Queensland Ground Attacked

Vandals hit new Queensland ground for six.

Stuart Cumming.

Sunshine Coast Daily.

Tuesday, 14 November 2017.

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Vandals in south-east Queensland ripped boards off a new sightscreen and torn down sections of a white picket boundary fence at the Buderim Cricket Club's home ground on Saturday evening.  It came after the club formed a partnership with University of the Sunshine Coast to launch the ground last month, a project that cost the Sunshine Coast Council around $A270,000 (£UK157,410).

Club president Jeff Bradfield said he went straight to the ground after being told of the damage on Sunday morning.  He said: "It is really disappointing to all the people involved who put all of the hard work in.  Ultimately it is a community asset.  We are trying to help build a better community”.  The cost of repairs to the plastic composite palings and beams is expected to run into the thousands of dollars.

The club's junior coordinator Chris Agapow said the Buderim women's team were due to have their first home game at the grounds this coming Sunday.  "It would have been nice to have everything ship shape for them”, said Agapow.  He indicated though the club would have to get the damage fixed and move on for "Hopefully it is just a one off”.

Arson attack could lead to Manchester club’s demise.

Manchester Evening News.

Friday, 10 November 2017.

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A cricket clubhouse in Lancashire has been burnt to the ground in what some claim is a race hate attack, arsonists striking the Fothergill and Harvey Cricket Club in Littleborough on Bonfire Night.  That incident came a week after a break-in at the club which saw about £UK10,000 ($A17,220) of damage caused and racist graffiti sprayed on the walls.  Committee members at the 40-year-old club, which is made up predominantly of Asian players, believe the two incidents are linked and fear the team could now be forced to fold.

First team player and committee member Kamran Afzal, 34, said: “It is disgusting. The club is like a second home to a lot of us. The players put money in from our own pockets to keep it going and we do all the work on the pitch and ground ourselves.  It is very clearly a hate crime and we have reported it to police as a hate crime.  We occasionally get kids shouting racist abuse at us during games and training sessions as they cycle past on the canal towpath, but we have never seen anything like this before”.

Kamran, who has played for the team for seven years, says the club, whose first team were Greater Manchester League Division Five champions last season, could now be forced to fold.  The clubhouse was uninsured and he indicated the committee cannot afford to rebuild it from club coffers, saying: “At this stage we do not know if we are going to be able play cricket next year. If we do not get the funding to rebuild it the club will have to close down. There is only about £UK600 ($A1,035) in the club’s funds - we cannot afford to rebuild it ourselves.  I am really worried about the future of the club and its really disturbing that this could happen”.

Other cricket clubs in the area have expressed their disgust at the attack and offered to helo where possible.  Richard Holland, secretary of Littleborough Lakeside Cricket Club, said: “It’s a real shame. There is a lot of history between our two clubs. We’ve been in the same league for a number of years and a few of our lads have played there, and some of them have played for us.  Over the last few years they have worked really hard to get the club to the situation they are in now. We will help them in any way we can, in terms of groundsmen or helping out with any equipment that might have been lost”.

A Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service spokeswoman said two fire engines were sent to the club and that crews spent three hours fighting the flames. They indicated that the cause of the blaze is under investigation.

Safe stolen from Blackburn club 'only held ball’.

BBC News.

Monday, 9 October 2017.

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A burglar who dragged a safe across a cricket field before abandoning it would only have found a match ball inside, say officials from Blackburn's East Lancashire Sports Club.  The thief, who broke into the club rooms on Sunday damaging windows and doors, lugged the safe down stairs and across the ground before ditching it unopened.

The club's Janet Clark said the safe's weight was due to the concrete in its base and not its contents.  If he had unlocked it, "he would have found a ball worth £UK18.59 ($A31.50)”, she added.  The club lost the safe’s key two years ago, but were certain there was only the ball inside, she said.  It has been returned to its original place in the clubhouse by Clark's husband and a police officer, who used "a trolley" to move it, as "it was so heavy”.

Lancashire Police said a 39-year-old man has been charged with burglary, however, they did not indicate what the condition of his back is.