A North Yorkshire community cricket club is taking extra steps to keep its neighbours safe with the help of a four-figure grant from developer the Banks Group.
Whitley Bridge Cricket Club’s Weeland Road ground in Eggborough is bordered by housing on three sides as well as the main road that runs through the village, meaning there’s a risk of well-hit cricket balls ending up in places that they shouldn’t be.
The Club has previously put protective netting in place to try to stop sixes from flying off into the surrounding area.
And now, a £1,000 grant from the Banks Community Fund has enabled it to add in a new 25m high protective net along the bottom end of the ground, parallel to the road, as well as further 15m high nets along the adjacent boundaries.
Installation work, which was undertaken by a team of club volunteers, has just been completed, meaning the nets will be in use for the final weeks of the current season.
Whitley Bridge Cricket Club runs two senior sides in the Pontefract & District Cricket League, as well as junior sides at Under 11 and Under 13 level.
Most of its senior players have come up through the club’s junior section, while it has also launched a women’s soft ball team this season which has seen lots of local female players signing up to take part.
Richard Hayes, committee member and fundraising lead at Whitley Bridge Cricket Club, says: “While we’ve taken steps to try to stop balls leaving the confines of the ground, there’s very little that anyone can do to stop a really well-hit shot doing so.
“With the increase in focus on shorter forms of the game, as well as bigger bats and stronger players, we know this is an issue that isn’t going away and have been keen to put as many protective measures in place as we could to prevent any problems arising with our neighbours and any passers-by.
“The high netting at the bottom end of the ground provides much more protection in one of the places where a ball that’s hit a long way is most likely to be a problem, while the additional nets alongside it will make a big difference to the overall amount of protection we have around the ground.
“Making a capital purchase like this would have been beyond a small, self-funded community club like ours. The support we’ve had from Banks has meant that we’ve been able to get this important work done before the end of the current season and we’re very grateful for the backing they’ve provided.”
The Banks Group is the business behind plans for the development of an integrated extension to the west of Eggborough, which would offer new low carbon homes, enhanced local transport links, a new primary school and nursery, assisted living units, new areas of accessible public open space, other local services and a range of environmental benefits.
Jamilah Hassan, community relations manager at the Banks Group, adds: “Whitley Bridge Cricket Club has taken a responsible approach to keeping their neighbours as safe as they possibly can and we’re very glad to be helping this excellent community club get the work it wanted to do carried out quickly.”
The Banks Community Fund provides grants for community groups and voluntary organisations in the vicinity of Banks Group projects.
Anyone from a community close to a Banks Group development who is interested in applying for funding from the Banks Community Fund should first contact the fund manager on 0191 378 6342 or via fundmanager@bankscommunityfund.org.uk before applying for a grant to check if their group or project is eligible.