Refurbished Facilities
After a 2020 season that saw little cricket action, members of the club and committee decided that the clubhouse and grounds needed some work carrying out to bring the facilities back to the excellent standard that members and visitors of HCC usually have available to them.
Many volunteers have spent their evenings and weekends these past few months inside the clubhouse, or outside over by the practice nets, and over by the area of land overgrown with brambles and weeds often referred to by members as the “wasteland” due its condition compared to the rest of the ground.
Continue reading below to find out more about the amazing work that has been undertaken and then checkout our photo gallery that documented the outcomes as well as some of the journey.
The Clubhouse
A team working inside the clubhouse have completely ripped out the old bar and kitchen area that was small and made the area appear dark. In its place the team have installed a brighter and more usable bar and kitchen that really makes that area of the clubhouse look and feel bigger despite it actually being the same size!
Other renovations to clubhouse have included updates to the downstairs toilets to make them more accessible, a new modern boiler to ensure we continue to have hot water and heating, and a new downstairs ceiling with brighter lighting.
The Practice Nets
Our practice nets have been heavily used since they were first installed in 2008 and although they have had minor repairs to the netting and the matting over the years, the netting had become quite worn out and with the lack of use during 2020 the matting’s condition had significantly worsened.
To the rescue came another group of volunteers to cut back overgrowing trees with branches hanging close to the nets to prevent further damage. The team also undertook the long and slow task of repairing the netting by stitching back together small tears and applying patches to the more damaged areas before moving onto cleaning the matting that had weeds and grass embedded within it.
Once these tasks were completed the nets really did look brand new again and were unrecognisable compared to before the work started. Not content with leaving it there however, the team gave the nets an upgrade by installing white sheeting around the batting end of the nets allowing both batters and bowlers to better focus.
The “Wasteland”
As we mentioned the “wasteland” is an area of the ground that has not been used by the club for many years, in fact this is where our old practice nets used to be prior to them being dismantled when our current practice nets were installed.
At over 1,000 m2 this is a large area of land that that we would like to begin using again particularly as the senior and youth sections continue to grow and the addition of our women and girls section is proving popular, this area of land would make an ideal additional training area.
Having completed the practice net refurbishment, the same team moved onto the much bigger project of clearing this area of brambles and other weeds. The team have after many pricks and stings managed to clear almost the whole area although they admit that a lot of work still lies ahead.
Work will continue throughout the season and into next season to ensure the brambles stop regrowing with the aim of eventually grassing the area as an extension to the outfield. It will be some time before players can start using the area but this is an important first step in ensuring the clubs future and providing excellent facilities for future generations.