Help repair our training nets at Cornwood CC

Aim

Our nets training facilities are in desperate need of refurbishment

Who are we?

Situated in the Dartmoor National Park, close to Ivybridge and Plympton, Cornwood Cricket Club is one of the most dynamic clubs in Devon. We attract players both locally and across West Devon, who have a desire to be a part of a true family orientated club that provides cricket opportunities for all ages and ability levels.

With one of the largest junior set ups in Devon, we cater for children from the age 5 upwards with our ECB All Stars and Dynamos programmes, right up to 18 with our Under 19 squad. We provide young players with a brilliant pathway and development to our many adult teams. Our entire youth development program is run entirely by volunteers consisting of parents, players and qualified coaches. Without this inspiring commitment, our youth programmes would not be able to flourish the way they do..

To give some idea of the scale of our youth set up, in 2022 we had 70 children subscribed to our ECB Dynamos and All Stars programmes, all delivered by our fantastic volunteer club Activators. We also boast a youth division consisting of 6 teams and over 130 youth players.  Each colts team has a dedicated coach and team manager, We are certainly amongst the largest youth set ups  in our area, perhaps even the largest.

Throughout the 2022 season alone, 11 of the 19 players that represented our Men's 1st XI in the Devon Premier Division, came through our youth set up. Some of whom have been with the club since early primary school age. We have developed players who have gone on to represent Devon at multiple age groups, some even going on to captain the county.

In addition to our open age, mixed cricket teams participating in the Devon Cricket League, we have a thriving girls and ladies division at Cornwood, providing a fantastic opportunity for girls to get into cricket. Our girls teams start at primary school age and our adult ladies 1st XI, formed in 2009, have recently won their division, undefeated in the 2022 season! 

Additionally we have recently started a Womens softball team, which will be competing in a newly formed Devon Womens Softball league and as a result we now have a complete player pathway for women and girls. We are one of few teams in Devon to provide such a broad playing opportunity,  its something we are incredibly proud of.

In early May Cornwood CC shall be hosting Devon County Cricket Club when they entertain Cornwall County Cricket Club in two competitive T20 matches.  Cornwood CC is widely recognised across Devon as a club who supports cricket participation at all levels of the game.

Of course all the playing groups detailed above rely heavily on having safe and accessible training facilities, enabling them to stay active in cricket and improve their own performance in the process. Our cricket nets play a huge part in achieving that objective.  

Why are we crowdfunding?

In 2012, we were fortunate enough to be able to provide our members with a fantastic, state-of-the-art, four lane, nets training facility. Over the past eleven years, this has been very well used, and over time has suffered as a result.

The nets are at a point where they are becoming unfit for use and in some cases unsafe. Our netting is frayed and broken in some places, meaning a well struck shot can cause the ball to breach the nets facility, posing risk to people and vehicles. The flooring has become uneven in places causing an unpredictable bounce and without these repairs, only a matter of time before an injury occurs.

The nets require substantial investment to get them back to a standard where they can be used safely and consistently. They are a vital part of our cricket club and are a necessity for us to not only continue to run our training sessions for our club members, but provide a safe space for other local community groups to practice and play.

How will we spend the money raised?

Were looking to raise £5000 in this campaign, the rest of the total will be covered by club funds.The overall cost to repair the nets is in the region of £14,000. Quite the sum of money, but the repairs stretch beyond just replacing some netting. 

 Our renovations must include:

• Taking up the entire floor mat, repairing any holes or gaps in the base, consolidating and then levelling the entire surface, before re-orientating the four playing mats. 
• Replacing all the netting that surrounds the main nets facility, and the netting that separates the four lanes. The type of netting is also going to be higher specification material than used previously
• Adding reinforced plastic covering to the lower portion of the nets which will help to make sure the area of the nets where the ball is struck most, is protected for longer. This will also help to stop the ball entering the adjoining nets
• Replacing the tensioner wire that runs around the base of the external nets. This makes sure the netting doesn’t sag and keeps the netting in good condition for far longer
• Addition of white colour netting on the rear fence of the nets. This acts as a sight screen to give batters better visibility of the ball and reduces the risk of injury  

How can you help us?

There are three easy ways to help us reach our target

1. Make a pledge. Help us by pledging toward our goal

2. Spread the word. Share our project on your social media pages and tell everyone you know to pledge! The more people we reach, the more support we will get.

3. Offer rewards. If you can donate things we can offer to our supporters, it encourages more people to donate

Colts Sponsored Walk and Club Treasure Hunt Kick Starts CC's £5000 Crowdfunder Campaign

On Good Friday, our colts and their families turned up in good numbers for a leisurely stroll around Burrator reservoir to help raise funds for our Nets Refurbishment project. There were some challenging questions along the way to keep everyone engaged and a few more for the journey back.

A separate Club Treasure Hunt for other club members departed the club and wound its way out towards Burrator before heading back to Cornwood. On return to the club there were hot dogs, curry, cake on offer and of course the bar was open for the first time this summer.

How can you help? ......

Anyone unable to make the opening day events can still contribute to our crowdfunder scheme. In fact it is positively encouraged ! If you can contribute something, no matter how small, it would be greatly appreciated and will help us get over the line.

Winners of the Sponsored Walk question challenge was Team Buzz and the Treasure Hunt was won by Team Sky.

Both teams were presented with some delicious easter eggs. The additional wildlife picture competition was won by Team ONE who prepared an impressive collage of pictures taken whilst on the walk.

Rewards!

Our amazing local network of sponsors have provided us with some amazing rewards that supporters can benefit from when they donate. Head to the rewards section of the campaign page to get yourself a bargain!

Remember, if you have something you think our supporters would love as a reward, please let us know through the campaign contact page. 

This project successfully funded on 17th May 2023