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22
Jul
Wet weather forces Beckwithshaw Cricket Club to fundraise for improved drainage
Beckwithshaw Cricket Club is looking to raise £7,500 to improve its ground’s drainage after the wet weather delayed its season.
Matches have been cancelled due to a waterlogged outfield, which has prompted club staff to launch a fundraiser to improve facilities.
The club, which is home to three senior teams, around 100 junior players and a growing women's team, has been hit badly by the weather this year.
Miles Buller, the club’s secretary, told the Stray Ferret:
We didn’t get our first senior game until May 11th, but that was only after the majority of the team spent hours that week getting the ground into a playable state, and even then, a lot of adjustments with boundaries had to be made to play on the ‘drier’ areas.
From memory that evening/following day it chucked it down with rain again, and most of the midweek fixtures following that were cancelled yet again.
In an already short season, usually April to the end of July, the junior teams have lost a quarter of the season.
As well as affecting games the soggy pitch has meant no one could train on the outfield until mid-May,. This meant the juniors of outdoors training, which the club says has a big impact on their fielding and teamwork skills.
However, the drainage issues don't just have an impact on the field for Beckwithshaw, they cause problems off the field too.
Junior secretary Ben Roberts said:
The cancellation of games also meant the loss of opportunity to sell any drinks or snacks from the bar which is a good revenue source for the club and vital to the daily upkeep let alone much larger projects such as this.
He added:
Without a playable pitch we will cease to exist and all the members including the 100 or so juniors miss out on valuable exercise and experiences.
According to the club groundsman, Beckwithshaw is the worst affected club in the area and the drainage issues have become all too familiar.
The past two seasons have seen the club forced to wait until mid-May before any cricket can be played.
Club officials say an adequate drainage system would help to improve the playing facilities and play more cricket earlier in the campaign.
To donate to the club, visit its fundraiser here.
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