A Grand Old Place

Saturday 7 August

Posted by Peter Davies

A North Kirklees afternoon. Initially, Gomersal in the sun where I had arranged to meet Mike Lowden, a History student who lives in Gomersal and who had just graduated with a superb 1st Class degree. Mike was at the bar when I arrived, ordering his drink so he also bought me a J20. We went to sit outside and he explained how he had never been to the cricket ground even though he lived only a few hundred yards away. He is now weighing up getting a job v carrying on with some kind of postgraduate study.

Gomersal’s ground was looking good in the August sun – very trim and well appointed. Always very busy in the bar area with many people, it appears, using the club as a social club – watching the racing, for example – rather than a cricket club specifically. Dad joined us and had a chat with Mike too. Mike is also a big New York fan, having visited the city many times in recent years. Lucky him – I’m very jealous.

After an hour or so we moved on to Cleckheaton. We parked for a change on the ‘other side‘ of the ground – near the enormous roundabout rather than the changing rooms. We had arrived at teatime – how convenient – but there was little food available. So we contented ourselves with a cup of tea and a nice sit-down just outside the tearoom area.

Finally, Hartshead Moor, always one of my favourites on account of its slightly dated feel: the old scorebox, the old pavilion, and even old and now disused turnstiles and signage. Always feels pretty spacious too – a grand old place now trying to acclimatise to the twenty-first century. We had a nice sit in front of the pavilion and then caught the football results as we got into the car to head back to Huddersfield.