In the secod of two photos given to us by Jack Foster, below is the old clubhouse. Behind it are the factory chimneys, which is now where Sycamore Farm is located. This was taken in the 1950s.
Some people will (or won’t) know that there used to be 3 terraced houses in the know known Stella corner. Thanks to Jack Foster who supplied this photo of them, the first we’ve seen! Anyone know the year?
Big Night for the club and we want you all to be there if you can to support the boys
Twenty20 Quarter Final, away at Bacup Cricket Club in a 6.15pm Start – Entry is £3 & £1
Bacup CC have asked us to request supporters not to bring their own cans to Friday’s game.
There is no outright ban on cans however, cans will be available priced at £1.50 and we would join them in hoping fans would support local cricket in general by availing themselves of Bacup’s bar or additional can bar facility rather than bringing their own.
Many thanks to Dave and Alistair Smalley who have painted all the perimeter walls and sightscreen.
The club has now got the defibrillator in place at the end of David Wren way and a press announcement will follow. Many thanks to all those who have contributed financially, Matt Stansfield and Paddy Martin who have co-ordinated it and to Craig Marsden for the electrical installation.
Apologies if I have missed anyone and if anyone has a spare hour or two there are still painting jobs to be done.
Sponsorship
The club are pleased to announce several sponsorship deals.
The under 13s panthers have been sponsored and will now be known as the LHCC u13 A1 Motorstore Panthers. Many thanks to Motorstore’s Peter Rostron for his generosity and to Eric Haworth and Keith Fairclough who arranged the deal.
The under 11 bears will be known as LHCC U11 Molly Rigby Bears following sponsorship by landlord Brian Gamble at the popular Padiham hostelry. Many thanks to Brian and to Chris Bithell for arranging this
Congratulations
Our newest team, LHCC Fagan and Whalley U9 Wasps played their first ever game. This is our 3rd under 9s teams and all were match debutants. Quite incredibly, not a single player was dismissed. Scorecard below.
Euxton u13 241-7 LHCC u13 Lions 276-6
Harry Young 2-4 Keagan de Vries 25
Dec Metcalfe 2-8 Rory Cormack 21*
Henri Cottam 2-14 Henri Cottam 21*
Harry young 11*
LHCC U13 Lions 275 – 4 Salesbury u13 288-2
Jack Spence 27*
Keagan de Vries 16*
Dec Metcalfe 15*
Aden Aurangzeb 14*
LHCC u11 Tigers 241- 6 Rishton u13 243-4
Rory Cormack 21* Oliver Spendlove 2-15
Sam Hancock 14*
Nathan Porter 14*
Oliver Spendlove 14*
Phoebe Johnstone 13*
Oliver Williams 11*
Great Harwood u13 294 – 3 LHCC U13 Cougars 223-5
Nathan Porter 11*
Grace Johnson 11*
LCB U11 Cup Round 2
LHCC u11 Bears 254- 5 Burnley u11 222-9
Tom Yorke – Robinson 17* Harvey Elliott 3-5
Grace Johnson 13
Elliott Johnstone 12*
Joseph Edgar 11*
LHCC u11 Bears 230- 2 Bacup u11 (1) 249-4
Jack Whitham 12*
Harrison Durkin 11*
Grace Johnson 10*
Rawtenstall u11 236-4 LHCC u11 Cubs 228-3
Archie Howorth 9*
LHCC u11 Cubs 245 – 1 Haslingden 257-2
George Everitt-McVay 13*
Myles Carr- Oddie 13*
LHCC Fagan and Whalley u9 Hornets 241 – 8 Church u9 251-7
Bacup CC have asked us to request supporters not to bring their own cans to Friday’s game.
There is no outright ban on cans however, cans will be available priced at £1.50 and we would join them in hoping fans would support local cricket in general by availing themselves of Bacup’s bar or additional can bar facility rather than bringing their own.
Your support would be greatly appreciated
Saturday
Just 4 games to go in Phase 1 every win is now vital and House entertain Accrington CC
1.00pm start bar & Tea Room from 12.30pm
Your support gratefully received #UTH
Sunday
It’s a bid day for your 2nd X1 who entertain Colne 2nds
in the Lancashire Evening Telegraph Cup Semi-Final 1.00pm start
Full Bar & Tea Room inc can bar Free Entry all support welcome
Moorhouse’s Lancashire League – Twenty20 Quarter Final
Bacup CC v Lowerhouse CC this Friday, 7th July 2017 at Bacup Cricket Club 6.15pm kick off.
