Ingleton Parish Council has granted £1,200 to King James Cricket Club, in Bishop Auckland, to rejuvenate the playing field surface off Gainford Road before the winter comes.
Chairman Cllr Steve Leech revealed meetings had been held between the parish council and the Darlington and District League side working towards a five-year lease to bring cricket back to the parish-owned field.
A consultation on what the village wanted done with its sports field and pavilion revealed 44 per cent of residents surveyed wanted sport to return.
The £1,200 grant, from a bequest fund assigned to the field and pavilion, will pay for moss to be dug out of the former cricket pitch and loam soil topping.
But there were questions from councillors over other costs and fears club grant applications for a roller and ground equipment could fall through.
Cllr Leech said: “I am in favour of pursuing this – the question is can we spend £1,200 of village money in the hope that everything else fits into place?”
Cllr Paul Hunton said: “Having listened, I would say yes. It’s a cricket pitch and it’s a cricket pavilion. If this does not work this time there might be another team that comes along.”
He added: “Maybe we can reach out to the wider community that we’re looking to re-establish the cricket club and are looking for donations of cricket equipment.”
If the five year lease is agreed, the cricket club would not be charged for hiring the field or pavilion – provided it was kept tidy and there was “zero cost” to the parish after the £1,200 donation.
Dennis Gorton, captain and secretary of King James CC, told the council he was keen to forge close links with Ingleton. He said: “We’ve spent a lot of hours on this – if it does not work it won’t be for lack of trying. I want to see King James Cricket Club playing for the next 20 years.
“We won’t just come here, play cricket and go – we want to be part of the community as well.”
As well as Saturday home games, King James Social XI will play on Sundays through the season with “13 or 14” midweek cup and friendly games in high summer.
Several thousand pounds were thought to be in the playing field bequest fund which has been topped up by village fundraisers in recent years. Villager Sandra Parratt thought cricket was the best way to spend some of it.
She said: “We are talking about youngsters, entertainment and community cohesion – that’s a lot of things there that I think could benefit the community.
“If that money has been left where else is it going to go? Where is going to be better than what this is?”
Mr Gorton said membership fees of King James CC and match subs could be pushed up to meet any new costs.
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