Following the initial announcement of their emergency support funding last month, the ECB has released details of a third funding scheme designed to support affiliated leagues through interest-free loans.
Nick Pryde, ECB's Director of Participation and Growth, said: "We're pleased to be able to offer a new League Emergency Loan Scheme to help affiliated cricket leagues during the current shutdown of the sport.
"It has been great to see clubs receiving financial support through national and local government schemes, as well as through the ECB's emergency support funding, which launched last month, and now we are in a position to help leagues across England and Wales with the costs they will incur in 2020, regardless of whether cricket is able to return this summer.
"Leagues will be able to apply for a loan of up to £50,000 to cover a number of unrecoverable costs incurred for the 2020 season, as well as assisting towards the cost of cricket balls purchased for the year.
"Everyone across the sport is hoping we will see recreational cricket played across England and Wales this summer and at the ECB we're working closely with the Government to establish when and how it will be safe to resume play."
League Emergency Loan Scheme
The ECB League Emergency Loan Scheme aims to support affiliated cricket leagues (open-age and junior leagues) during the COVID-19 crisis through the provision of interest-free loans.
Who can apply?
Open-age and junior leagues affiliated direct to ECB, or a partnership agreement via their County Cricket Board (CCB) or the National Asian Cricket Council (NACC), National Cricket Conference (NCC) or Afro-Caribbean Cricket Association (ACCA) in 2019 or 2020.
What will the scheme fund?
• The cost of cricket balls, plus unrecoverable costs above £2,000  in the 2020 season, which may include:
• The cost of block booking/hire of grounds
• The cost associated with the production of league handbooks
• The cost of purchase of kit and/or equipment 
• The cost of staging events
How much loan can a league apply for ?
Up to £50,000. If a league requires a loan exceeding this limit, please contact the ECB facilities help desk by emailing loans@ecb.co.uk.
How do I apply ? 
Leagues should  apply by clicking here.
Before applying, it is highly recommended leagues read the League Emergency Loan Scheme guidance notes.
Where do I go for help ?
If leagues have any questions about the League Emergency Loan Scheme please read the frequently asked questions  or contact the ECB facilities help desk by emailing  loans@ecb.co.uk. 

Hampshire League County Division 1 champions 1986, won 11 lost 1.
Australian Jamie Snadden topped both the CD1 batting and bowling charts with 475 runs and 46 wickets, respectively. Prominent too were Dave Lewis (466) and Graham Pardey (342). Lorne Hunt (22), Don Read (21) and Don Whitlock (16) featured in the bowling averages.
​Standing (from left): Sid Charman (scorer), Cliff Everitt, Dave Lewis, Don Read, Jamie Snadden, Graham Pardey, John Hardy (umpire). Seated: Brian Vibert, Andie Currie, Don Whitlock, Tony King, Lorne Hunt, Martin Herbert.

For many years Fiona Newnham has been scoring for Ventnor Cricket Club and is currently the first team manager. She has sat in score boxes all around the south of England and even at Lords. It would be fascinating to know how many  opposition scorers actually realised they were sat next to a former world record holder ?
John Hannam, the Isle of Wight’s highly respected writer and broadcaster, takes up the story …
Fiona Brothers, on water, was once the fastest woman on earth in her inshore powerboat. Her top speed was 130 mph.
When I first met Fiona, back in 1992, I quickly realised how lucky I was to be even in her company. She'd had an horrendous accident at Bodymoor Heath Water, near Birmingham, in 1983 and was so lucky not to lose her life. It was a dangerous sport and six of her contemporaries did not have the same good fortune.
      Inshore powerboat racing all began when Fiona and her younger brother Chris bought a class 3 boat with an 850cc engine for weekend fun in their home county of Gloucestershire, away from their stressful day jobs in London. 
They entered local competitions just for the pure enjoyment of it all. At the end of that season they had both qualified for licenses to race anywhere in Britain. That did create one major problem, as Fiona explained.
"It was really crunch time and we couldn't afford two boats. He could never go quite as fast as I could. Mainly because he was heavier than me and that makes quite a difference. He'd also just got married."
That was in 1979 and the following year she raced in the intermediate class. In 1981 Fiona was racing on the world F1 circuit.
Was she a natural racer? "No not really but I was quite logical and could work things out. When you got into it there was no doubt it was mostly seat of pants time. You also raced by instinct and that was the only way you could win." 
                                                                                Fierce competitor
Fiona could often beat the opposition before they even got on to the water. She was gifted at being able to psyche the others up and was such a fierce competitor. Often the boats were just a few feet apart, unlike the seagoing variety.
It was not a glamorous sport and finding sponsors was such a necessity and she did have some luck with major companies. After a racing weekend, it was back to being a food buyer for Marks and Spencer’s head office. She bought dairy produce and fresh meat and at one time had a weekly budget of £1 million for nationwide distribution.

The year of 1981 was especially memorable for Fiona because she set a world record on a stretch of water near Nottingham. She was representing England that weekend and the racing finished on the Bank Holiday Monday. 
The other competitors went out for drinks to celebrate but she went to bed early, as the following morning at 5am she was going for a world record. She broke it with an average speed of 116.72mph. This went unbroken for ten years and even Sir Donald Campbell's daughter, Gina, failed in several attempts.
The following year Fiona, who was the only lady qualified to race in F1 world inshore powerboat racing, was in with a real chance of becoming the world champion. Four of them were in the running. I think she fancied her chances against the three men. It was on the Seine in Paris. The winner would clinch it. She was going well in the heats in the last event of the season. It was not to be and a breakdown put her out of the competition.
It was still a great year and she had the bonus of marrying an Islander. She had known Keith Newnham many years earlier but they met up again in 1981, on the Island. Sadly, Keith, one of the nicest guys you could ever wish to meet, died in 2018. He did such a lot for both Ventnor Cricket Club and Ventnor Football Club.
                                                                                        Pancake roll
In 1983 at Bodymoor Heath she won the first heat of the championship but had a slow start to the second race.
"I had to quickly overtake the rest of the field and was very close to the speeding boat of Jonathan Jones, who later became a world champion. His boat started to lift and cartwheel and once that happens all the air around your boat gets displaced and mine went after him. I did a pancake roll and the boat landed upside down with me in it. That's all I could remember."
Fiona fractured her skull and fragments of the bone cut the nerves to her face. She was unconscious for 36 hours. Luckily, she was treated by a specialist in nerve disorders in Zurich and, eventually, made a good recovery and overcame speech problems. She was back racing four months later but now, in hindsight, she admits it was too soon. She did go for one more season before deciding to retire.

