Moor the merrier is Cartworth message

Nortonthorpe have enjoyed some success in the second XI ranks, it’s been hard graft for the famous old Holme Valley club, who were founded in 1887.

First-team captain John Addy – the former Dalton and Almondbury player who was a junior at Cartworth – explained the situation.

“We are keen to bring in people who want to play regular cricket, get involved in the club and enjoy themselves playing the game,” he said.

“We have an ageing team with people who are not going to be playing cricket much longer and we need some fresh blood for the club to survive.

“If enthusiasm and youthfulness can also deliver the quality we need then great, because we are at a crossroads.

“We have managed to survive the last few years by hook or by crook, but we couldn’t survive in the Huddersfield League (Drakes) last time paying players, because it didn’t fit with the size of cricket club we are.

“Then we lost a full team of players and others decided to move elsewhere, which is their prerogative. We don’t hold any grudges.”

Cartworth were in the Drakes in 2014 and 2015 before returning to the Central.

Addy, who has been back at Cartworth Moor for five years, says they are too isolated to realistically run a junior section but can offer enjoyable cricket and good facilities.

“We are running two teams again with a mixture of long-established cricketers at the end of their careers – but who keep renewing their careers – and young lads who are very young and, in some cases, not really ready,” he said.

“So we are after people who want to come along, get involved in the club and bring their enthusiasm to play on a regular basis.”

Cartworth were fined £100 for not turning out a team in the Total Indoor Cricket Solutions T20 Shield first round at Flockton in June but, other than that, they have fulfilled their fixtures.

The Drakes League cut-off for transfers is at the end of this month.

Secretary Stuart Clayton added: “In the past, we have had good young players spend time with us and they have all benefited from the experience, so we are hoping the same can happen now and for the future.

“We have good facilities and the field is looking excellent, but we are battling on the playing front it would just be brilliant to have a few more options in our selection.”

Clayton can be contacted on 07979 610865. SHAUN MARSH says he can see similarities between the squads of the Yorkshire Vikings and his own Perth Scorchers, three-time winners of Australia’s Big Bash.

Marsh is Yorkshire’s specialist overseas player for this summer’s NatWest T20 Blast, and is aiming to help them clinch a maiden title.

The left-handed batsman made the ideal start to his stay in Leeds last Friday with an unbeaten 60 in the recordbreaking home win over Nottinghamshire.

He contributed to a firstinnings 227-5, Yorkshire’s highest ever score in the history of the Blast: “It was a fantastic experience and the crowd really got behind us,” he said.

Marsh then scored only two in a defeat to Derbyshire at Chesterfield the following day before Tuesday’s clash with champions Northamptonshire at Wantage Road was washed out.

It means they go into tonight’s Roses clash with Lancashire (7pm) with three points from their opening three North Group matches.

Yorkshire have lost the last two Roses clashes at Emirates Old Trafford.

“I haven’t seen too much of Yorkshire v Lancashire matches, but speaking to the boys about it, that’s the one you want to be playing in,” he said.

“We’re two really good teams. Hopefully we can put on a good show for the crowd and we can come out on the right side of the result.

“We’ve got some dangerous players, and we’re confident. It should be an interesting night.”