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Times
04-07-2025
- Sport
- Times
Village bans cricket after ball hits man in car park
The thwack of leather on willow has been a fixture in the village of Danbury for centuries, but devotees in Essex now fear the sound of silence after a member of the public reported he was hit by a cricket ball while standing by his car at a leisure centre. Three clubs have been banned from using Dawson Fields for matches after the alleged incident before a fixture on May 17. The developments have spread panic among Danbury, Oaklands and Tuskers cricket clubs, which are unable to play home matches and face uncertain futures. Almost 3,000 residents have signed a petition urging Danbury parish council to overturn its suspension of cricket. Rory Carlton, club secretary of Danbury Cricket Club, said the clubs faced the option of having to pay tens of thousands of pounds to install a protective net around the ground or relocate. 'I think the council acted from a good place initially, they are trying to act in the interest of their residents, but I think they're just scared of the legal impact were something to happen,' Carlton said. 'We've been playing in Danbury since 1798. Our team have been playing at that specific location for well over 50 years, and in that time probably well over a million balls have been bowled, if not more, and there has not been a single recorded incident of a member of the public actually being injured. 'The proposals on the table at the moment are either to essentially put up nets, which would be, as it stands, 20 metres high at a cost of around £100,000, which is just completely prohibitive for the council and us. 'The other option is to relocate; the costs for that are also of a similar magnitude, so it's kind of left us in a spot where they're saying, 'You know, we want to support cricket, but you just can't play here', which is really disappointing.' • 25 of the prettiest village mini breaks in the UK Danbury has managed to arrange to play their remaining home games for the season at Rayne Cricket Club, which is more than an hour away in Braintree, a journey which Carlton fears could lead to members leaving the team. Carlton, 36, a financial adviser from Haybridge in Essex, believes the council's ruling could become a precedent that could leave grassroots clubs at risk of closure. 'I think if we start going down this road of, you know, members of the public have to be completely protected at all times, it becomes very difficult to actually engage in any kind of amateur sport, unless you've got a facility that is completely segregated from the general public who aren't participating,' Carlton said. 'There are countless cricket clubs, some really lovely grounds I've played at that are right next to a road or a pub.' Danbury parish council was approached for comment. A spokeswoman for the council previously said that it had hoped the suspension would be temporary and that the council had taken professional advice on how to minimise the risk to members of the public in areas surrounding the ground. 'The fact that there were at least two car windows, within the last year, smashed by cricket balls being hit into the adjacent car park, across a public footway, indicates that there is a risk to people accessing the facilities,' she told The Telegraph. 'As such, it would potentially invalidate its insurance cover and risk litigation if it were to totally ignore the advice that has been received. 'We are waiting for the ball trajectory report that the Essex Cricket Board have recommended to both the cricket clubs and the parish council in order to determine the correct mitigation.'
Telegraph
14-06-2025
- Sport
- Telegraph
Duck or block your ears – cricket balls and church bells should be protected
So, no balls in Danbury nor bells in Mytholmroyd. Our councils are having a terrific summer of cancelling, banning and thwarting all things British, especially if they have a slight edge of eccentricity. This week's victims are a cricket team in Essex and the bells of a church in West Yorkshire with, as usual, the actions of the council craven and bowing to the howls of the minority. Danbury parish council didn't hesitate when word came from someone in the vicinity of the Dawson Memorial Field. This is a large patch of land in the village, which lies between Chelmsford and the coastal town of Maldon. There's a bowling green, tennis courts, a football pitch, a playground and a cricket wicket. And it was on May 17 when the incident occurred. It is logged that someone was 'hit by a cricket ball on leg whilst unloading/loading his car'. It was written up, not in the Danbury Cricket Club's scorebook, but in the incident log at the nearby leisure centre. A historical record detailing such instances as dog fouling and faulty locks in the lavatory facilities. The incident took place at 1pm, 10 minutes before play began that day – thus it was a stray ball that travelled during the warm up. And anyone who knows anything about village cricket will understand this involves the informal throwing of balls around the ground for catching practice or some gentle bowling at the opening batsmen. But as soon as Danbury's parish clerk, Michelle Harper, heard the news she acted with the steely force of Martin Brody in Jaws, the police chief who discovers evidence of a shark attack. Except she exerts rather more power than Brody – he was unable, at first, to close the beaches. Ms Harper, however, achieved a suspension of the cricket as confirmed by council chairman, April Chapman this week, who reported that 'a subsequent meeting decided to suspend cricket for three weeks until we had a report from our health and safety advisors as to what mitigations could be taken.' Play is still banned as I write. This weekend there is no leather bouncing off willow, no gentle ripples of applause, no frantic cries of 'yes', 'no', 'wait' or 'howzat'. And, worse, no cricket tea. Doubtless mitigation will suggest vast nets be purchased and installed to prevent further accidents and at a cost too vast for the club to muster… And all this because one unfortunate person, having parked his car, forgot to keep their eyes peeled for airborne cricket balls in spite of the clearest of warning signs. That is, some 22 middle-aged men limping around a field in white trousers and shirts and with an assortment of funny hats. The onus is on the car parker. Indeed, on many occasions when I've played cricket, it has been the aim of batters to attempt to hit sixes – not just for the runs, but in order to smash the windscreens of the flash idiots who have parked their expensive Land Rovers by the boundary. Yet eschewing tradition and common sense, the council rules in favour of the not-terribly-injured party. And while it's a limb in Essex, it's the ears of some locals in West Yorkshire. The bells of St Michael's church in Mytholmroyd have been stopped by order of Calderdale council, who has issued a noise abatement order silencing them until such a time as someone can figure out how to stop them chiming between 11pm and 7am. The Victorian church installed its bells in 1875 when a new clock was unveiled. They were cast by Mears of London and commissioned after a huge fundraising effort to raise £650. On May 29 of that year, at precisely five minutes to six in the evening, one Mrs Ridehough set the clock in motion to the applause of the assembled fund-raising committee. And since that day, four quarter bells have chimed every 15 minutes with another bell tolling on the hour. Until now. Until some whinger, in the birthplace of poet Ted Hughes, found sympathy in a council pen pusher who decided to silence them. The cost of installing a device to prevent the night-time bells will doubtless be prohibitive. While those who found the church chimes comforting, who revel in this mad little sound of England, have their sensibilities ignored. Perhaps the complainers should find somewhere else to live, somewhere altogether more modern and, possibly, rather warmer than Mytholmroyd with its above average rainfall due to the precipitation-inducing Pennines. They could pop off to the Middle East with its gleaming buildings and sunshine. And, oh, the frightful din of the muezzins shrieking out their calls to prayer five times a day from dawn to dusk.