In more recent years she has become famous as a cricket scorer. The highlight being when she scored for South Africa at Lord’s in a one-day international with England in September 2002. 
“It was a truly memorable day,” Fiona recalls. “There were seven officials in the scorer’s room, the people who ran the text details on the rolling screens, computer records and scorebook input. 
“We had lunch alongside Graham Smith, the towering captain of South Africa, and with ICC umpires Simon Taufel and Richard Illingworth.”
                                                                                       Tutoring
Being a man, obviously, I can't multi-task. Once when I was watching Ventnor play a Southern League match at Newclose I just marvelled at her skills. 
Fiona found time to beautifully record the details in the scorebook, acknowledge the umpire's signals, update the ground's electronic scoreboard, answer phone calls from the press and update the scores on the Ventnor website.
She also assesses umpires and scorers at national level, besides tutoring for Hampshire and the Isle of Wight.
I was once told when she was driving the Ventnor team minibus she drove over her precious laptop. I've never been brave enough to ask her if this was true. I do know she drives rather quickly when trying to get the Red Funnel car ferry back after a mainland match.
Apparently Fiona, who retired from the Island's NHS Trust in 2019, has had to learn all about gardening, since Keith died. Just between us, she thought she had a lovely gladioli in her newly weeded flower bed - only to find out it was a wild onion !

This article is reproduced by kind permission of the Isle of Wight County Press.

Bournemouth spin all-rounder James Hands [pictured] and Hungerford’s Toby Radford etched their names into the record books by becoming the first players to score centuries in the ECB Southern Electric Premier League, which debuted on 6 May 2000.
Hands made 103 and shared a 143-run opening partnership with South African Mike Stonier (55) in Bournemouth’s 76-run win at Cove, who had joined the SPL from the Thames Valley League.   Radford made 109 in Hungerford’s emphatic 106-run victory against visiting Burridge at the War Memorial Ground.
Bournemouth posted 239-6 before dismissing Cove for 163, left-armer Mark Ligermoet taking 3-39 after Hampshire left-hand prospect Jimmy Adams (35) top scored for the North Hampshire hosts.
Hands, a top order batsman and left-arm spin bowler, was already established in Cornwall’s Minor Counties side when he began a three-year stint at Bournemouth University, where (for a spot of pocket money to supplement the odd night out) he operated the popular giant helium balloon in the Winter Gardens.  He subsequently moved to Blackheath, where took a cool 394 scalps, a total only surpassed by Andover’s Andy Hooper, with 436.  He captained Blackheath for three seasons, taking the club to the 2007 Evening Standard Cup final at The Oval and subsequently played a significant part in the North Kent club’s ECB Royal London Cup triumph in 2015, taking 22 competition wickets for only 126 runs off 61 overs !

Toby Radford [left] played for both Sussex and Middlesex before linking up with Hungerford, whom he helped in the last Southern League championship in 1999. 
His 109 underpinned Hungerford’s 225-7 (Steve Wyatt 51) against Burridge, who rolled over for 133 (Neil Cunningham 46), South African David Pryke returning 4-22.  Toby Radford is currently the West Indies batting coach.
Arguably the top billing of round 1 would have been Havant’s 18-run win over Totton & Eling.
The two sides were to dominate the SPL in the ensuring years. Andy Perry made 85 of Havant’s 225-7, while Ian Atkins (48) got Totton’s reply off to a flier. Damian Shirazi (42) gave support, while Terry Rawlins added 35 to his earlier 3-30 return with the ball.  Phil Loat (3-49) prospered in Totton’s 207-7.
Mark Miller (97) and Ian Landgown (56) shared a century stand as Andover piled up a mighty 293-3 at Bemerton, where Roger Miller (48) and Jeremy Hayward (40) also pitched in. George Allpress made an unbeaten 56 as South Wilts made 186-6 before the rains came.
The match between Calmore Sports and Bashley (Rydal) was postponed due to a waterlogged Loperwood Park pitch.
                                                                                  Top Marks
Matthew Keech, the former Hampshire & Middlesex IIs player (now involved at Canford School), hit 113 of United Services’ 232-6 against Division 1 visitors Lymington, who were dismissed for 171. Zac Morris, at that time on the County Ground staff, made 47 after taking 3-37.  US opening bowler Guy Lewis (now in Australia) took 4-29.
City neighbours Portsmouth also prospered, with Hampshire’s Lawrie Prittipaul (79) and policeman Jeff Pike (73) leading a 287-9 run charge against Liphook & Ripsley (161-9), for whom South African Steve Riley Made 54. 
Paul Marks led the way with 85 as Winchester KS scored 184-8, but then stepped aside to let Raj Naik take centre stage at Stoneham Lane, the little Indian all-rounder taking 5-23 as Trojans fell to 80 all out.
Ian Tulk’s 89 pointed OTs & Romsey to 183-7 against Hambledon, who spun out for 175 (Norris 43), principally by Nick Wood (4-38).
Hursley Park v Alton fell to the elements.