Bacup CC have asked us to request away supporters not to bring their own cans to Friday’s game.
There is no outright ban on cans however, cans will be available priced at £1.50 and we would join them in hoping fans would support local cricket in general by availing themselves of Bacup’s bar or additional can bar facility rather than bringing their own.
Your support would be greatly appreciated by ourselves and Bacup CC
The First Eleven made it a weekend to remember, progressing through both the Twenty20 group stages and Lancashire Cricket aboard Knock Out to win places in the respective quarter finals.
On Friday, House played Accrington away in a crunch match that was a must win to get through. We batted first with Joe Hawke hitting 31 and Joe Halstead 27 as we made 110-8 off our allotted 20. Accrington at one point were in the driving seat but collapsed from 73-2 to 102-8. Tight bowling from Ocki 3-16 and Toxy 2-23 ensured the win was brought home. Full scorecard here.
Saturday was our day to sit out of league proceedings due to an odd number of teams in the league (each team in the league gets a day like this).
Sunday saw Lancashire Leagues 2018 newcomers Rochdale visit The Brooks Foundation Ground. A lot of their fans and players arrived by coach with the weather settling nicely and a massive crowd to see who would progress to the next round. It was a day for bowlers in the end with Rochdale winning the toss and choosing to bat. Some brilliant right bowling from the openers Jordan Page (who was presented with his baggy blue before the game) and Joey Hawke saw Rochdale restricted to 19 for 4 at one point. Joey finished with 5 wickets with Ben cleaning up the tail with 4. It really is worth checking out the scorecard as all the bowlers bowled tightly. In reply House got off to a stormer with 17 runs coming from the first 7 balls in reply to Rochdales 119 all out. Rochdales opening bowler then let rip, taking out most of the top order leaving House at 40 for 6. Adam Hugill joined Ocki at the crease and a solid partnership of 70 and a 50 from Ocki saw us home (Adam was out just before doing so). All in all a great game, a great set of fans over from Rochdale and we look forward to welcoming them in the league next year. Maybe we’ll do one better and take two coaches if we play them away… Full scorecard here
The third team faced Accrington away on Sunday and were bowled out for 94, Jack Simm put up the resistance scoring 33. In reply Accrington were 95 for 4. Full scorecard here
The quarter final of the Twenty20 is this Friday night away at Bacup and the Quarter for the LCB knock out is away at Clitheroe on 23rd of July
Ben’s knock has been featured in The Cricket Paper – a newspaper solely dedicated to cricket which is available at WH Smiths as well as online.
It reads:
Just like buses, one century for long service Lowerhouse batsman Ben Heap quickly brought another – and according to the 29 year old it was about time too. Heap first turned out for Lowerhouse as a junior at the age of 11, and 15 seasons of senior cricket in the Lancashire League had still not yielded a ton for the opener. That was until last week, when after a stunning 106 no out steered his side to a t20 triumph over Ramsbottom on Friday evening, Heap was in full flow on Sunday to hit 175 off 148 balls, including 18 fours and six maximums, despite surviving a scare on a duck.
That beat Tommy Shutt’s 112 year old club record of 173, and also helped the House to their highest total ever of 334 off 50 overs. “I’ve been threatening it early on in the season, I’ve had 3 fifties, and have been well set with plenty of overs to go,” said Heap, who did make 150 in 2015 as a club professional during a season-long move to Padiam. “It’s been coming now for a number of years in the Lancashire League, and it all fell into place last weekend. It has been almost a burden for a long time; I am a decent batsman in the league but I haven’t had the huge scores that one or two others have. “ “So it was a huge weight off my back on the Friday, and then on the Sunday I was much more relaxed and didn’t really think about it too much in the 90s.” “It means a lot to be part of the clubs history now. I made a lot of older committee members and spectators very happy – even though I wasn’t aware it was a record at the time.”
