Officials at Horncastle Cricket Club frustrated after damage to equipment

Damage has been caused to covers at Horncastle Cricket Club.

Officials at the club say vandalism has been an ongoing issue for many years - with incidents such as broken windows and roof tiles, damaged fence panels, and dog poo being smeared on the pavilion walls.

Tom Wilkinson, from Horncastle Cricket Club, said: “Vandalism is a problem the club has been fighting for many years now.

“The latest episode of vandalism happened this weekend which resulted in severe damage to the covers which are used to keep the grass wicket dry and therefore usable when we get wet weather.

“The vandals have bent the frames of the covers and damaged the covering causing hundreds of pounds worth of damage.

“It is soul-destroying for all those involved at the club that we are continually targeted by mindless idiots whose lives are so dull they get a kick out of ruining sports facilities used by the local community.

“How did we get into this sad state of affairs?”

The club is run by volunteers who give up their time free of charge so the men, women, girls and boys of Horncastle have somewhere to play cricket. The club has a thriving junior section which is used by boys and girls from five years old up to 15.

Tom has stressed that the club does not have an issue with people using the cricket field, but says respect should be shown by taking rubbish home and respecting club property.

He added: “I hope that the community can pull together to protect this sporting asset.

“We are a small club with limited financial resources. The money we have should be spent on improving facilities, buying better equipment for the junior players or sending volunteers on coaching courses to improve the standard of coaching.

“Instead we are having to spend an awful lot of money just to protect our existing equipment from vandals, including building a cage to protect the covers.

“It is a sad reflection on Horncastle and society generally but it is the reality I am afraid.”

Horncastle Cricket Club says the latest damage is thought to have been caused by a group of youths at around 3pm on Sunday (July 11).