Welcome to Haslingden Cricket Club
Update 29th October 2020
We wanted to confirm something that you may have already seen on social media that The Hut will no longer be opening on a Sunday at HCC until we are able to reopen the clubhouse fully. Their Rawtenstall site remains open as usual for collection and deliveries.
There have also been press articles circulating reporting that social clubs in Tier 3 areas are able to open to members only and visitors are able to drink alcohol without having to purchase a substantial meal. We had established that this was only for clubs with a Club Premises Licence, but in any event this morning the Government confirmed that this is not the case and have closed that loophole. So we will remain closed at least until the four week Tier 3 Covid 19 review that is due to take place in mid-November.
Update 19th October 2020
You will probably be aware that Lancashire moved into Tier 3 in the Coronavirus level shortly after midnight on Friday 16th October 2020. The result of this is that the club has had to close once again. We understand that this status will be reviewed by the government after four weeks. As soon as there is any change to our status, we will notify you via our website, Twitter, Facebook and Instagram pages.
The Hut will open on a Sunday for provision of their delicious Sunday Roast Meals. If you would like to book a table please contact the Hut directly on 07493 356263 via Facebook, Twitter or on their app. Their Rawtenstall site is open as usual for collection and delivery.
We will be continuing to monitor the situation with regard to reopening and will run the monthly draw as usual. This will be live on Twitter on the last Saturday of the month. If you would like to join the draw please click here.
We hope that you are all staying well and thank you for your ongoing support with the Monthly Draw and by raising funds for us via Easyfundraising. We hope to see you soon.
HCC Telegraph Fantasy Football for Season 2020/21
To enter your team please click on this link: https://fantasyfootball.telegraph.co.uk/ and select the option to Pick your team & Register
The pin for the HCC league can be obtained by contacting Oliver Nicholls.
- There is a £15.00 entry fee per person, payable before the first game in cash or by card over the bar please
- Your entry fee must be paid before Premier League Gameweek 3 or your team will be removed
- There will be Cash Prizes for 1st, 2nd, 3rd place & a Cup Winner at the end of the season. The prize amounts will be decided and publicised when all teams have been registered and paid for
- In addition to the cash prizes, each month there will be a Manager of the Month who wins a prize of 5 free pints or the cost equivalent bar credit
- The Cup starts at Premier League Gameweek 5
- 10% of all entry fees will go towards cricket equipment for the club
More information on the operation of the Telegraph Fantasy Football League can be found here https://fantasyfootball.telegraph.co.uk/help
Good luck
Raymond Scott – 90 years old
Everyone at Haslingden Cricket Club is delighted to wish Raymond a very happy 90th birthday for 24th August 2020. He celebrated his birthday with his wife, 3 daughters and grandchildren at his home in Sidmouth, Devon.
Raymond was the 323rd player to play for Haslingden Cricket Club and on the 12th June 1950 aged just 19 years, he made his debut at Bentgate against Colne Cricket Club scoring 19 not out in a drawn match where the Colne professional was Bill Alley (Australia). This innings bizarrely turned out to be the highest score Raymond made for Haslingden at his home ground.
Raymond played a further six games in 1950 and eight games in 1951 as he established himself in the 1st XI.
1952 was Raymond’s best season in the 1st XI finishing fourth in the amateur batting averages with 177 runs at 13.6.
The highlights of his season included 34 against Accrington, which featured a partnership of 54 with J Burton. At Acre Bottom on the 28th June, Ramsbottom scored a total of 96 with Alan Pilkington taking 6 for 22. Raymond came to the wicket with Haslingden struggling at around 38 for 5. There followed a quickfire partnership of 60 with Pilkington to win the game by five wickets which must have thrilled the home crowd 😊😊 (always nice to see HCC win at Rammy). The game at Burnley featured Raymond’s career highest score of 36, sadly in a losing cause. He seemed to enjoy batting with Alan Pilkington as they put on 64 for the third wicket. He took 10 catches in the 1952 season as Haslingden finished fifth in the League. Most of the catches were taken at short leg off the bowling of Vinoo Mankad!