BBC News
12-06-2025
- Sport
- BBC News
Cricket called off in Danbury after man says he was hit by a ball
Cricketers have called on a parish council to let them play after the sport was suspended when a member of the public reported he was hit by a cricket sound of leather on willow has been heard in the village of Danbury, Essex, for centuries, but three clubs were now prohibited from using Dawson Fields for alleged incident happened last month, but a campaign has since been launched to reinstate cricket in the village. Rory Carlton, club secretary of Danbury Cricket Club, said: "Cricket has been a huge part of my life, we need the parish council to see sense."The council said it was looking into "mitigations". Man 'hit on leg' by ball Cricket was suspended after an alleged incident on 17 May when Danbury Cricket Club played South Woodham and Burnham's third team. According to the club, an entry was made in the incident log at the nearby leisure centre stating somebody was "hit by a cricket ball on [the] leg whilst unloading/loading his car".Mr Carlton, 36, said none of the players playing that day had any recollection of the incident, and added: "When you are playing cricket, your eyes are focused on the ball and you are following that and tracking that, so we are trying to understand how that happened."Signs have now been put up around the boundary of the cricket pitch, adjacent to the public car park, stating that the sport is currently suspended. Danbury Cricket Club is not the only team to use the pitch, and it is also home to two other cricket teams, Tuskers and Oaklands. Mr Carlton hopes the parish council will let them all play again soon. He added: "It's a really sad state of affairs. For the community, it would be such a shame for cricket to stop being played here."I found a record of a game in 1799 against Little Baddow, which Danbury won, so if it was to cease, it would just be a real tragedy." Danbury Parish Council has organised a meeting for residents to discuss the future of cricket in the village on 19 April Chapman, the council chairman, said: "Cricket has not been banned in Danbury. There was an incident where someone in our car park was hit by a cricket ball. "A majority of the council at a subsequent meeting decided to suspend cricket for three weeks until we had a report from our health and safety advisors as to what mitigations could be taken."Chapman said the council would then consider these mitigations before deciding next steps. Follow Essex news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X.
Telegraph
10-06-2025
- Sport
- Telegraph
Three cricket clubs suspended after person ‘hit by ball in car park'
'I got a call about two weeks ago to say that the top field is going to be closed because of an incident which is right next to the cricket pitch,' Ayris said. 'We got a call out of the blue to say cricket's been suspended until a meeting at the end of June because it's too dangerous. 'We believe this sets an incredibly worrying precedent for any team that play their matches in a public space. Cricket was suspended without any consultation with the three teams who play there and without any effort to investigate the allegation.' Oaklands Cricket Club have made a formal complaint to Danbury Parish Council. Rory Carlton, the honorary secretary of Danbury Cricket Club, said that none of those playing for or against Danbury during the game when the alleged incident occurred had any recollection of a member of the public being hit. According to the accident log, the incident occurred at 1pm, 10 minutes before Danbury's match began that day. 'Neither Danbury CC or their opposition – Burnham and South Woodham CC – witnessed any member of the public being struck by a ball during or before the match,' Carlton said. 'Following the alleged incident I was informed by Danbury Parish Council that they 'didn't realise somebody could be struck by a cricket ball and thus the risk profile had changed', which I and any reasonable person would surely find incredulous.' Ayris also said that Oaklands Cricket Club had posted a link to their petition on the Danbury Village community page on Facebook, which was deleted within hours. 'We haven't cancelled cricket' Michelle Harper, parish clerk at Danbury Parish Council, told Telegraph Sport that the suspension of cricket was only temporary. 'At the moment, the council has suspended cricket while it carries out a further health and safety review,' Parish said. 'We decided to close the top car park where the cricket is played – hopefully as a short-term measure. 'It's suspended until June 23, when the council will have a formal council meeting to decide on the mitigation that it needs to put in place so that cricket can continue. 'It's really important that people understand that we haven't cancelled cricket. All we've done is suspend cricket while we are carrying out both investigations and looking at mitigation for the health and safety of everybody who uses the field. We haven't cancelled cricket, which I think is a lot of people's fear.' Ayris told Telegraph Sport that Danbury Parish Council has persistently complained about the cost of cricket. 'Every time we have a meeting before the season and post-season, they say that cricket is a financial burden on the parish council and that we have to give them reasons to carry on,' he said. Harper added: 'The council has always supported cricket in the time I've been here.'
