Cricket grounds in the far north-east

By Mike Latham

The Northumberland and Tyneside Cricket League covers a vast expanse of the north-east, and caters for cricketers of all ages, shapes, sizes and abilities. It is a superbly run league with an excellent website and the players, officials and umpires have to be dedicated as there are some big distances to travel, though the lower leagues are regionalised.

As a guide to the league, at the start of an occasional series, I thought I’d feature the clubs in the far north-east. All the clubs featured here competed in the Alnwick & District Cricket League (A&DCL) which sadly became defunct after the 2013 season, faced with a declining number of member clubs.

Cricket historians will look back on the second decade of this century and reflect just how many long-standing cricket leagues disappeared during that time. The A&DCL dated back to the early 1900s.

Bamburgh Castle CC

Bamburgh Castle CC, a popular choice for Sunday friendly games on the castle green, as I recently featured in a Blog, is the iconic ground in this part of the world. But all the grounds featured are well worth a visit.

If planning to watch cricket in these parts, maybe as part of a holiday, it’s worth bearing in mind that cup-ties are played midweek, usually on in May and June Thursdays until the later stages and very little cricket is played on Sundays apart from friendlies at Bamburgh and occasionally at other clubs in the area. Thankfully, these are publicised far better these days than in the past.

Berwick CC

I’ve covered the most northerly member club, Berwick CC in a recent blog and so I’ll begin the journey inland in the picture postcard village of Etal, where the peace and tranquillity is far removed from its turbulent past, often the scene of bloody battles between warring tribes and armies.

Tillside CC

Tillside Cricket Club takes its name from the River Till and is about ten miles inland, south-west from Berwick-upon-Tweed. There are many tourist attractions in the locality but for those of us who prefer watching cricket on summer Saturdays a visit to Tillside CC is a joy.

With plenty of car parking, a modern newly constructed pavilion, an electronic scoreboard, good vantage points and distant views of the Cheviots it is a wonderful place to spend a few hours and the locals are friendly. Though located in a sparsely populated area, Tillside is a great community club with junior teams, two Saturday teams, a Sunday team and a women’s and girls’ section. They also play occasional midweek games, sometimes venturing across the border to play their friends from Kelso. The ground is kept in immaculate condition and is a credit to all concerned.

Wooler CC

Another outpost of the summer game is at Wooler, a small town on St Cuthbert’s Way that runs from Melrose to Lindisfarne. Close to the Cheviots and the Iron Age fort at Yeavering Bell, the cricket ground is on Brewery Road and has glorious sweeping views. I first visited for a Twenty20 Final in the A&DCL nearly ten years ago when a large crowd was in attendance on a sunny afternoon. The club fields one senior team in the lower reaches of the league and like many smaller clubs in remote areas relies on a small group of dedicated enthusiasts to keep the cricket flag flying.

Warenford CC

More cars must pass Warenford CC in a day than some grounds in a decade, located as it is next to the A1 between Alnwick and Berwick. Some distance from the village and its well-known pub the White Swan, the ground has a small pavilion and, located as it is on the brow of a hill, great views of the distant coastline.  Another club with just one team, in the lower reaches of the league, but maintaining a village tradition for having a cricket club.

Embleton CC

Embleton CC struggle to field a team on some summer Saturdays, but battle on, playing behind the village hall on a playing field shared with soccer. Just inland from the stunning coastline, the wide expanse of Embleton Bay, the ruins of Dunstanburgh Castle and a fine headland walk down to the old fishing village of Craster this is another beautiful location. There’s a Good Beer Guide pub, the Greys Inn next door and it’s dog friendly so scores on all fronts as far as I’m concerned.

Rock CC

Rock CC was recognised in 2018 by the M&TCL as the ‘ground of the year’ and there seems plenty of enthusiasm and village spirit at another beautiful ground where the huge Northumbrian skies are seen to their best advantage.

Howick

Finally, Howick CC went defunct some years ago, but cricket is maintained at the historic ground in the grounds of Howick Hall as Almouth & Lesbury CC stage third team games there, under the name of Howick, Alnmouth & Lesbury. The ground is surrounded by trees and looks as though it was constructed out of a clearing in the forest. It’s not the easiest ground to find, either, but well worth the effort. The hall has magnificent gardens and an arboretum that is open to visitors and has been the ancestral seat of the Earls Gray since the 14th century, with the famous tea named after the 2nd Earl.

The most prominent clubs in the area are Alnmouth & Lesbury, league champions in 2019, and Alnwick CC, one of the oldest clubs in the county. I’ll take you on a tour of their grounds and others further south like Morpeth, Ulgham and Mitford in a future blog.