HOLMEWOOD FALL TO RIDDINGS FIGHTBACK

HOLMEWOOD CC 93 ALL OUT V RIDDINGS 127 ALL OUT

DERBYSHIRE COUNTY CRICKET LEAGUE DIVISION 4 NORTH AT OLD COLLIERY LANE

30 APRIL 2022 --- 1230PM

HOLMEWOOD CC V RIDDINGS CC OVERVIEW

Riddings fought back from what looked looked like a low total but they skittled out the last half a dozen Holmewood wickets for just two runs off the bat to win by 34 runs.  All this after the home sides Sri Lankan player Rushan Jaleel had taken 5 for 34 devastating the visitors top order after they too had made a confident start.

So to the build up there would be no chippy and today would be a comfortable fifty minute walk to the Old Colliery Lane ground and Holmewood had been on the cards for a cricket match for a while.  Having watched a few football games on the same ground were the grounds share outfield and football pitch I had an understanding of the set up plus my dads story of his times at Holmewood pit in his younger working days always lead to an interest in the village.

So approaching by the old Williamthorpe Hotel site, now of course houses, it was time to have a look around the back streets of the village which was dwarfed in its heyday by its two collieries Williamthorpe and Holmewood, whose title was really Hardwick Colliery.  The meat in the sandwich was the village with the two pits the bread either side of it.  With Holmewood sunk in 1870 and coal coming out around 1896 at its height in 1959 it employed 1,410 men an amazing figure.  Its neighbour just to the north survived until 1970 after opening in 1905 so the feel for the history of the area and its mining past is still there with people of a certain age although the younger generation will of course have little idea.  The remaining welfare and 2 memorials in the parish gardens are the only recognition now with the obligatory winding wheel but to its side an extra plaque reminding everybody of the terrible conditions these men had to work in and they they were a large part of the industrial workforce that put the 'Great' in Great Britain.

Times move on and the sporting structure of the pits has also long gone the former Holmewood cricket ground was adjacent to Williamthorpe colliery but the club now play on land which is adjacent to the former Holmewood colliery site.  One of the most interesting features about the 'old days' was the two pits had between them an aerial ropeway that sent tubs of Williamthorpe hard coal over to the wash plant at Holmewood.  Probably a journey of about a quarter of a mile in the skies above the streets with buckets full of coal making their way to the neighbouring pit.

MASEFIELD MEMORIAL STEPS

The journey into the heart of the village is today via Masefield Avenue which within the gathering of houses has the former football pitch which moved to its new site because of the lack of changing rooms but its looking in steady condition today with grass cut and posts still up, I'm not sure if it is still used other than by the local kids.  Rolling back a little and halfway down Masefield Avenue is a new little cul de sac, Poets Close, there is a memorial set of steps to the poet John Masefield.  A gentle bit of research found this out and that he spent from 1930 to 1967 as Poet Laureate and so becomes the explanation of the feeder roads name, although his relevance to Holmewood I could not discover.  But as with this last couple of seasons local blogs its amazing the revelations on your own doorstep that you previously knew nothing about.

CENTRE OF HOLMEWOOD

With time approaching the start of play a sharp walk past the main row of shops to cross over the road by the library, an asset the village is fortunate still to have and to keep the nostalgic part going entry to the ground was via Old Colliery Lane which led to Holmewood pit in those days gone by.  For the record both former colliery sites are now taken over by large industrial estates.  Off to the cricket before a tea interval look at a little more nostalgia.

CHRISTOPHER STEELE TOP SCORING FOR RIDDINGS

The pavilion sits to one side of the welfare and is used for changing facilities for both football and cricket alongside a club room it is very much a collection of modern cabins but from experience a few years ago is quite smart inside.  Outside is an excellent electronic scoreboard which was well run all afternoon and to its side a mini cabin for the scorer, the whole collection is within a green steel fenced area to protect the site.

