Bodybuilding barber David Steca is to stage a Mr Harrogate competition this summer to showcase the area’s finest physiques.

Mr Steca, who owns Steca No6 in Harrogate and another salon in Leeds, is one of the most experienced and successful bodybuilders in the north of England, with a string of titles to his name.

He has won numerous British and international trophies and continues to compete at the age of 61 as well as train clients.

He plans to stage the event on August 1 in a marquee with seating for up to 200 people near his home in Menwith Hill. He said:

“The aim is to inspire and give local physique and fitness enthusiasts a goal coming out of covid.

“I want to give something back and provide a local platform to enthusiasts.”

Read more:

• Harrogate man finishes 9th at World’s Strongest Man
• Harrogate boxing and martial arts gym fighting for survival

There will be a wide range of male and female categories catering for the toned beach body look through to hardcore bodybuilding.

Mr Steca added there will be British and world champion judges, along with food, nutrition and clothing stalls.

There will be HG postcode classes and open classes. Entry fee is £20 and spectator tickets are £20 and £10 for under-12s.

The event will also be a qualifying competition for the IBFA British Championships.

Mr Steca added:

“We already have prizes from local business for class winners. We look forward to an exciting day of muscle and fitness!”

The locations of up to 34 new electric vehicle charge points in the Harrogate district have been revealed.

The district has seen the largest increase in North Yorkshire of motorists switching to electric vehicles and Harrogate Borough Council aims to get 10,000 on the roads by 2023.

To help hit this target, the authority plans to install charge points at several council-owned locations to encourage motorists to make the switch ahead of the government’s ban on the sale of petrol, diesel and hybrid cars in 2030.

Tom O’Donovan, economy and transport officer at the council, told a meeting on Wednesday the 34 charge points were being rolled out as part of a phased scheme, with more to come later.

The locations include up to four charge points at the council’s Claro Road office, as well as up to five at its civic centre headquarters at Knapping Mount.

There will also be up to four at Harrogate’s multi-storey Victoria Shopping Centre car park and the same amount at Ripon Cathedral car park, plus a hub of charge points at Knaresborough Chapel Street car park.

Read more:

• Harrogate council staff could be offered electric cars
• Knaresborough gets first electric bus

There are three options for Pateley Bridge, including the Nidderdale Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty office, Nidderdale Leisure Centre and south car park.

The car park at Hornbeam Park railway station could also get up to 10 charge points, while no proposals have yet been put forward for Boroughbridge because infrastructure works would be “too costly”.

Up to 160 charge sites planned

Harrogate Borough Council approved its Ultra-Low Emission Vehicle Strategy two years ago with an aim to provide 61 public charge points by 2024, although this could be increased up to 160 if required.

North Yorkshire County Council is also developing a county-wide strategy but has said it currently has no plans to roll out on-street charging infrastructure on a large scale or in response to individual requests for charge points.

It said this is because of “difficulties” with electricity tariffs and setting out the terms on the maximum time a vehicle can charge in shared on-street spaces.

The council said:

“We will continue to review the overall situation, taking into account demand from residents and funding availability, including external grant funding.”