Hertford poised for NWCF transformation

As a commercial development manager at a pharmaceuticals company based in Welwyn Garden City, Richard Eaton is used to being busy. But since the end of last year, the activity he has encountered at Hertford CC has been furious and the results astonishing.

“The distance we’ve come and the work that has been put in, is truly incredible,” says the project leader at the NatWest CricketForce showcase club. “It should provide a lasting legacy.”

Club secretary Richard has been working with three other project leaders at Hertford who all combine to offer the full gamut of skills and know-how so by Friday April 4, no stone will have been left unturned.

As many as 85 members turned up to meetings in preparation for NWCF as people sensed a rare opportunity to give their facilities a much needed overhaul.

“We were all really impressed by the ECB’s Dave Leighton’s presentation to the club and were thrilled by the numbers of people who said they wanted to get involved. People have been coming forward with ideas and offers of help ever since,” Richard said.

From the outset, the list of jobs was immense. Most pressing was the need to renovate the old pavilion which, due to lack of impetus or funds or both, had become unsafe. As home to all the ground equipment, it was regarded as one of the most important facilities at Balls Park as was the score box and sightscreens which were both due a facelift.

Then there was the fencing that needed erecting, paving that needed replacing, windows replaced, lights fixed and new outdoor BBQ built.

In the pavilion, the paint pots, brushes and rollers are at the ready and the tilers have been lined up to make sure the kitchen, showers and toilets are refurbished to a standard that Hertford CC neighbours, Mr and Mrs Beckham might be proud of. As a matter of fact, the celebrity pair whose UK home Rowneybury is 13 miles away in Sawbridgeworth, were invited to attend Hertford’s big weekend.

“We have invited a raft of celebrities from the Beckhams to Ronnie Irani and Graham Taylor to Rupert Briggs of Harry Potter fame, so are actively trying to create interest. There will be some England players here - though we don’t know who as yet - and of course, we will be hosting around 60 volunteers plus around 60 kids so it could get a bit chaotic. We will also have two cricket roadshows here.

“But we have organised carefully and things have come together well so everyone should get a bacon sandwich or a sausage roll and some hot drinks and we are putting up a marquee so if it is raining, it will be a chance to dry off.”

The team at Hertford have thought of everything, covering all bases. Their energy and business skills have meant that many of those bases have been covered for a minimal outlay.

For instance, paint has been supplied free by Dulux and all paving and cement has been supplied free by Wolsley GP, while two builders will offer their laying services for free. All materials for the scorebox renovations have been sourced for free and again a builder will work for free. Six toilets, basins and showers have been purchased at ‘silly prices’ from Plumbcentre, and additional plumbers services have been sourced at no cost.

The volunteer builders and plumbers have been joined by surveyors and carpenters who will also donate time and skills for free while Tesco has also agreed to ‘kit out’ the kitchen at no charge.

In addition to the job list, the team has drawn up an additional set of initiatives to capitalise on the momentum.

These include securing £7000 from local firm Emcor for new covers and £1000 donation from Cereal Partners to buy a new mobile net. Tesco have handed over £500 for a large flat screen TV and the club intends to install Sky TV "to encourage more social members and players to spend longer in the bar after games/nets".

A doctor will be on hand throughout the weekend to satisfy health and safety rules while every volunteer, all of whom are required to wear sturdy shoes and appropriate clothing, will be given a task from directing traffic in the car park – kindly provided by a local school – to making endless cups of tea to brandishing a paint brush.

“And at 5pm, we will open the bar,” said Richard. “It probably wouldn’t be an idea to open it before then.”