It's been a mixed week for cricket with a good win for England, tarnished by the gloom of the Condon Report. Jon Butler finds an antidote to it all at one of the most creative sites on CommuniGate, the York Vale Cricket League.
It's a long time ago now, but I can remember as a boy cheering Fred Trueman on as he took a wicket with his first ball against Hampshire at Harrogate.
Today's game with it's space-suited, high-fiving, high-earning, one-day players who look more like mobile hoardings than cricketers are in sharp contrast to the memory I hold dear of that halcyon time.
I thought those days were long gone until I logged on to the York Vale Cricket League site at www.communigate.co.uk/york/yorkvalecricket
There I was greeted by a picture of an idyllic scene of village cricket being played out against a tranquil rural backdrop, with an introduction telling me that the York Vale League was formed in 1933; at that point my regression was complete.
Peter Northfield is the man behind it all, and the thought and planning that he has put into has been rewarded by hundreds of visits to the site.
There are too many features to list here but you will find comprehensive league reports and tables, articles on the development of the game, details of new rules with advice for scorers, and the latest innovation - on-line maps to show you exactly where the grounds in the York Vale League are!
The guest book for the site has even attracted messages from abroad, and if you like your cricket then this is a site to bookmark. It is a fine example of what a free CommuniGate site can be, and if anyone has any ideas as to how we can get "Aggers" to plug it on Test Match Special, then let me know at jon.butler@ycp.co.uk
Other cricket sites on CommuniGate
The cricket clubs listed below have sites on CommuniGate. To get a free and easy-to-use website for your sports club simply go to www.thisisyork.co.uk and follow the links to CommuniGate.
Bishopthorpe Cricket Club
Copmanthorpe Cricket Club
Selby Cricket Club
Stockton & Hopgrove Cricket Club
Westow Cricket Club
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