Nipping the ball about off the seam and generally bowling stump-to-stump, Richard Edwards produced a league best 6-26 as Gosport Borough routed Division 3 rivals Purbrook for 81 (Brendan Regan 3-30) before Aussie Scott Croker’s 44 not out completed a six-wicket win at The Heath.
OTs & Romsey II were pipped by one wicket in a low scoring Division 3 thriller at the BCG, where Mike May hit an unbeaten 53 for the visitors. Joe Hall weighed in with 3-41 as OTs were pegged to 135-7 in a 46-over affair.  Bashley lost nine wickets getting home after inroads created by Mukesh Morjaria (4-36) and Paul Longland (3-28).
Australian bat maker Sam Millar, who piles his trade for Overton in County 3 North nowadays, hit 68 and shared a century partnership with fellow Aussie Lee Sorfleet (57) as Old Basing piled up 231-8 against Hook & Newnham Basics, who waved the white flag as they sank to 60 all out (Keith Lovelock 25) and a thumping 171-run defeat.  Millar then took 3-24.
More Aussies were to the fore as Rowledge and Waterlooville tasted victory over Paultons (by five wickets) and New Milton, respectively.   Glen Tisdale’s 6-16 spell saw Paultons skittled for 77, while Paul Tomasi hit 78 as the Ville passed Milton’s 127 (Steve Watts 36) after a tidy 4-15 spell by Dave Oliver.
Tim Richings made an unbeaten 50 as Sparsholt got past Portsmouth II’s rain trimmed 185 (James Scott 43*) by seven wickets, while rain spared St Cross Symondians from certain defeat against Leckford.  They had lurched to 55-6 (chasing 187) when the rains came.  Mike Howard made 36 and took 3-17 for the Test Valley side.
No such joy for Lymington II, who were rolled over for 58 and thrashed by nine wickets by Easton & Martyr Worthy, for whom Andy Birch hit 45 to complete the formalities.

​​The global Covid-19 pandemic has postponed Havant’s hopes of kickstarting a revival in their playing fortunes.
No club has won more Southern Premier League titles since 2000 - the year the league attained ECB accreditation. 
Havant have scooped eight titles, and in the first 18 seasons only ever finished outside the top four twice.
However, after winning the league in 2016 and 2017, they slipped to sixth in 2018 and seventh in 2019, ​writes Simon Carter of The News, Portsmouth.
The loss of players such as Ben Walker - top run scorer in 2016 and 2017 - Rob Gibson (to Middlesex County League winners Richmond), Hampshire’s Brad Taylor and Cardiff University bound Andy Gorvin proved tough to overcome.
And while their former club were struggling last summer, two were winning titles elsewhere.
Walker’s 400 runs helped Bashley (Rydal) to win the SPL title for the first time in their history, while Gorvin was St Fagan’s leading wicket-taker with 32 at just 11.68 as the Cardiff-based club won the ECB South Wales Premier League title.
In addition to recent 1st XI woes, Havant’s 2nds were relegated from the SPL to the Hampshire League in 2018.
​The winter saw a number of changes aimed at improving the club’s overall strength and attempting to start on a path leading to a return to former glories.
                                                                                            Travelling
Long-serving all-rounder Chris Morgan replaced Chris Stone as skipper of the 1sts, while Alex Whitfield left Bedhampton to be appointed captain of the 2nds.
Morgan, despite living and working in London for a few years, has continued to travel back to Havant to play at weekends, even though he stopped travelling back to play rugby for Portsmouth.
It is now 17 years since Morgan made his 1st XI debut aged just 13 in a Southern Premier League game against Liphook & Ripsley.
He has been a regular virtually ever since, apart from the seasons 2005-2008 when, while in the sixth form at Portsmouth Grammar, he was playing for the Hampshire Academy. 

Two more club stalwarts - wicket-keeper Jeremy Bulled (who played for Liphook on the day Morgan made his debut) and batsman Andrew Galliers - accepted the roles of joint director of cricket.
As reported previously, Havant had lined up South African seam bowler Bash Walters as their overseas player.   The 33-year-old has played 121 first class matches in his native South Africa.
When the CSA (Cricket South Africa) Provincial 3-Day Cup competition was halted last month, Walters had taken 38 wickets to help Eastern Province to the top of their group. Only one other bowler had taken more.
The Provincial Cup is the second tier of first class cricket in South Africa, and Walters has also played for Warriors and Titans in the highest tier - the Four-Day Franchise Series.
Indeed, only last year he was a team-mate of Essex skipper Simon Harmer and Colin Ackermann, the top order batsman who is due to captain Leicestershire in all three formats should any county cricket be played this year.
                                                                                 Ever presents
Walters had been playing for Eastern Province this year alongside medium-pacer Siviwe Gidana, who was Havant’s overseas player in 2019. He was one of only two ever presents in the 18-game SPL season - batsman Harry Gadd was the other - and he took 20 wickets.
Unlike Walters, though, Gidana has never played top tier first class cricket in South Africa.
Havant’s SPL season had been due to start this past weekend at home to newly-promoted Division 1 champions Hook & Newnham Basics, but now will not begin until July 1 at the earliest following a recent ECB announcement.
Even that date seems unlikely at present, given Foreign Minister Dominic Raab’s comment last Sunday that it would be ‘very difficult’ for any grassroots sport to take place this summer.

Still, the Covid-19 situation is ever-changing and Bulled said the club had certain goals for the 2020 season, if and when the curtain is lifted on it.
‘We were looking to finish in the top four and hopefully reach at least the semi-finals of the T20 Cup, and following the winter recruitment were hoping the 2nds could have a good tilt at winning promotion from the county league.
‘We’d like them to be playing one league up from where they are.’
Even if Havant’s season does begin in July, almost certainly Walters won’t be arriving - the club are unlikely to want to splash out on his air fare and other expenses just for a few games that won’t have a real competitive edge of a full season of fixtures.
Bulled is also hoping that, once lockdown is eased sufficiently for grassroots sport to start again, that Havant could return to regularly fielding four men’s teams.
‘At the moment we have three, but a club of our size and history should be getting 44 players out.
‘It’s about seven or eight years since we fielded four teams, but over the winter we’ve been talking about it.’
Another plan for the 2020 season was to regularly field a Sunday XI on the weekends when the 1sts didn’t have a National Cup or T20 fixture.
                                                                                Semi-finalists
‘It’s a new initiative, the first team squad were down to play on a rota basis,’ said Bulled.
The ECB Club Championship is one competition Havant have never won, but they have got close.
They reached the semi-final in 2005 and 2012, losing to a Chris Nash-inspired Horsham (the eventual winners at Lord’s) and Wanstead & Snaresbrook respectively.
Last year Havant reached the fifth round before losing to a strong Weybridge side.
Opening the innings for Weybridge was Ben Curran - ex-Northants and brother of England pair Sam and Tom Curran - while Tom Bruce struck an unbeaten 87 off 71 balls.
The same Tom Bruce that has played 17 T20 internationals for New Zealand in recent years!
‘We have been lucky in that for most of the past 15 years the first team has looked after itself,” said Bulled.
‘We had a core of players who turned out week in and week out.
‘Over the last couple of winters a few have just naturally left - there’s been no big catalyst for them going.
‘There’s been young lads moving away to study, people moving away for work reasons.
‘We have gone from being quite competitive to not being as competitive as we were.’