The 1953 season saw Raymond playing 15 games scoring 94 runs, with a best of 28 at Burnley (he obviously liked playing at Turf Moor). He was dismissed stumped by Hindle off the bowling of Australian legend Cec Pepper. The Lancashire League records show him playing for HCC at home against Lowerhouse in the penultimate game of the 1953 season and we suspect that he also played in the final league game at Enfield where the league was won. Unfortunately, that scorecard shows some unknown players but we are sure that there were many ‘unknowns’ in the celebrations that evening!
Raymond played his final game at Lowerhouse on the 7th June 1954, where he bowled his one and only over (eight ball) conceding 10 runs. It would appear that bowling was not his stronger suit!
Overall, Raymond had a good Lancashire League career playing with professional Vinoo Mankad at Haslingden and against the likes of Clyde Walcott, Everton Weekes, Bill Alley, Cec Pepper, Ray Lindwall and Polly Umrigar to name but a few. To play in that era was to play in front of large crowds with and against top quality players.
We thank Raymond for his contribution and would like to remind him that he will always be a former
Haslingden C.C. player (number 323) and of course a Lancashire League Winner!
Parents and Players Guide 2020
We have just updated our Parents and Players Guide for 2020. To download or view the guide please click on this link: Junior Guide for Parents and Players
4th August 2020 – Junior Fixtures/Training
JW Lees President’s Cup
After the completion of the Surridge Sports Valley Challenge in July, the Lancashire League have arranged games for the Lancashire League clubs for each Sunday in August 2020 in the JW Lees President’s Cup. The clubs have been drawn in four groups and we have been drawn in Group 3 with Nelson, Colne, Clitheroe, Bacup and Rawtenstall.
We start on Sunday 2nd August away at Nelson. We then have three home games against Clitheroe, Colne and Bacup and finish on Sunday 30th August away against Rawtenstall. The 2nd XI play the reverse fixtures on the same dates.
The winners of each group will progress to the semi finals which will take place on Sunday 6th September with the final on Sunday 13th September.
This season’s 3rd XI competition is in three groups and will take place on Saturdays in August and September. We are in group A with Nelson, Walsden, Todmorden, Bacup, Norden and Rochdale. Our first game is on Saturday 8th August away at Nelson. We then have three home games against Walsden, Todmorden and Bacup and finish with two away games the final one being against Rochdale on Saturday 12th September.
All games start at 1pm and are 40 overs. See our fixtures page for more details.
Cricket returns in July 2020
The Surridge Sport Valley Challenge
We are delighted to announce that cricket will return to Bentgate on Sunday 12th July.
As soon as the Government gave the green light for recreational cricket to recommence, the Rossendale Valley clubs moved quickly to set up a new competition to commence on Sunday 12th July at 1pm. These will be 40 over games, with the 2nd XI’s playing the reverse fixtures at the same time. See our fixtures page for more details.
3rd XI games have also been scheduled for the Valley clubs to start on Saturday 11th July, Stacksteads are playing these games in place of Ramsbottom. See our fixtures page for more details.
We look forward to seeing you.
Re-opening of HCC from Saturday 4th July
Everyone connected with Haslingden CC is extremely excited about the grand re-opening of the bar on Saturday 4th July.
Our aim is to provide a safe environment for our customers and our staff with full compliance to the latest rules and recommendations provided by the Government.
If you have any symptoms or feel unwell, please stay at home.
Opening hours: Mon – Thurs from 7pm (closing time no earlier than 9:30pm), Friday from 3pm – 11pm, Saturday 12 – 11pm, Sunday 12 – 10pm.
Children are always welcome at Haslingden CC however all must be supervised by a responsible adult and you must ensure they practice social distancing rules at all times.
We have had to reconfigure the club seating and lower the capacity to allow for social distancing. A maximum of 43 people are allowed in the main bar at any one time. Tables will be allocated on a first come -first served basis. Please wait to be seated by a member of staff as tables will need to be cleaned before every use. (maximum of two households per table indoors)
We also have 12 outdoor tables (and an outdoor TV) for you to use (tables outside can accommodate up to 6 persons from different households). In inclement weather, seating in the function room is available.