“As I walked off a few people made me aware, and when you think about how much has happened since it was set in 1905, I’m very proud!” The first ton got House off the mark in the t20 competition whilst they currently sit sixth in the Lancashire League, and Heap hopes his heroics have get the side back on track. He added “We really needed a weekend like this as a team. We’ve had a few players come and go, a new captain and a new professional. So everything has just taken a while to click, and it has been one step forward, two steps back until now. We really needed that win in the t20s, and to win in that fashion chasing eight an over in the pitch black, I can really sense the confidence in the lads. We’ve had a couple of quieter seasons in the Lancashire League, so we’re just looking to stay in the mix and make sure were in the top half when the league splits”
House entertain Pennine Lancs League Rochdale CC on Sunday 2nd of July in the last 16 of the Lancashire Knock Out Cup with an away tie at either Clitheroe or Longridge await in the Quarter Final for the winners.
Match Day Information
Gates open 12.00 Noon – Entry is All pay £3.00 adults £1.00 Concessions
We’re expecting a large crowd so please get there early if you want to park on the Lowerhouse Lane, side of the ground which will simply be a first come first served basis from noon, and parking is limited and therefore at a premium again arrive early to avoid being disappointed.
Once the ground car parking is full we ask that you park with consideration to neighbours and in accordance with road traffic regulations. Additional free parking for up to 200 car’s has been secured courtesy of Business First on Liverpool Road just few minutes’ walk to the ground seelink
As is Lowerhouse CC’s normal match day policy:
No restrictions will be in place as to what alcohol you can bring into the ground however we ask that you bear in mind as always that we provide additional can bar facilities at competitive prices and of course please drink responsibly.
We hope this information will help us to provide an enjoyable day for all supporters, your help and support will be much appreciated.
Another great weekend down at the club with 4 games being played and Lowerhouse coming out the winner in all 4.
Friday night saw the 4th Twenty20 game of the campaign with Lowerhouse coming out victorious against East Lancs. House won by 18 runs with man of the match Charlie hitting an unbeaten 55 from 25 balls. We made 149-2 and the match was reduced to 15 overs due to poor light and rain possilby being on the cards. Cottam hit four fours and three sixes, adding an unbroken 73 for the 3rd wicket with Ocki (28 not out). Ben (43) and Joe Halstead (17) put on 46 for the 1st wicket. At one point, East Lancs looked to be in the driving seat with professional Andries Gous batting well, he top scored with 67 from 34 balls, including ten fours and two sixes, Shahrukh Khan made 22 and Mo Bhada 17 with Joe Hawke taking 3-21 and Erasmus 2-17, including the vital wicket of Gous in East Lancs 131 for 5. Full scorecard here.
The third team played on Saturday, beating Bacup at home. Bacup batted first and were bowled out for 122. Danny Simm took 4 wickets, Alex took 3, Tom 2 and Ben 1 in a great all round bowling performance. House knocked them off 3 down with 10 overs to go with Danny and Ben Woodall making 30s a piece, both not out. Full scorecard here.
A great display at Haslingden saw the first team come out victorious on Sunday. After a rocky start, they made 174 for 7 in a 42 over game batting first. Joe Halstead top scored with 41, which included hitting Jordan Shannon for 4 sixes in a row. Charlie got 36 and Ocki 31. Haslingden got off to a steadier start, being 48 for 2 at one point. House turned the screw with the ball with some tight bowling from Joey, Toxy and Paddy. Paddy joined the illusive Hall of Fame by reaching his 200th wicket getting Knowles. Ocki cleaned up the tail with 4 wickets, getting the last wicket on the last ball, restricting Haslingden to 145. Full scorecard here.