As yet we have no start date for the 2020 season from the ECB and, as clubs know, there will be no chance of any cricket until 1st July.  The situation should be clarified by the Prime Minister in his Press Conference this Sunday.
Due to the decision by the Southern Premier League to stop promotions etc from 4th June, the Hampshire League has had to change its stance.  
If there is a start to recreational cricket by Saturday 4th July, the HCL will continue with the League fixtures until the end of August and the winners will win the trophy for their League.
However, there will be no promotion and relegation from each League.  The start will depend on Government and ECB advice. If cricket can only start with certain restrictions then the HCL will probably resort to friendly matches using the 2020 fixtures predominantly. 
September would not be an option for League cricket as many clubs would not have access to the ground as football takes over. We could not have some clubs available and others not.
                                                                               Cricket balls
The HCL has all the League balls for 2020 season in storage with Dukes, the manufacturers, and if they are not required for 2020 season they will be kept until 2021 season.  If clubs do manage to get some cricket in, the HCL can arrange with the manufacturers to supply them.
If there is no cricket this season, then the entry fee may rolled over to 2021 season, as will be the Handbooks although we have promised that all Clubs will be given 12 handbooks free.  There will be no handbooks for 2020 (the HCL will post part of the handbook on the website) if there is no cricket and all the statistics etc will be in the 2021 issue. 
 

Burridge have pulled off a marquee signing in left-hand all-rounder Will Donald, who has moved to the area after skippering Whitby in the North Yorkshire & South Durham League.
The 22-year old Newcastle University graduate topped the NY & SD League Division 1 batting charts last season with 649 runs, including one century and five fifty-plus scores.
He also featured in the top ten bowling averages, taking 39 wickets with his left-arm spin for Whitby, who finished fourth in Division 1, the league below the main ECB competition.
In all, Donald has made 3385 league runs for the Yorkshire seaside town club - two hundreds and 18 fifties – and taken 269 wickets, including nine five-wicket hauls.
In normal circumstances, Donald would have been looking forward to making his Burridge debut in today’s match at Alton, but all ECB Southern Premier League games, along with all cricket in the country, is currently suspended due to the on-going coronavirus crisis.
Pace bowler Oli Southon has returned to Burridge, having spent last summer with the Hampshire Academy.  He spent the winter on Queensland’s Gold Coast.

​HAMPSHIRE and OTs & Romsey left-arm pace bowler Chris Wood has opened up about his long-running gambling addiction. 
The Academy-raised former England under 19 international has revealed all about his 11-year-battle and his road to recovery through the support of the Professional Cricketers’ Trust and Sporting Chance. 
The 29-year-old has spoken to Arsenal and England legend Tony Adams in a Sporting Chance podcast where he explains how gambling had taken over his life to an extent he relied on betting to sedate his feelings. 
The talented player, who cut his teeth locally with Alton and Basingstoke & North Hants, has helped Hampshire to four white-ball trophies since his 2010 debut where he played an integral role in his county’s maiden T20 trophy. However, he has explained success brought him off-field pain through escalating his dependence on gambling. 
Wood, who recently became a father for the first time, revealed his fight with addiction throughout his entire career, writes the Daily Echo's Loreli Reddin. 
In excerpts taken from the recording, Wood recalled turning down a night out with some Hampshire team-mates after winning the Friends Provident T20 in 2010 in order to gamble away the prize money he had won from the tournament. 
He also described walking off the pitch after fielding in a T20 in 2012 and "not having a clue what had just happened" because he was only focused on whether the bet he had placed before the innings had won. "It was quite scary actually, playing there in front of 8,000 or 10,000 people and I'm not even present," he said. 
“The problem had got to me and I could not deal with life on life’s terms. 
​                                                                               Self destruction
“I was gambling every day and I started to get self-destruction thoughts, not necessarily suicidal thoughts as such but thoughts such as ‘do I have a place here’, I didn’t necessarily go to the lengths of thinking of ways that I could do it but the thoughts started to arise. 
“All day every day all I wanted to do was to sedate my feelings through gambling, I couldn’t do anything else. 
“I have nothing to hide anymore, I am not scared of who I am. I like talking about my situation now because it gives me a sense of achievement of where I have come and it gives me a sense of power again that I can control my own thoughts and feelings. 
“I am going to have to deal with this for every single day for the rest of my life and not get complacent.” 
Professional Cricketers’ Trust Director, Ian Thomas, said: “The Professional Cricketers’ Trust believes Chris is the first cricketer to speak out on his gambling addiction while still being a professional. This makes Chris’s story incredibly powerful, brave and inspirational. He has come a very long way to now be in a position to be so honest which I am sure will resonate with people who have faced similar situations. 
“Chris has put in a lot of hard work and persistence to reach this stage of confronting his addiction publicly and as he explains, it has been a long process with many setbacks before he has reached this point. 
“Sporting Chance’s excellent care and support for Chris has been vital in reaching this point and if this story can bring one more person forward with a willingness to address the issue then Chris will have made a huge difference and potentially saved a life.” 
                                                                                       Courage
Sporting Chance Founder, Tony Adams, added: “For us, Chris’s story shows the importance of all the services we offer, starting with the education programme in clubs. Going into a first team environment, which the PCA first asked us to do last year, just one of those sessions can make a huge difference to someone’s life. It’s not just about a story, it’s about how experience can connect with a player who might be suffering or at least open up their minds to the fact it might be something for them further down the road. 
“We treat everyone the same, if you qualify for our services and have the courage to pick up the phone, you’ll get the same level of care – and that level is high, that is unqualified compassion and support to help you with whatever problem you are going through.” 
Chris Wood is one of the first interviews in Sporting Chance’s new podcast series. Each month Adams will publish a series of interviews with people who have used the charity. 
The Cricketers’ Trust officially launched their partnership with Sporting Chance in March, to provide PCA members with mental health treatment and support after a record 85 PCA members – including 40 current players – were diagnosed with related issues in 2019. 

