Calder Valley tour

Posted by Peter Davies

First up Sowerby St. Peter's, in the shadow of the local parish church and the newly redeveloped local comprehensive. A sunny early afternoon with an enthusiastic club official erecting new benches in front of the pavilion and two experienced tea ladies, inside the pavilion, talking about the changes they have seen in tea-making over the years. They also explained the new package for matchday sponsors: a marquee for 12 at a cost of £200. Imaginative thinking!

Then to Bridgeholme, the western outpost of the Halifax League - almost in Todmorden. King Cross were the visitors and the sun was shining brightly in this part of Calderdale. Supporters had come from far afield - one had come from as far away as Hyde, Cheshire. 'Mr Bridgeholme' - Keith Hudson - was making tea during the interval. He's also the club groundsman, league rep and child protection officer, and was also about to open the Bridgeholme innings. He also probably does 85 other jobs at the club! Unfortunately, he didn't last long with the bat. Too many other things on his mind perhaps. Trains seemed to be going past on the nearby line almost every 10 minutes - the Rochdale-Halifax service. With a number of Asian players playing in the match, the half-time food was samosas and sandwiches. One of the stalwart Bridgeholme supporters watching from outside the pavilion said he was an acquaintance of Brian Heywood - the man behind the wonderful history of Todmorden CC, Cloth Caps and Cricket Crazy (with his mother and father too), and a part-time researcher on the Cricket Heritage Project.

Finally, Mytholmroyd, looking totally gorgeous in the late-afternoon sun (it got chilly later). There, Warley were batting, chasing the home side's 200+ score for victory. Mytholmroyd president Nigel Robinson was happy to field compliments about the setting, the state of the ground (perfect) and the amount of seats on the boundary edge (20+). Earlier in the afternoon a fielder had been hit on the head by a throw in from the boundary and play had been delayed for several minutes. There were pork pies, scotch eggs and mini-pasties aplenty in the pavilion - and some fantastic scones too (with jam and cream). By the pavilion, Warley groundsman Mick Holroyde was enjoying a wonderful view of the action and postulating how long his prolific brother-in-law Andrew Oates has left as a frontline batsman (as many years as he wants was the conclusion). Mick has contributed some excellent photos to the Warley page of the project website - and he reminded me that he had once described the project website as "living history". A great description. Also on the boundary edge, Warley opener Nolan Bottomley was explaining the Warley team's post-match routine: always a couple of drinks at the club pub - The Winterburn - and then a wander through Sowerby Bridge town centre and its many hostelries. That's where they'll be about now: 10pm Saturday night.