Fareham & Crofton cricketers preparing for cycling charity fundraiser

Joint 1st XI captains James Headon and Chris Davey came up with the idea of a sponsored bike ride to help cover some of the Hampshire League club’s running costs during the pandemic.

Starting this coming Saturday, a group of players will be aiming to cycle the distance that the 1st XI would have travelled from their Bath Lane HQ to every away County League Division 1 game and back in 2020.

The distance works out at around 1,500 km, which is around 930 miles. The players have a week in which to cover all those miles.

Half of all cash raised will be donated to the club, with the other half donated to The Moving On Project, which provides counselling and mental health services for children and young people aged 11-25 in the Fareham and Gosport area.

Even though the cycle ride has not started yet, the club’s initial fundraising target of £1000 has been passed. As of yesterday, it stood at £1,250.

FCHH chairman Charlie Stubbs estimates it costs in the region of £40,000 to run the club every year.

‘That sounds like a lot of money for a recreational cricket club,’ Stubbs said.

‘We’ve had a grant of around £7,000 from Sport England, and Fareham Borough Council have frozen our rates for a year.

‘We have to try and cover the costs somehow.

‘The bar is one main source of money - we usually aim to make an £8-10,000 profit there every year.

‘But the last time that was open was for a Hampshire League quiz in February.

‘Our income is topped up by match fees, memberships and other fundraising events.

‘If the cycle ride is a success, maybe it could become an annual event. The players could do a challenge every year as part of their pre-season fitness.’

Stubbs said a large part of the club’s membership took up an earlybird discount option on their 2020 fees prior to lockdown.

All members have been given the choice of rolling it over for the 2021 season, having their money back, or just donating this year’s cash to the club.

Like other cricket clubs, Stubbs is concerned that the near two-year break from the sport - if no games can take place in 2020 - could result in a drop in playing numbers.

‘If people haven’t been able to play cricket, they could go away and find something different instead.

‘We certainly need an influx of youngsters coming through.

‘The game has lost some of its popularity and the ECB have been trying to address that - they’ve brought in the All Stars junior scheme and this year the Dynamos scheme was being brought in for 8-11 year-olds.

‘We’ve got four adult teams - that means we need 44 players every week. And I’d say 50 per cent of our third and fourth teams are made of kids under 18.

‘That’s why we need the youngsters coming through, without them we will struggle.’

Stubbs added: ‘We will have to wait and see what happens. We can stage games until the end of September if we have to.

‘We’ve got four changing rooms, two squares - social distancing is not a problem, we’ve got lots of space at Bath Lane.

‘Players can turn up in their whites and leave in their whites - but a team could have two changing rooms if they wanted.

‘They groundsman has been down keeping the pitches maintained. We could play in two days time if we were asked to.’