The second team beat Haslingden at home, they made 147 for 7 in a 41 over game, Jordan, Robson and Ethan took 2 wickets a piece. Ben Uttley top scored with 53 in reply, helped by Joe Beneduce who got 23 and Owen who scored 29. House knocked them off after 38 overs. Full scorecard here
We’re quietly confident that the weather will pick up suffice for the game to get played tonight, wicket has been covered and is fit ready to play – however as always we are governed by the weather gods
We will keep you updated throughout the day and early evening
Partly inspired by our visit to Bentgate this Sunday but mostly by Ben Heap’s great and historical innings last week, we shall take a look at the match where Tommy Shutt set the original batting record. Before any of you cynics out there speculate whether I actually was an eye witness to this game or whether Blez played in it; the answer is of course NO. The oldest Lancashire League fan I know is Ted Marshall who in his 102nd year is still getting on to support his beloved Accrington C.C. Haslingden versus Lowerhouse played on June 16th, 1905 took place over 10 years before even Ted was born in Altham. Lowerhouse batted first on the day but were in some trouble at 30-3. Joseph Cook went for 10 and the same bowler, F Tattersall, bowled the ‘House pro’ Ernest Vost for a duck. Cook was Lowerhouse’s most prolific pre-War batter. Vost was in the last of his 3 consecutive seasons as our professional. He was a steady, competent all-rounder. He didn’t play at First Class level but after leaving Lowerhouse had 5 seasons with Staffordshire in the Minor Counties. At 30-3 it was a case of cometh the hour cometh the man as Lowerhouse’s best all rounder Tommy Shutt came to the crease. He was very much the local hero having been born in the village and had reached Second Eleven status with Lancashire. Tommy was a better bowler than a batter but could occasionally, to put it crudely, ‘go off on one’ with his attacking batting. In his only season at Burnley the previous year he’d made 2 centuries including one where he made 164. So what happened next was by no means a complete surprise. Tommy made 173 not out from the 256 runs that were scored whilst he was in the middle. There were no 6’s awarded for balls clearing the boundary in this era so what the modern equivalent would have been for Shutt’s final score we’ll never know. We can strongly suspect Ben Heap would have needed much nearer 200 to break the record! The best partnership was an unbroken one for the sixth wicket of 109. This was dominated by Shutt and his partner Harry Hemingway just made 22 of those runs. Hemingway was a Yorkshireman from the East Keswick district of Leeds. He had left Lowerhouse in 1892 but had returned for a 3-year spell starting in this 1905 season. When his cricketing days were over he made a name for himself in crown green bowls. The pinnacle of his career in that sport was in 1917 when he contested the final of the sport’s chief tournament namely the Waterloo Handicap in Blackpool. Haslingden had tried everything to try to stop the Shutt bandwagon and 8 bowlers were used but to little avail as the onslaught went on. A demoralised Haslingden were soon 2-2 in reply with both catches going into Hemingway’s safe hands. Hassy’s highest scorer on the day was their star amateur George Parker with 25. On any list of the Lancashire League’s best ever amateur batsmen, which would include our own Chris Bleazard, Parker’s name is sure to figure. In a bowler friendly era he set a then record of nearly 13000 League runs. Most of his career was at Haslingden but he also had significant success at Accrington. The rest of the Bentgate outfit offered little resistance. Vost earned his fee with 5-39, the irrepressible Shutt had 3-19 and Hemingway chipped in with 2-25. Haslingden were gone for 93 and the ‘House’s margin of victory was a daunting 193 runs. We can only speculate if they allowed themselves a few celebratory drinks in the Woolpack before the journey back to the village. I’d like to think they did as they’d earned it. Maybe Shutt’s collection went over the bar! It had been a game to remember for all those concerned with a proud Lowerhouse Cricket Club but with the scoring system as it was they’d just picked up a mere 2 points! Let’s hope they can get more than that total this Sunday as 112 years and a handful of days later they visit the same Bentgate ground again.
Lowerhouse Cricket Club have been put forward for the Tesco Bags of Help Grant Scheme and our project will be put forward to a customer vote in Tesco stores during July and August 2017.
What happens next?
Our project which is a renewal of the outdoor nets along with the other two successful projects in our region will go forward to a vote in Tesco stores where customers will decide the outcome by voting for their favourite project each time they shop. Voting will take place from Saturday 1st July to Thursday 31st August and we will be notified by the end of September 2017 confirming the amount of funding we will receive. The project with the highest number of votes across our region will receive up to £4,000, the second placed project up to £2,000 and the third placed project £1,000.
Tesco teamed up with Groundwork to launch its community funding scheme, which sees grants of £4,000, £2,000 and £1,000 – all raised from the 5p bag levy – being awarded to local community projects.
Bags of Help offers community groups and projects across the UK a share of revenue generated from the 5p charge levied on single-use carrier bags.
To vote, you will need to make a purchase within store of any value. You will receive one token per transaction and it’s not necessary to purchase a carrier bag in order to receive a token.
The more votes the better we do, tell you friends, colleagues and family and let’s get another win for the club.
