Get Set Weekend: Lancashire Cricket Foundation aids local clubs
At the beginning of the month, members of staff from the Lancashire Cricket Foundation attended two local clubs as a part of the Get Set Weekend, ahead of the 2025 season.
The event takes place over one designated weekend every year, encouraging clubs to prepare their grounds and facilities for the upcoming season. Bacup Cricket Club was the first ground to receive assistance from Lancashire Cricket representatives this year.
Members and volunteers from the club, alongside the Lancashire Cricket foundation, all got stuck in, ensuring that all facilities were up to scratch by the end of the day. Some of the tasks included painting, cleaning changing room facilities and attending to the outfield.
By the end of the day, the ground’s appearance looked refreshed and ready for another season of play.
Bacup CC’s Chairman, Neal Wilkinson said:
“We’re so grateful for the Lancashire Cricket Foundation coming along today and providing all this help, we’re very appreciative. The players will be absolutely delighted because they’ll be able to concentrate on practising and playing rather than carrying benches around and worrying about cleaning.”
Get set weekend allows players to fully focus on their games instead of worrying about facilities.
Bacup CC player, Chirag Khurana said:
“This is a great thing for the club and a real positive thing for our community.”. The ground is looking nice so hopefully it will attract more visitors and from there, we can build up a bigger audience for our games.”
The following day saw the Foundation offering their assistance again, but this time at Wythenshawe Cricket Club. The Club used the day to shine a light on the volunteers and community that the club is built around, reflecting that the Get Set weekend is not held solely for maintenance purposes, but also to engage the community.
One volunteer said that, “The day has brought a family together”. Another said, “It’s nice to see that so many people are willing to volunteer and help the club.”
Parents and players of all ages and genders were in attendance with jobs available for everyone. The day consisted of different tasks such as amending the sightscreen, sorting the nets out, laying down the boundary rope and painting.
One of the female youth players said: “We need the club to look welcoming so we can try and get more girls to play here.”
Wythenshawe CC provides a boy’s and a girl’s youth team, but they are hoping that the weekend will help to encourage more females to get involved in cricket.
Club Junior Cricket secretary and Safeguarding officer, Tracey Bailey said: “It’s important that we can provide proper facilities. If a girl wants to play and there’s no separate changing room for her or no sanitary facilities, she’s not going to want to play.”
“A lot of our female players have come down today to help out, hopefully that can inspire more girls to get involved.”
The annual event gives clubs the opportunity to review and revamp facilities where attention is needed. There were also some guest appearances from Lancashire Cricketer, Kesh Fonseka, as well as England players Sophie Ecclestone and Sarah Glenn.
Kesh Fonseka said: “It’s good for the younger players to get involved and really feel like they’re a part of the club.”
Sophie Ecclestone said: “I help with Get Set weekend at my club in Cheshire, so it’s very exciting to see what other clubs are doing. There’s always a lot of volunteers and that’s what cricket is about, bringing the community together.”