Weather holds up cricket team's planned move to Ingleton sports ground

HOPES for cricket returning to a village after an eight year absence have been dealt a blow by the weather.

Ingleton Parish Council gave King James Cricket Club, from Bishop Auckland, permission to start playing their home fixtures on its field off Gainford Road next year.

The club was awarded £1,200 to get the field’s playing surface back up to scratch before winter closed in. But cold weather has put paid to seeding efforts until the spring.

Parish chairman Cllr Steve Leech said: “We are still very excited about King James CC playing at Ingleton.

“We were beaten by the weather this year – it became clear that the works we were planning, to create a new square and lay seed this year, had a real risk of the new seed not having sufficient time to establish before winter.”

If the seed beds in properly the spring, King James CC are planning to use the field for 30 weeks during the summer with its Darlington and District side playing home games on Saturdays and social XI playing friendlies on Sundays.

But the side may wait another year to allow the old square to recover.

League cricket was introduced to the field behind the former school in 1961.

Ingleton CC merged with Heighington CC about a decade ago in a bid to arrest declining player numbers.

However, the move proved fruitless and both clubs eventually folded.

A parish consultation held over the summer revealed 44 per cent wanted sport to return to Ingleton. The council is still in talks with King James CC over a five year lease of the field.

Cllr Leech added: “At the last parish council meeting we agreed terms of reference for a cricket working group to keep pushing the project forward so I hope we’ll have good news come spring.”