Please do not move any tables and chairs as these have been positioned to ensure social distancing guidelines are met. If you need additional seating please speak to a member of staff.
Hand sanitiser stations are in place around the building and we encourage visitors to use these frequently.
Customers will be required to provide identification (indoors only) for Track and Trace purposes, and will be advised of how and where to order from the bar and where to collect their order. All glasses will be cleaned thoroughly before every use.
All alcohol consumed (inside or outside) MUST be bought from the club. Contactless payments are preferred however cash payments will be accepted.
Toilets will operate on a 1 in 1 out basis in both Ladies and Gents except where small children can be accompanied by an adult.
Please bear in mind that we are all getting used to the new procedures and during busy periods you may have to queue or wait for your drinks order, please be patient and our staff will ensure you are served as soon as possible. Please also see our FAQs and our Risk Assessment document for more information.
We have formed a partnership with The Hut for a collection and eat-in food service at HCC and ‘The Hut by the Wickets’ will be up and running on the 4th July 2020 for our reopening. The Hut will then be open from Friday to Sunday each week.
Please visit their website at www.thehutrossendale.co.uk or see them on Facebook and download their App.
We hope that the ECB & The Government will provide us with promising news about the return of cricket sooner rather than later.
See you Saturday!
The HCC Committee
Coronavirus Update
5th June 2020
We thought it would be a good time to update you regarding the club and cricket in general. We hope that all of our members and supporters are safe and well and making what they can of these difficult times. With the drop in infection numbers, it does seem that we are now past the worst of the initial Coronavirus outbreak and there does appear to be some light at the end of the tunnel.
From a financial point of view, the enforced closure of the club’s facilities has resulted in a drastically reduced revenue. A full diary of function bookings have had to be cancelled and currently our only regular income is from the HCC Monthly Draw. At £5 per number per month we thank everyone who has joined so far, but we are always on the lookout for new members and if you feel able to join in, please let us know (more information on the HCC Monthly Draw is here).
We would also like to thank all of those members and players who have been able to pay their membership fees to support the club at this difficult time. The good news is that we are confident that we are covered in respect of all of our financial commitments in the short to medium term. We have been able to take advantage of the Government Business Rates grant and we have also secured funding from the Sport England Community Emergency Fund and from the Warburtons Community Fund. This enables us to continue to pay all of the bills that we cannot avoid such as utilities and insurances.
We should now be well into the cricket season and with the excellent weather of late April and May, we would barely have missed a ball so far which is hugely frustrating. We are entirely in the hands of the government and the ECB for any prospect for cricket being played and with the Lancashire League’s initial plan for a July start being no longer workable, we wait to see when or if we will be allowed to take to the field. However in a more positive development, we have worked hard to implement procedures which adhere to the recently announced strict ECB guidelines to allow players young and old to practice in the nets. We will endeavour to keep all members updated regarding any further developments with regard to training or indeed play.
On a day to day basis, the club continues to function. Ian Cameron is cutting the grass and keeping the whole ground in fantastic condition so that we are ready for any play we may have this season.
We thank you for your support through these difficult and unprecedented times. If anyone feels that they need support, the organisation Opening Up promotes positive mental health to clubs, players and coaches and they are offering a number of online resources to support people at this time.
In the meantime, stay safe and look after yourselves and we hope to be back open again soon.
16th May 2020
The committee is looking at the most recently published ECB guidelines (https://www.ecb.co.uk/news/1668576/ecb-guidelines-for-the-use-of-outdoor-cricket-facilities-in-lockdown) regarding the safe use of our net facilities and will communicate with everyone shortly. Until proper plans are put in place and are communicated, the practice facilities at the club remain closed.
12th May 2020
We have received several enquiries about the possibility of resuming cricket practice in light of the updated guidance from the Government issued last night.
The guidance mentions exercise and sport but raises several detailed questions which need to be addressed. Until such time that the ECB issues updated guidance (which they have said that they hope to do later this week see this link: https://www.ecb.co.uk/news/1667951/ecb-update-on-the-recreational-game-12-may) the club and its facilities, including the outdoor nets, remain closed and should not be used until further notice.
Thank you for your continued support and we hope that there will be some positive news very soon.