Upcoming Events
| Tue May 22 @ 2:00PM - 16:00PM Drop in at St Andrews Church |
| Tue May 22 @ 6:30PM - 20:00PM Guides |
| Tue May 22 @ 7:00PM - Short Mat Bowls |
| Wed May 23 @ 9:00AM - Keep Fit |
| Wed May 23 @ 3:15PM - Youth Moves |
| Wed May 23 @ 6:45PM - 20:30PM Scouts |
| Wed May 23 @ 7:30PM - Bell Ringing |
| Wed May 23 @ 7:30PM - 20:30PM Pilates with Sue at the School |
| Thu May 24 @ 4:30PM - Brownies |
| Thu May 24 @ 4:30PM - Rainbows |
| Thu May 24 @ 6:30PM - Rotary Club of Langport and Somerton |
| Fri May 25 @ 8:00PM - 'Come Dancing' Classes |
| Sun May 27 @ 8:00AM - Cycling Club |
| Sun May 27 @10:30AM - Sunday Service at United Reform Church |
| Mon May 28 @ 6:45PM - 20:30PM Explorer Scouts |
Community Login
Sports Clubs Cricket Club Cricket Club gets 'Chance to Shine'
| Cricket Club gets 'Chance to Shine' |
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| Written by Peter Sleightholme |
| Wednesday, 07 September 2011 07:24 |
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Curry Rivel Cricket Club can boast that it is the oldest club in the village with centenary birthday celebrations but a distant memory. A long tradition like ours needs to be nurtured and maintained and this is exactly what is happening at the Club’s headquarters in Wiltown. With a respectful nod to the past the Club focuses very much on the future supporting as it does a thriving junior and youth section. This year the club was selected to join ‘Chance to Shine’ a nationwide programme run by the Cricket Foundation, supported by Brit Insurance, which aims to regenerate competitive cricket in a third of all state schools by 2015. That Curry Rivel Cricket Club’s application to take part in the Somerset programme was successful is an achievement in itself, it is one of the seventeen chosen clubs out of the total of 150 cricket clubs in the county. In this, the first year of a five year programme, funding from the ‘Chance to Shine’ programme enabled Dave Peck, the Club’s junior and youth coach to provide cricket coaching to children at Curry Rivel, Curry Mallet, Hambridge and Kingsbury Episcopi Primary Schools. As a result children in these schools, as well as their teachers, have enjoyed the opportunity to learn cricket with a professional coach.
Through the scheme the Club has also been able to host a girls’ training session and tournament led by Caroline Atkins a member of the winning England Women’s Ashes team. The girls had a fantastic day and inspired by Caroline will hopefully continue to play cricket in a girls’ team which we hope to launch next season. This season more than sixty children aged between five and sixteen have been playing in one of our many teams. We owe a debt of gratitude to Sean and Karen Hogg, Graeme Crosbie and Dick Horsey for the many hours they give voluntarily to managing and coaching the teams. Training takes place on Sunday mornings and the youngsters have played competitive league and cup cricket in their various age groups. One of the parents said, ‘I never new cricket could be so exciting’, which amply describes the majority of the games played. But being a member is not just about learning cricketing skills it is also about developing teamwork and leadership skills, winning and losing with good grace and making friends. Our children have behaved very well and proved to be great ambassadors for the Club and the village. The Club would also like to acknowledge the hard work put into making a good wicket and pitch and safe ground, by Peter Tilley, Derek and Wendy Devereux. We must thank the Parish Council for making their work a bit easier by agreeing last year to award a grant to fund a replacement cricket roller. Without the Parish Council’s initial funding of £800 we would not have been in the position to unlock over £7500 of grant funding from various other sources for a new roller. Next year our aim is to continue to offer children the opportunity to play cricket in a safe and friendly environment and hopefully run another cricket tour following the successful trips to Cornwall and Monmouthshire in previous years. |
