Stans First 2020 Chairmans Column

LOWERHOUSE CC NEWS SPONSORED BY H.RIGG PROPERTIES

First report of the season and appreciation of help

It’s becoming an increasingly long and frustrating winter with the weather hampering any work on the playing surface. 50 wheelbarrow loads of ash and a bin full of scrap metal have been removed from the bonfire patch but no reseeding has been possible yet. Many thanks to Brian Shaw and Dave Waddington for their assistance with the clearing up..

A couple of upgrades have taken place.

Thanks to Craig Marsden and Matt Hope for their electrical and lighting work, and to Chris Bithell, Keith Fairclough and Tony Greenhalgh for help in spreading 32 tons of river gravel on the drive and car park.

Once again we are grateful to Jean Hay and Neil Whalley for their financial donations to the junior cricket cause.

I have started to receive raffle prizes for the annual raffle and as usual Elaine Hayes has been very generous with prizes.  Anyone with a prize to donate please give me a call 07941439741.

Indoor training has commenced with the APP, JPP, Junior coaching and senior nets having started . This season we will have twelve junior and four senior teams. Once again we will run an All- Stars programme for the tiny tots and the new Dynamos programme for under 10s/11s new to cricket.

We are grateful for our school partners , Hameldon and Stoneyhurst Colleges for their facility use .

Burnley Grammar School Old Boys CC

On Saturday 21st February there will be a photo shoot to commemorate the commissioning of a bench to recognise the contribution of Burnley Grammar School Old Boys CC  to local cricket and our very strong links with them. The bench is one of the new types which are proving very popular and can be seen on the old pavilion terrace.  Many thanks to Mick Binns for his work on this. Any former Old Boy cricketer is welcome to attend.

The Old Boys (and Belvedere) have been very influential in the careers of many Lowerhouse (and Burnley) players who often in very tender years were exposed to adult cricket. This was an excellent grounding for them and as can be seen from the picture, many have gone on to be top amateur cricketers. It was the recognition of this that brought about the introduction of the Fourth Eleven who are largely under 14s into the Lancashire League Third Eleven League.

Stan