Accrington Cricket Club
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Members Update
Sunday March 28th 2021


On behalf of the Management Committee I wanted to give you an update on the start of the season and the latest guidance issued by the ECB on Friday, details of which can be found here https://www.ecb.co.uk/news/2072091/crickets-return-to-play-roadmap-for-england-and-guidance-for-wales.

I am pleased to say that in accordance with Step 1B of the Government Roadmap out of Lockdown that organised sport can start again outdoors from Monday 29th March in accordance with the published guidance, therefore we can reopen our outdoor facilities to players and juniors as follows;

TRAINING
Senior training will start on Tuesday 30 March 6pm onwards, and junior training will start on Friday 2 April 6-7pm, new players are always welcome, for more info on juniors see our website http://accringtoncc.com/juniors/news2021.html. Further guidance will be sent out to parents by the junior coaches prior to the first session.

ALL STARS FOR 5–8-YEAR-OLDS
Registration is now open for our All Stars programme. This is a national programme organised by the ECB for 5–8-year-old boys and girls and is aimed at those new to the game. We have run it for the last few years and it has been very popular, providing a fun and safe way for new children to learn the game. If you know of anyone who may be interested or want to register your child / grandchild there are more details on our website Accrington Cricket Club (accringtoncc.com).

MATCHES
Matches can start from 29th March and will initially follow a similar set up to last season i.e. sanitising breaks after 6 overs, no use of changing rooms (toilets can be used), players should bring their own food and drinks. Off the field social distancing guidelines and legal gathering size limits must be observed (Rule of 6). However there is one important thing to point out in Step 1B and that is NO SPECTATORS will be allowed until at least 12th April. Therefore all our home friendlies prior to 12th April will be in effect ‘behind closed doors’ with only players, officials and groundstaff allowed onto the ground. We realise this will disappointing to those of you who just want to get back to watching cricket but as a club we must follow the guidance.

The next step out of lockdown is scheduled to be no earlier than 12th April and we will hopefully have some good news regarding spectators in the week before that, we will keep you updated.

AGM
Normally we hold our AGM around the end of February, obviously that has not been possible. We are hopeful of holding the AGM later in the year, once indoor restrictions have been lifted. In the meantime the Management Committee have agreed to keep the membership fees the same as last year (Patrons £42, Vice Presidents £38, Match Members £36, Seniors £23), and match day admission will remain at £4 and £2. Membership cards will be delivered prior to the first game of the season (vs Greenmount on Sunday 18th April). We would appreciate if members could pay their subs as soon as possible. The safest way is online banking, and we can provide bank details on request (contact Steve Davies 07780 517641 or Mark Taylor 07949 610512 marktaylor197@sky.com) or cheques can be sent to Steve at 8 Whitewell Road, Accrington BB5 6DA.

SPONSORSHIP
We are pleased to announce that The Property Shop have renewed their sponsorship as main club sponsors for another 2 years. They have been fantastic supporters of the club over the last 3 years, and we look forward to working with them again over the next 2 years. I would also like to thank all our other sponsors who have renewed their board and ball sponsorship for this coming season, your support for the club in these difficult times is very much appreciated.

If any members can help with either player sponsorship (£50) or match day ball sponsorship (£30) it would be greatly appreciated, please contact me at marktaylor197@sky.com

ACCESS TO CLUB
As you may have seen on the website the developers were hoping to have completed the new access road over the next couple of days. Unfortunately this has now been delayed through no fault of theirs and will now not start until this coming week. They are aware of when we need access to the club for training and matches and will work with us to ensure we can get to the ground, although there may be days when we have to park at the top and walk down until it is completed. Everything should be in place prior to the first home game on Sunday 18th April.
There will be less parking this season on the ground due to them using the right-hand side of the car park for their welfare area. We apologise for any inconvenience this will cause to you but once completed it will increase our parking area significantly. I will send out an update on parking arrangements prior to the first game.

CLUBHOUSE
In line with the current guidance the clubhouse will remain closed, except for access to toilets. Outdoor hospitality will be allowed in Step 2 from 12th April at the earliest with table / bench service only. We are currently looking at how we can do this safely and in accordance with the guidance and we will update further on this prior to the 12th April.

REFURBISHMENT UPSTAIRS
During the winter we have started work on refurbishing the old committee room converting it into a ladies changing room, umpires room and scorers room. In addition we are improving the showers and toilets. I would like to thank Jimmy Hayhurst, Pietro LoGiudice, Graeme Sneddon and others that have helped so far. I would also like to thank Countryside Properties (the housing developers) for providing us with materials free of charge.

SEATING
At the end of last season we took the decision to remove a lot of the seating at the Huncoat end of the ground and also down the tearoom side. Most of these seats were broken and had become dangerous and unsightly. We know members like to sit down that side behind the bowlers arm so we will be moving some more benches to that area. We are always looking to add more benches and if anyone would like to donate a bench please contact me for more information.

GROUNDWORK
There is still quite a lot of work needed around the ground in preparation for the season, if any members can spare a few hours to help either during the week or next weekend it would be appreciated.

Once we get more information from the ECB on Step 2 I will update you, but in the meantime if anyone has any questions please contact me on 07949 610512.

Thanks for your ongoing support and hopefully we can have a full season of cricket and plenty of sunshine.

MARK TAYLOR
HON SECRETARY

 

 

 

The Club