Hoping for a full season of cricket - and it's not too late to join a club

After the clocks went forward last month the estimated 300,000 of us in England that play cricket knew that meant it was finally time to clean up and organise the kit that’s been festering in the corner of the garage since late September.

Condolences to anyone who’s last game of 2020 was interrupted by rain.

It may not be the heat of summer, but there’s nothing like an early April friendly to whet your appetite for the season ahead- the temperature in single figures as you remember which items of kit you had planned to buy in the close season sales, but never got round to sorting.

In seasons gone by you would find yourself standing at mid-on with three jumpers tightly hugging your slightly-larger-than-last-year midriff, hoping it was the last time you’d feel this cold on a cricket pitch.

Then last April, locked down for the foreseeable future, there was nothing you’d love more than the chance to sit de-misting the car after a golden duck in the opposite corner of the county.

But while getting any cricket in last year was a success story in itself, hopes in 2021 are for a full season after the Prime Minister’s Roadmap allowed for outdoor sport (including cricket fixtures and coaching) to begin from March 29, in line with government guidance.

Local leagues have already published fixture lists and the majority aim for an opening weekend of games next weekend, many clubs opting to pencil in friendlies before then in a last-ditch attempt to get somewhat match-fit seeing as indoor training hasn’t been possible.

One such club is Revesby, who have planned a trip to Grimoldby on Sunday before their second team visit Heckington in league action a week later; the firsts beginning their Lincoln & District League Premier campaign away at Lindum on April 25.

The club, which added a second team in 2019 and saw participation grow once more despite the pandemic last year, have welcomed a number of new faces in recent years and are hoping to attract further cricketers of all ages and abilities to help maintain the strength of both their sides.

If you are a cricketer looking for regular games or a new-comer keen to learn more about the sport, contact Simon May (07472 059200) or Rob Jeffery (07593 862805) to get involved.