The site as previously mentioned is shared with football and both pitches overlap and with footy continuing we did have a set of goal posts incurring onto the outfield still.  Opposite the pavilion offers a nice tree lined back drop with the Five Pits Trail running behind and this is very much a semi circle route off the main trail but very relevant to its title taking in the two pits. 

RUSHAN JALEEL SPINNING OUT THE RIDDINGS TOP ORDER

It was a bright day with a gentle breeze occasionally more noticeable at some times though, there are few spectating facilities barring what chairs are on offer from the clubhouse, alongside two metal benches that are not in a particularly nice spot to view from.

Riddings won the toss and opted for a bat and all was going fairly well until the first wicket fell at 46 that of Andrew Steele [25] he fell to Jaleel and there started the collapse as the little spinner took out the opening four wickets leaving the visitors at 63 for 4 with Christopher Steele [36] top scoring.

David North [25*] offered the recovery but Jaleel completed his 'fivefor' with the eight wicket that of Dan Parkin [1] caught by Paul Blair with the score on one hundred.

In addition to Jaleel Jamie Horton returned 3 for 28 and Adam Cahill chipped in with two wickets. 

Five and half overs unused of the forty five it was time for tea for the players and a trip into nostalgia to the eastern end of the village that I had not visited so far today.

The former Holmewood Hotel was built right opposite Heath station, which is the neighbouring village but strangely is situated away from its centre.  The owners of the colliery including the Duke of Devonshire wanted a place for important visitors to stay and where better than adjacent to the railway station, which now forms of course part of the Five Pits Trail.  The hotel in mid life became known as The Pig and Whistle allegedly the whistle for the train station and pig because the landlord allowed a local butcher to use the backyard for his profession, it became colloquially known as 'the pig'.  The site is now operated by a private company as we move back towards the centre the latter site of the former village coop is passed along with the now replaced former bus shelter which was of a very large build clearly for the miners coming out of work who caught a normal service bus.  Strangely its modern replacement is of a similar extended size even though the residents of Devonshire Terrace will not have the same number demands of those miners in the 50's and 60's.

FORMER HOLMEWOOD HOTEL, PIG AND WHISTLE

After a look around the streets behind the main shops of Hardwick Close and Hunloke Street the newer council house style properties replaced the mass of terraced houses that would have been the staple accommodation for the mining families of the past.  It had felt like a late return for the restart and the game would be in play but it wasn't to be with a good ten minute wait for the players to re-enter the field of play.  So a good time to mention the two umpires today who seemed to put on a good performance scale and looked smart today with special mention to Mark Grayling who was smartly turned out.

UMPIRE MARK GRAYLING

The target did not look a big ask for Holmewood at under three an over it would be a matter of Riddings bowling them out and like the visitors they started strongly and reached 52 for 1 thanks to Gavin Horton [14] and Daniel Moss [26] who fell to Pieter Goosen, Moss would only lose out top scorer to Extras [27].  Luke Slater [12] contributed and Mark Brearley [10] held an end up but scoring became difficult and the pressure although not large on the run rate was now becoming the Riddings bowling attack.  Jack Mee had struggled with his line but took two wickets including the prize of Jaleel [2] whom he bowled and a striking spell from Gary Coxhead who returned 4 for 9 off 5.4 overs made the difference.

The last half a dozen Holmewood batsman had only notched up two runs and without a collection of extras and a few spilled catches the total would have been much lower.  It certainly felt like they had snatched defeat from the jaws of victory.  But the credit must go of course to Riddings who never gave up when they could have been forgiven for doing so and in the second half of the reply produced some restrictive and effective wicket taking bowling.

DANIEL MOSS TOP SCORING BATSMAN FOR HOLMEWOOD

With a finish just around 5.40pm a walk away via a local footpath onto the Springfield Road estate there was another discovery of an area in Holmewood that I had not walked before to start the journey back to base after a big chunk of nostalgia with an equally intriguing game of cricket making for an excellent visit.

CHRISTOPHER STEELE RIDDINGS KEEPER JOY AS VICTORY IS WRAPPED UP