In the absence of any recreational cricket for the time being, ‘the crease’ website will be taking a journey down Memory Lane all summer, initially featuring the inaugural 2000 season of the ECB Southern Premier League, with a week-by-week highlights review of results and performances.
That summer the Southern League became a standard bearer for other ECB accredited Premier Leagues across the country by adopting a split format of 50-over and all-day ‘time’ cricket, subsequently adopted by most other leagues across the UK.
It saw the launch of Southern Electric’s long and fruitful sponsorship partnership with Hampshire recreational cricket, the SPL itself embracing a Premier Division of ten clubs, a Second Division (10) and an 18-strong Division 3.  In 50-over games in SPLs 2 and 3, there was a bowling maximum of 12 overs.
Here’s the make-up of the 2000 Southern Electric Premier League –
• ECB Premier Division
Andover, Bashley (Rydal), BAT Sports, Bournemouth, Burridge, Calmore Sports, Cove, Havant, Hungerford, South Wilts.
• Division 2
Alton, Hambledon, Hursley Park, Liphook & Ripsley, Lymington, Old Tauntonians & Romsey, Portsmouth, Trojans, United Services, Winchester KS.
• Division 3
Bashley (Rydal) II, Eastleigh, Easton & Martyr Worthy, Gosport Borough, Hook & Newnham Basics, Leckford, Lymington II, New Milton, Old Basing, Old Tauntonians & Romsey II, Paultons, Portsmouth II, Purbrook, Rowledge, St Cross Symondians, Sparsholt, Waterlooville, Wellow & Plaitford.

• If any club has team or action photographs from 2000, can they email them to vimpscricket@gmail.com ?

The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) today confirms that the launch of The Hundred will now take place in summer 2021. The news follows a meeting dedicated to the subject, where the Board concluded it was not possible for the competition to be staged this year.
The new competition has a vision to grow the game and is part of the ECB’s long-term strategy to inspire a new generation to choose cricket. 
A number of reasons were outlined for the decision including: 
• Operational challenges caused by social distancing, alongside ongoing global travel restrictions, making the competition’s ambition to feature world-class players and coaches unattainable in 2020. 
• A behind closed doors competition directly contradicts the competition’s goal to attract a broader audience through a unique event experience for viewers and spectators. 
• With significant furloughing across the partnership network of 20 venues, the logistics of delivering a brand-new sporting event, without a tried-and-tested delivery plan, would be incredibly challenging.
Refocused efforts will now look forward to 2021, centring on the competition’s four key objectives to support the game, which will be even more imperative as the nation emerges from this pandemic:
1. Engaging a broader audience in cricket to grow the game
2. Driving participation throughout the game with the support of partners Sky and BBC
3. Delivering guaranteed revenues and support for First-Class Counties (FCCs), MCC and the wider game
4. Developing young talent as they grow their skills playing for and against teams made-up of world-class players and coaches.
                                                                                         Ambitions
ECB Chief Executive Officer, Tom Harrison, commented: "The situation we find ourselves in as a country means that delivery of The Hundred will not be possible this summer. Whilst we are naturally disappointed that we won't get to realise our ambitions this year, The Hundred will go ahead in 2021 when we are safely able to deliver everything we intended to help grow the game.
"As we emerge from the fallout of COVID-19, there will be an even greater need for The Hundred. Our survival as a game, long-term, will be dependent on our ability to recover financially and continue our ambition to build on cricket's growing fan base. That need has not gone anyway, if anything, it is now more critical.
"The Hundred will create millions in revenues for the game, through hosting fees, hospitality and ticket sales, as well as delivering £25m in annual financial distributions to all First Class Counties and MCC. Its role in driving participation alongside supporting the development of the women’s game will be material in generating take-up of our game across country-wide communities.
"The Hundred is an important element of the game's Inspiring Generations strategy, which has been debated and agreed upon across the whole game. While financially, our plans may be impacted, our ambition, ‘to inspire a generation’ should in no way be diluted.
"We would like to thank our broadcast partners, for their extraordinary commitment and support to get The Hundred to this point and our commercial partners for their ongoing support. We very much look forward to working with them as we build to the 2021 launch."
For more information visit www.thehundred.com

The ECB wish to thank everyone who completed their recent survey, the answers from which have provided valuable insights into what they should be doing to support Counties, Clubs and Leagues.  Across the survey, containing responses from over 1000 clubs, it became clear that Finance and Players are the biggest concerns with Grounds and Pitches not far behind.
With the Finance Support package in place, the ECB is turning its attention to Players and Grounds over the next few weeks and will share more details in the coming weeks.   

National Progammes Update 
 
The safety and well being of all people involved in cricket is the ECB’s absolute priority and so whilst they continue to work through solutions, All Stars and Dynamos Cricket remain suspended for the time being in line with government guidance.  They will do everything they can to run programmes later in the year should the government guidance allow them to do so and will remain in touch with any updates as and when they are available. If the situation means they are unable to reschedule programmes for a later date, but will ensure that refunds or credits are available for participants.
The ECB knows that cricket can play a huge part in supporting physical and mental well being of children around the country and are continuing to explore ways that  cricket can cricket be brought to homes through indoor games, challenges, and digital content.  Some of this you may have already seen via the All Stars Cricket activity booklet, our All Stars garden games, and keep an eye out for the Dynamos Cricket app, and educational content coming your way shortly. 
The ECB’s aim is to do what’s best for our community throughout this unusual period and appreciate your support to do the same. This is new territory for everyone, and your patience during this time is appreciated.

Online and Umpire Scoring Courses

ECB Association of Cricket Officials has created a range of free online courses for aspiring umpires and scorers. The courses are a great way for people to use the current downtime to learn a new skill or brush up on their knowledge.
Basics of Umpiring – This course is aimed at umpires who simply want to learn the fundamental laws and basic field craft and those players who umpire 5 or 10 overs at the weekend. Book now via  www.booking.ecb.co.uk/c/express
Umpire Stage One – This course is designed to give an overview of the basic Laws of the game as well as providing information on how to apply them and introduce the principles of field craft and match management. This course is an ideal introduction for new club umpires, a refresher for existing umpires and the first step for those who aspire to umpire at higher levels. Book now via www. booking.ecb.co.uk/c/express
Basics of Scoring – This course is designed to provide all the skills needed to start scoring. The course covers the basics of scoring a game of cricket such as scoring symbols, umpire signals, dismissals and gives a helpful overview of the laws of the game. Book now via www.booking.ecb.co.uk/c/express
Where possible the ECB would encourage you to advertise these courses on your club  website and promote through your social media channels using the registration links provided. 

