Visiting grounds I have only visited once before

posted by John Winn

A friend of a friend is a football 'groundhopper' supreme, and one who, undaunted by all his travelling being done by public transport, he is no stranger to midnight buses from Teesside to London, has polished off all the grounds in The Southern League. But even Homer nods, for a few years ago he made his way to Folkestone only to discover that he had visited the ground before: a change of name had misled him. Something similar happened to me yesterday albeit on a slightly smaller scale, for having set a course for the Hillside Rural Activities Park, Thirsk, I realised on arrival that like the Teesside traveller I had been there before.

The game in progress was as advertised, Nidderdale League, Division 8, Thirsk III v Rainton II with the home team batting and making slow progress as this picture shows. I asked some Thirsk players for  their suggestions as to whom I might have seen on my previous visit but no reply  struck the right note until on a circuit of the large playing area I put the question to fine leg who had little doubt that it would have been Northallerton Wolves. Bingo, for on consulting my records at home last evening I see an entry for 20th June 2009, Northallerton Wolves v Dacre Banks II. Wolves were,
 I think the county town's fourth team but sad to say they now only run two senior sides.

The Rural Activities Park is a large well maintained space and as well as cricket, houses football but on a colder day it  might be a little bracing if the wind was in the North. . Yesterday there was but a gentle breeze from the west and plenty of blue sky. Thirsk got up to 126 before being dismissed and it took Rainton until the forty second over to complete a six wicket win. Whilst in the area I headed next for a ground whose title rightly suggests something other than cricket is its primary purpose, namely Thirsk Racecourse the headquarters of Thirsk CC where cricket is played  inside the circuit followed by the horses. I knew I had been here before, on a scorching day in 2007, and yesterday's fare was Thirsk II v Middleham II and up a division form the first match. Middleham batting here and no doubt feeling at home on a racecourse were going along nicely at about four an over, reaching 196 for 8 off their 45 with the homesters hanging on for a losing draw at 117 for 8. A distance in racing parlance.

 Cricket at the races

By now I was in the groove for visiting grounds that I had previously only visited once before, almost to the point where I could pretend that it had been my intention all along and just a couple of miles up the road I stopped off at South Kilvington, a small ground wedged between the A19 and the busy Thirsk to Northallerton road. The trusty notebook says I was previously here on the same day as I had been to Hillside and had seen South Kilvington take on Pately Bridge II. Yesterday, however the tenants were at home for Sessay III also  play here and their visitors were Vale of York outfit Raskelf II. Tea was being taken and there was a friendly welcome and an opportunity to study the scorebook which showed that Raskelf had suffered a mid innings collapse to go from 45 for 1  to 55 for 8 and 68 all out. The ground has a lovely new wooden pavilion in traditional style, opened in 2013 by the then local MP, with central tea rooms and 'dressing rooms off'. I enjoyed a cup of tea on the verandah* while I worked out how to spell veranda  and watched Sessay's young opening pair make a slow start at about a run an over. Wickets soon began to fall and when I left it was 9 for 3. The website this morning shows that Sessay's more experienced players saw them through but not before they lost three more wickets.

Sessay CC

Finally and not too far away, another ground visited only once before and this time a step up to Sessay I and the York League with Pickering the visitors in a Division 1 game. I think it might be as long as ten years since last I was at  the immaculately kept Main Street enclosure and a decent sized crowd had assembled in pleasant early evening sunshine. Sessay can trace their roots back to the mid 19th century and their proudest moment came in 2010 when they won the National Village KO at Lord's beating Shipton under Wychwood by 7 wickets. A sign of Sessay's pedigree was the presence of a wagtail on the outfield: such birds are raely seen away from county grounds.  In the scorebox for Pickering was my friend Trevor Gilham and the book showed Pickering 164 for 8 off 48 overs and Sessay, led by former York and Woodlands star Simon Mason who finished on 90 not out were very comfortable winners by 7 wickets.

Tomorrow to Darlington for SEC game with The Pears visiting: next Saturday grounds I have only visited on the first Saturday in June.

* the 'h' is optional but allowable (OED)

Answers to last week's quiz (or was it the week before) only Cook, Bell and Anderson survive from the Headingley test of 2010.