A NORTH Yorkshire School could become a centre for cricketing excellence thanks to an investment in new facilities.

North Yorkshire County Council has given £100,000 to Boroughbridge High School to refurbish the sports facilities and buy new cricket nets.

The school has a long tradition of its pupils going on to play for Yorkshire.

At an opening ceremony last week Joe Sayers, Yorkshire’s opening batsman and Stewart Regan, chief executive of Yorkshire County Cricket Club, attended to celebrate the new facilities along with local councillors, school staff, governors and pupils. As a result, the school is about to enter talks with Yorkshire County Cricket with a view to making the school a centre of cricketing excellence.

Ivan Nicholson, the school’s deputy head, said students and staff were thrilled to have such high- quality facilities.

He said: “This is great news for the school. A high proportion of the boys here play cricket and now they will be able to practise and play all the year round to the highest standards.”

County councillor Jim Clark, North Yorkshire’s executive member for schools, said: “The local authority is delighted that as a result of this investment Boroughbridge can now offer first-class sporting amenities.

“We are determined that schoolchildren across our county have the opportunity to develop their physical education to the highest standards and we are thrilled that Boroughbridge High School’s tradition in cricketing excellence can now be recognised at the highest levels.”