NEW Milton all-rounder and former captain Ryan Beck has completed a full marathon from his own garden.
Beck, who has been entertaining people in lockdown with viral cricket videos in an effort to keep kids active during the Covid-19 pandemic, has raised over £500 for NHS charities from the running challenge.
Beck said that he originally planned to do it over two days but was spurred on to complete over 500 laps of a 77-metre course he laid out in just one day:
“I sat down on Friday and thought what to do for the cricket virus on Saturday. I heard it was supposed to be London marathon on Sunday so I went for that. If I’m honest, I thought maybe do it over two days.” 
“The inspiration behind it all has got to be all the support I’ve had through the 36 days of cricket virus prior to the marathon.
"My fiancee Hayley set up the fundraiser to show me that people are behind me. Thanks for all the amazing donations and amazing support.” 
All the money raised will go to NHS charities after Ryan’s 50th daily cricket video and to donate visit www.gofundme.com/f/ryans-cricket-virus-raise-for-help

Champions Bashley (Rydal) look to be the team to beat in the Southern Premier League this summer – that’s if the England & Wales Cricket Board gives the green light for the recreational game to start.
It remains suspended indefinitely due to the global coronavirus pandemic, so if Bashley get the chance to defend their crown, it won’t begin until June at the earliest.
Bashley look arguably stronger than the side which won its maiden Premier pennant last summer, with skipper Michael Porter effectively having three new players.
Left-arm spinner Dom Clutterbuck [top left] has joined from Bournemouth and will play alongside Lymington batsman/wicketkeeper Harry Fisher [centre] and Hampshire Under-17 all-rounder George Pardoe [top right] after several seasons with the Hampshire Academy.
Bashley’s only loss is Devon pace bowler Dan Goodey, who plans to return to play for Plymouth.
Reflecting on the signings, Porter said: “After reviewing the 2019 season we targeted two positions which we would like to strengthen.
“They were a middle/top order batsman for stability and weight of runs and another top quality spinner, with Ross Grierson likely to take a bit of time away from the game for family reasons. 
“We feel we have more than successfully filled these gaps with two quality players. Both Dom and Harry have played with most of the guys in the team and therefore will fit in straight away and I have every confidence will score runs and take wickets. 
“Having George Pardoe for the season will also be a massive bonus. He was quality with the ball last year for us and filled that opening bowling slot (when Dan Goodey returned to Devon) brilliantly. 
“I will also look forward to seeing how he develops with the bat this year for us, he is someone who can take games away from teams with his strong hitting.”
Goodey apart, Bashley expect to have all of last season’s championship winning side champing at the but to play, with Tom Friend eager to build on last summer’s form which earned the Ventnor raised the Premier Division batting award.
Left-armer Brad Currie joined Friend on the silverware rostrum, finishing second behind Lymington’s Matt Metcalfe in the wicket-taking stakes, but winning the Young Cricketer award by some distance.
But Friend & Co will have to wait as Saturday’s scheduled season opener at Chapel Gate – where Bashley beat Bournemouth last August to claim their first title – is the first of many games that will have ‘no result’ attached as the outcome.

The HCB webpages relating to [1] government grants for clubs, [2] gift aid, [3] cashflow template, [4] £100 ECB match funding pledge, [5] All Stars Cricket activity booklet, and [6] Dynamos Cricket have been updated.
Further information is available from www.ageasbowl.com/cricket/cricket-board/covid19-faqs and Financial Support Page www.ageasbowl.com/cricket/cricket-board/covid19-faqs/financial-support
A further update will be issued on 5 May 2020.

Cricket is a game that unites communities and inspires generations and more than ever it has a role to play in this uncertain and unsettling COVID-19 time.
As we continue to work towards delivering Inspiring Generations, we must ensure that the game is sustainable and that we mitigate against other risks that the game faces. When cricket returns, we expect more players, volunteers, clubs and officials to be taking part that ever before. The introduction of the online Safe Hands Online Management System will strengthen our network and continue to make cricket a safe game for young people, their families and all those around them to enjoy. 
When cricket returns, in a post-COVID-19 time, we will be launching the initiatives below and we will keep you updated on these as they go live.

SAFE HANDS ONLINE MANAGEMENT SYSTEM

This system will provide an online registration process whereby the ECB will require all cricket clubs to register the details of the club and individuals in key roles or those with responsibilities for the management and running of club activities.
Clubs will be asked to complete basic details about their club and who are the key personnel within it, providing evidence of safeguarding checks and compliance. It will then notify users if there are any current gaps in the requirements, together with highlighting individual’s renewal dates for the key criteria such as DBS checks and Safe Hands training,.
As part of the registration process, clubs will be required to demonstrate that they continue adhere to the following:
• All clubs must meet safeguarding standards.
• The club must adhere to the ECB Safe Hands Policy and Procedures. 
• Each club must have a trained Club Welfare Officer.  
• All adults who work with children at the club have must have current vetting and an ECB DBS check in place. 
• All adults who work with children in cricket must have undertaken the appropriate ECB training. Details will be shared in due course.  
We will also make it easier for those who need to have DBS checks, safeguarding training and other qualifications to access everything they need. 
What this means for Clubs:
The online registration process will apply to both Clubmark and non-Clubmark clubs and we will roll out registration in a phased approach with three groups in the following order of priority
1. Existing Clubmark accredited clubs
2. Clubs with junior sections (including All Stars Cricket & Dynamos Cricket), and those clubs who allow juniors to play adult cricket. 
3. All remaining clubs
We will email clubs individually when registration is available. Where clubs have already given us some information, we will look to pre-populate the fields in order that you do not have to re-enter it.

