Harden CC's All Stars Experience.
Harden Cricket Club was founded over 160 years ago and has played cricket around West Yorkshire ever since. Harden’s junior section was originally established over 50 years ago with U13, U15 and U17 teams. Participation in the last few years has been excellent, primarily because of the club’s family friendly environment. Most of the junior section have played in, or are currently playing in, senior cricket. Currently, Harden’s 1st and 2nd team captains have both come through the junior section from a very early age. In fact, the oldest juniors still playing at Harden are still playing today in the over-50s team!
In 2015 the club decided to establish an under-9s section, which involved getting in touch with the local schools to advertise. The club managed to register 20 new juniors for this section in 2016. To aid their junior ambitions, the club decided to get involved with the All Stars programme in 2017 and now have over 50 juniors registered with the club following the 2017 programme!
Harden worked closely with the Yorkshire Cricket Board to help promote All Stars at their club. The club also took advantage of the plentiful number of local schools, getting into the schools to promote their All Stars programme. The club also advertised heavily on their Facebook page and Twitter account.
In their 2017 All Stars programme, Harden saw children of all different abilities and children with disabilities able to fully take part in cricket. It was heartening to see these children with smiles on their faces and enjoying the sessions. The parents and guardians who attend the sessions at Harden week in week out provided excellent support, making the sessions even more enjoyable. Club members volunteered their free time and even took time out from their jobs to aid the little All Stars.
Richard, the head activator and the main contact for All Stars at Harden, had this to say about All Stars Cricket:
“The All Stars program is a fantastic way of introducing young children to Cricket. It allows us to introduce the various aspects and skills involved in cricket in a very simple but structured way. Through the sessions we have run it’s clear that children find it enjoyable and have fun at the same time. Indeed, it has become apparent that not only do they have a great time, they actually learn the basics of cricket and some develop skills very quickly.”
The parents of Harden’s little All Stars were full of praise for the programme:
Sally said her daughter, Molly, really enjoyed All Stars: “Molly has been playing every week at home with her Daddy. She has also been down to the ground on match days to watch the seniors play. Molly has also asked us for her own set of stumps to practice more at home!”
Keiron, father of Toby, said: “It’s great to see so many juniors down at the club, enjoying playing cricket. It’s brilliant to see all the kids with smiles on their faces. Since Toby joined last season you can see the improvements in his ability and its all down to the All Stars activities which have been run at the club.”
Vicki, mother of Poppy, said that “Poppy has had a great time at All Stars. She has developed some great skills, all through play. She can’t wait for next season to start!”
Ginny, mother of Pippy, said: “My daughter loved attending Harden's All Stars cricket sessions and, after her first session, they quickly became one of the highlights of the week. Richard (and his team of volunteers) made her feel welcome and she quickly overcame any initial shyness and became an enthusiastic player. As a family, the club made us all feel welcome and it was lovely to spend every Friday evening sat on a bench, with a drink, chatting to other parents and watching the children learn to play. There was a real sense of community, something I have not always encountered with other hobbies my children have participated in. The sessions adapted to all the children's experiences and abilities. When the season ended my daughter has continued to ask when it will start again, as she can’t wait to return to start the new season, and, like her, I too am looking forward to returning to watch her play.”
It’s clear to see that the kids at Harden had a great time with All Stars in 2017 and the programme has gone a long way to help the club and boost their junior section as well. We wish Harden the best of luck in 2018! Sounds like the little All Stars are looking forward to it already!