After the wettest Winter and Spring imaginable, the Gordon Rigg Bradford Premier League Management Board confirmed last Thursday 11th April that the opening day league fixtures on Saturday April 20 have been postponed.
The 1st and 2nd XI games will now be played on either Sunday, September 1 or Sunday, September 8 - the details will be confirmed to us shortly.
Unsurprisingly, the Enco Halifax Cricket League have followed suit over the weekend.
The 3rd and 4th XI fixtures scheduled for the opening Sunday 21st April will now be played on Sunday 22nd September with a start time of 12.30pm.
Both leagues have confirmed that the season must start on the weekend of the 27th and 28th April as there is no calendar availability for further fixture re-scheduling.
The later season finish will ensure a difficult end to the season for embattled groundsmen who have endured the toughest possible pre-season. Our thanks are already due to seasoned campaigners Chris Drake & Rod Heyhoe and their new colleague James Nixon who will be working solely on the square.
The senior squads have undertaken additional pre-season prep at the Adil Rashid Cricket Centre in Thornton with the final session yesterday evening. This followed the regular Tuesday evening slot from January until Easter at Woodland's Sports Hall. Director of Cricket Bruce Lunn has been delighted with the numbers attending and he is confident that all four senior XIs will have a successful summer.