GAME WIDE INSURANCE

We are delighted to announce we have partnered with Howden Insurance Brokers to arrange a Combined Liability Insurance package for the benefit of clubs who have registered all details on the Safe Hands online portal and completed an online risk assessment. The policy covers Public Liability, Employers Liability, Professional Indemnity, Directors & Officers and Cyber Liability.
In this period before Safe Hands registration opens, we recommend that clubs continue with their current provider. If your insurance is up for renewal, Howden will be happy to discuss options with you.

CLUB CRICKET CHARITY AND DEFIBRILLATORS

The Club Cricket Charity and ECB are delighted to announce that the Second Phase of its Defibrillator Supply project is now available to cricket clubs and organisations. The Club Cricket Charity is the charitable arm of the National Cricket Conference.
The offer is for the supply of a portable AED unit at a cost of £500, or, if required, the unit and a self-monitoring mounted cabinet for £915. The Club Cricket Charity will pay the difference on behalf of ECB. This highly discounted offer includes training, insurance cover for loss or damage as well as personal liability, stress counselling post event, and registration with local emergency services.
The offer is fulfilled by The Community Heartbeat Trust under their ‘Managed Solution’ scheme which was successfully deployed during 2018 with 104 clubs and teams receiving portable units.
A cardiac arrest (the stoppage of the heart muscle) can be triggered by many factors: a heart attack; an undiagnosed heart condition; a ball hitting batsman or fielder in the chest or on the head. It can affect any age group from teenage to pensioner, and all between; player and spectator alike. This can be fatal if treatment is not commenced within five minutes of the collapse of the patient. 
Many cricket teams play on cricket fields where professional help may not arrive within this very short timescale, but there is a potential solution by using the portable defibrillator - which gives an electric shock to ‘reboot’ the heart - whilst awaiting professional help. 
The wall mounted cabinet is the latest design which automatically monitors and remotely reports the readiness of the unit for use while also recording its usage.
We all hope that this piece of equipment never needs to be used, but there is ample evidence that it saves lives.   
To reply to this offer please initially send a request for an application form to enquiries@theclubcricketcharity.org giving the name of your club and its rough location. The process should take no more than three weeks to fulfil for delivery, then an appointment will be arranged for the training session.

 

Experienced Eastern Province right-arm seamer Basheer Walters had been earmarked as Havant’s overseas player in the ECB Southern Premier League this season.
The 33-year old from Port Elizabeth has taken over 500 wickets for EP and the Warriors franchise side in South African first class cricket and took 5-29 in his most recent List A appearance against Western Province at St George’s Park.
Walters, who played South Yorkshire League cricket for Cleethorpes last season, would have made his Havant debut against promoted Division 1 champions Hook & Newnham Basics on Saturday, but for the postponement of all recreational cricket in the country due to the coronavirus pandemic.

WATERLOOVILLE 2nd XI 1979
Back (from left): David Tusler, Gerry Corrigan, Colin Uwins, Graham Cox, Paul Rowson, Steve Wilson, Eddie Stillwell (umpire).  Seated: Geoff Richardson, Dave Cassell, Ray MacIntrye, Alan Bloxham, Keith Richardson, Max O’Connell.

Waterlooville sport has been saddened by news of the recent death of Dave Cassell, a prominent past footballer and cricketer in the town.  He was in his Eighties.
A goalscoring left-winger, Dave played soccer for Waterlooville in their Hampshire League days in the late 1950s and throughout the Sixties and grew up little more than a goal-kick from the club’s Jubilee Park ground.
He was a regular pick for Hampshire county teams and played countless Ville games alongside his brother Alan, a tough tackling right back.
Like many sportsmen of his time, Cassell played football in the winter and cricket during the summer months.
A Waterloooville man through and through, he played for the town’s cricket club until well into his fifties as a top order batsman and specialist gully fielder.  He was also a handy leg spin bowler.
“Dave was a great character, full of fun and very down to earth,” reflected Alan Bloxham, a long time Waterlooville cricket and football team-mate.

The UK’s first secretary of state, Dominic Raab, has said that it is “very difficult” to see amateur outdoor sport being played this summer.
Talking on the Andrew Marr Show, Raab, when asked whether there was a chance of people being allowed to play sport outside this summer, said that it was “very difficult because of the level and scale of interaction,” casting further doubt over whether any recreational cricket will be played at all in England and Wales in 2020.
In the ECB’s recent announcement that stated that there would be no professional cricket in England and Wales until at least July 1, they also said that “the suspension of recreational cricket remains until further notice,” giving no indication as to when the suspension may be lifted.
Raab [left] was less downbeat on the prospects of professional sport though, pointing to the increased scale of testing that could make professional sport possible. 
He added: “I think the professional sport may be different because of the scale of testing that they would be able to introduce.
“We want to look, when it’s safe and when it’s possible, at ways to allow more outdoors activities to take place but again we’ve got to have the evidence that that’s a surefooted step and doesn’t allow coronavirus get a grip back on the country.”

Details of the ECB Emergency Loan Scheme and Return to Cricket Grant Scheme for clubs and Leagues were published last week. Details can be found at   www.ecb.co.uk/be-involved/club-support/club-funding/emergency-support-programmes.   
 
If you have any questions regarding these schemes, please contact the relevant email below: 
 
• Emergency Loan Scheme – loans@ecb.co.uk  
• Return to Cricket Grant Scheme – Your local County Cricket Board
 
England and Wales Cricket Trust (EWCT) Interest Free Loan Scheme
​
The EWCT Interest Free Loan Scheme remains open to eligible clubs providing finance for capital projects (including machinery).
If your club wishes to apply, please visit the ECB website to download an Expression of Interest Form. 
This scheme is separate to the Emergency Loan Scheme and is not administered through ECB’s Investment Management System.

