Eckersley eager to make up for lost time after volunteer stint
with a little bit more social interaction,” he said.
“It was the right decision because we would have been in a little flat with no garden and it would have been a very difficult time.”
As the crisis struck the capital with a ferocious intensity, NHS staff and resources were pushed to the brink. Volunteers were called on to try to ease the burden wherever possible.
Circumstance landed Eckersley at the Royal Free Hospital in north London, where his mother-in-law works for the Royal Free Charity in the massage therapy team.
She was redeployed to help head up a supermarket to supply NHS workers with free food provided by local business in Hampstead area, and it was not long before the rest of the family were pressed into action at the RFC Recreation Club.
“The first night they were running this supermarket it all came together very quickly so they didn’t quite have enough volunteers,” he said.
“They had to manage the footfall so we got a call at six o’clock to go and help. We went down there and were there for eight weeks.
“We got to meet some great people and we tried to help out in whatever way we could, and hopefully made a few lives a bit better.”
With his volunteering stint now complete, Eckersley is now eagerly anticipating his return to the North East to get training underway with Durham ahead of a potential condensed campaign. The 30-year-old has admitted that it has been a difficult adjustment not being out on the field, although he is hopeful that he and his team-mates will have played some cricket come the end of the summer.
Eckersley added: “It has been a strange experience not to be playing cricket – especially in the sunny weather. Every day you wake up and you feel you should be ready to play some cricket. We’re still hopeful that we’re able to play towards the back end of the season.
“It’s going to be interesting for the guys, having not picked up a bat or a ball in three months. We’re going to be looking to get back into it as quickly as possible and fingers crossed we’ll be able to get some cricket in August and September.
“There seems to be a light at the end of the tunnel so we can get out there and have a semblance of cricket so come October it feels like that we have achieved something and we haven’t lost the whole season.
“It’s disappointing to lose as much as we did, but this time we have to look on the bright side that we’re one of the lucky few that gets to go back to work.”