Clubs have either 5 or 6 games left in phase 1 which ends on Sunday 30th July 2017. At this point clubs in positions 1-9 will be placed in Division 1 and clubs places in positions 10-17 will be places in Division 2 at this stage all clubs in Division 1 will pay each other again the same scenario for Division 2 all points won will be carried forward into the respective league. Division 1 clubs would play 8 additional fixtures with division 2 completing a further 7 matches. Fixtures for Phase 2 will be released as quickly but, they might take some sorting out. If we use the current table as an example: Lowerhouse sit in 6th and would qualify to play in Division 1.
Ideally where possible fixtures would look to reverse those initial Phase 1 but at present 5 of the 9 clubs in the qualifying positions, we have played at home, so we might see a scenario where we play one of the sides again in Phase 2 at the same venue as we did in phase 1. House v Burnley perhaps? Clitheroe? Only time will tell. A poor run now might see us in Division 2 and a great run by sides 10th-12th or so might see them into the mix.
Plenty of food for thought and plenty can change over the next intense period between now and 30th July, all to play for – we will update you via the club’s website and social media platforms as quickly as we can, let’s enjoy the fantastic weather at present, get down and support your local clubs!
Official club photographer (press badge and everything) Bob Sandiford has compiled an album of mainly unseen photos from between 2009 to present day. Thanks again Bob – some great photos. Full album here
Well, you couldn’t write a better weekend for the club. Some flashes of brilliance by individual players and some great team performances rounded off a great treat for those celebrating Fathers Day in the sun.
Friday night, House tried to get their Twenty20 campaign back to winning ways and did it in style. Ben won the toss and stuck Ramsbottom in who put a very competitive total of 157 for 6. Paddy Martin struck with 4 wickets enhancing his lead as our leading Twenty20 wicket taker of all time with 48 wickets. In reply, Ben Heap broke his “lack of a career ton” with a fantastic innings of 106*, Ben controlled the match perfectly and saw the team home after 18.3 overs. A great achievement, well celebrated on Friday! House finished 161 for 1 with Joe Halstead and Ocki batting around Ben! Full scorecard here
On Sunday, Owen Deakin Pickard led the 2nd team out in their Quarter Final tie in the Worsley Cup – a great team performance saw them succeed and secure a place in the Semi Finals with a home tie against Colne to be played on Sunday July 9th. House batted first and amassed 260 for 5 with openers Owen (55) and Brad (63) making a great start. Joe Halstead (33) and Ethan Laraway (46) helped take the runs higher and even Joe Beneduce got a bat at the end of the innings. House bowled Church out for 99 with the wickets shared. Full scorecard here
Not happy with Friday night, Ben Heap decided this weekend was the one to smash a few club records. Not content on being the first Lowerhouse player to get a Twenty20 ton (and his first Lowerhouse one at the same time), Ben opened the batting on Sunday and finished with the highest individual innings by a Lowerhouse batsmen ever. en beat Tommy Shutts record from 1905 of 173*. Ben hit 175 off 148 balls with 18 fours and 6 sixes. Spectators watched as Ben passed milestone after milestone and he helped the House to their highest total ever of 334 off 50 overs. House got to 334 which was also the highest team total ever. On a very hot Fathers Day, Great Harwood made a resiliant 254 for 6 in reply, but House simply just got too many. Full scorecard here
The second team made the weekend 4 wins out of 4 for the weekend away at Great Harwood. Great Harwood made 163 for 9 with wickets shared and in reply Owen batted the whole innings for a great 89* with House winning by 5 wickets. Full scorecard here
Not on the cricket front, but worth a mention, on Sunday an old white caravanette drove into the ground after paying on the gate a couple in their 60s, crashed into two cars on the car park whilst parking and drove back off the ground. The rear of their vehicle and the other two cars were extensively damaged. If you have any information, please could you ring Adam on 07568590822
Ben Heap decided this weekend was the one to smash a few club records. Not content on being the first Lowerhouse player to get a Twenty20 ton (and his first Lowerhouse one at the same time), Ben opened the batting today and finished with the highest individual innings by a Lowerhouse batsmen ever.
Ben beat Tommy Shutts record from 1905 of 173*. Ben hit 175 off 148 balls with 18 fours and 6 sixes. Spectators watched as Ben passed milestone after milestone and he helped the House to their highest total ever of 334 off 50 overs.