The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) has today agreed that no professional cricket will be played in England and Wales until at least July 1 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The season remains subject to ongoing advice from government and health experts, and continued consultation with all broadcast partners to determine the optimum way to fulfil fixtures both domestically and internationally. 
The ECB Board approved the following measures:
• Professional cricket will not be played in England and Wales until at least July 1
• Nine rounds of fixtures will be lost in the County Championship season, but blocks for red-ball cricket and white-ball cricket will be held in a revised schedule
• The Vitality Blast will be pushed as late in the season as possible to give it the best opportunity of being staged. All matches previously scheduled in June will be moved later in the season
• International cricket, featuring England men’s and women’s teams, will look to be scheduled from July until the end of September, with the West Indies Test Series and the whole women’s series against India (Vitality IT20s and Royal London ODIs) both moving from their original slots
• An additional Board meeting will be scheduled next Wednesday on The Hundred, following a request to dedicate a further session to the competition.
ECB Chief Executive Officer, Tom Harrison, said:
“Our role as a national governing body during a crisis of this scale requires us to carefully plan alongside cricket’s stakeholders and supporters to attempt to overcome COVID-19’s impact on this season.
“As much as we remain hopeful that we can deliver some cricket this summer, we are in the midst of a worldwide crisis and our priority – over and above the playing of professional sport – will be to protect the vulnerable, key workers and society as a whole.”
The suspension of recreational cricket remains until further notice. 
The Sussex League has already called off its initial five rounds of matches, with the ECB Southern Premier League set to review matters in early June.

Fawley cricketers will be among numerous sporting beneficiaries if a proposal by Esso & ExxonMobil to enhance the off-field facilities at Holbury is approved by New Forest planners.
Esso & ExxonMobil, who own the spacious 14.5 acre Waterside site, have applied to the New Forest District Council for permission to bulldoze the 300-seat former cinema building in Long Lane, Holbury, that has stood empty for the past four years, and transform the site.
They plan to replace it with a new purpose-built sports pavilion, together with improved car parking - a proposal which the Holbury Community Sports Association believes will be an enormous asset to the entire Waterside sporting community.
It will also provide additional parking for the neighbouring school, New Forest Academy.. 
The Holbury site off Long Lane is home to Fawley cricket club, who use the ground in the summer, and AFC Fawley in the winter – both thriving sports organisations heavily involved in grass roots development, and with numerous junior teams.
                                                                    Five-tier youth academy
Newly promoted to Division 2 of the Southern Premier Cricket League, Fawley would normally be starting their summer season around now, but the coronavirus pandemic crisis has led to the ECB suspending all recreational cricket for the foreseeable future.
“We normally field three adult league cricket teams, besides boasting a five-tier youth Academy which provides competitive summer sport for children from 9 to 19 years of age,” confirmed HSCA chairman Chris Tona. 
“We’re also involved in All Stars and were due to start Dynamo cricket for slightly older kids, so in midweek and on Sundays the ground is teeming with children all dreaming of being the next Ben Stokes.”
For the past two summers - and again this season, if cricket actually gets going – Fawley players, visiting teams and umpires changed in temporary wooden huts on the side of the outfield and which have to be dismantled and removed at the end of the season.
He added: “It’s far from ideal and underlines why the cricket club is so keen to see planning permission granted to the Esso/Exxon Mobil proposal.” 
                                                                                    Thriving
“If planning consent is approved, it will give Waterside sport an enormous boost.”
Similarly, AFC Fawley, members of the Sydenham Wessex Football League, field regular Saturday/midweek soccer teams and has a hugely thriving junior set-up
They have ten separate year groups, from 7 years of age upwards, benefiting from coaching and regular competitive soccer.
The Holbury sports ground is also the home of Waterside lawn bowls club, long standing members of the New Forest and Southampton Leagues, and Fawley tennis club.
The old Sports and Recreation Club was built in 1949 for people working at the Fawley refinery. 
In 2002 it was leased to Waterside Sports and Social Club (WSSC), but 14 years later in 2016 WSSC went into liquidation and since then the buildings have stood empty and boarded-up and have been subject to sporadic incidents of theft and vandalism." 
Esso says it is uneconomic to further maintain the redundant buildings.”
Over 150 Waterside residents have responded following the New Forest District Council’s public consultation of the proposal, the majority backing the Esso/ExxonMobil plan. 

During these unprecedented times, the Hampshire Cricket Board has been working hard to provide reassurance, support and advice on how cricket clubs across the country can continue to function. Last week they released details of the Emergency Grant and Loan schemes, details of which can be found at  www.ecb.co.uk/news/1648243/ecb-covid-19-announcements-and-updates. They do hope as many clubs as possible will take up this support.
Over the winter months, in anticipation of the season, some exciting developments to Play-Cricket have been made. Despite there currently being no cricket being played, over the next few weeks they will be sharing details of these developments with you, as well as providing you with some fresh content, and asking you to update some of your club details so that when cricket returns, we’re all ready to go with a bang.

NEW: Club website templates
In February the HCB told you about the new club templates that will enable you to have a mobile friendly, fully customised and up-to-date website. For those who have put effort into their existing websites, you will be able to keep these or choose to enable the new template. The new templates are structured on:
• A new Homepage featuring sections for announcements, community news, your Hall of Fame and a snapshot of fixtures, results and league tables.
• An About Us section to give some brief information about your club
• A Fixtures and Results section
• A Teams section
• A Statistics section
• A News & Docs section

The templates are now live and can be set up in your club’s Site Admin. To support you, they have created a video tutorial to show you exactly what you need to do. It can take as little as 5 minutes to update and you are encouraged to do so ahead of the return of cricket.

NEW: Play-Cricket YouTube Channel

The HCB knows that cricket clubs are run by volunteers who often wear multiple hats when managing their club, as well as juggling the work they do in cricket with full time jobs. As such, they want to ensure they’re supporting Play-Cricket admins as much as possible.
To improve this support, they’ve created a dedicated YouTube support channel, giving access to video tutorials on all Play-Cricket admin-related activities. There are now over 100 guides for you to access, and they will continue to add more over time.
During this period where no cricket is being played, the HCB would encourage all admins to access the videos and update club sites where required. Our Help Desk are on hand to support with any questions you may have. Stay well, and we look forward to sharing more updates and content with you over the coming weeks. 

Access to the website template is in the link which includes a video tutorial.
www.play-cricket.ecb.co.uk/hc/en-us/articles/360007194237-Club-Homepage-Template-Admin?utm_campaign=11484991_Player%20Comms%3A%20Website%20templates%20%26%20YouTube&utm_medium=Email&utm_source=Email_AdHoc&utm_content=helpguide&email=02E3F475D9CA853D3E4B80A33BC7BA6C39AA0B20EC483C83A8A3C78D3B0AF03B&dm_i=1FT6,6U5VJ,B2STFZ,RELVM,1