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Contents

Grassroot Media Contacts Twitter @grassrootmedia Facebook.com/grassrootmedia

Office telephone number 0800 8 20 21 22 or 01992 27 44 27

Mathew Court’s email address mcourt@grassrootmedia.com

No part of this magazine may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval

system or transmitted without permission.

5 MD’s Letter

7 The Save Grassroots Campaign

We talk to David Crausby MP

about the campaign

20 Sports First Aid

Common Cricket injuries - part

two

26 Cricket Coaching With Andrew

Beaven

Over rates and how to increase

them

30 Grassroots Cricket News

Harold Wood Cricket Club tell us

about their recent 24 hour net

marathon

34 Earn Money For Your Club With

The Cricket Paper

Earn commission on

subscriptions

37 The Grassroots Groundsman

3G or not to 3G, that is the

question. And what to do on your

cricket square this month of

course

42 Colin Smith

Elvis has left the building, not

before raising over a grand for

charity!

47 The Secret Non-League

Footballer

TSFNL’s tips for the coming

season

51 Club Security

An idea to secure players

valuables in changing rooms

while they are playing

54 Twitter Directory

55 Blockshop

56 Sponsor A Local Club

http://www.owzat-insure.co.uk/

Hello and welcome to August’s magazine.

It’s hot out there isn’t it? I hope your water bills aren’t too high with all the

sprinklers that will be on around the country right now, although if they

are then have another look at Colin Smith’s article last month on rain

water harvesting. It’s something I’m going to look in to in a bit more detail

in advance of the autumn.

We’ve also got the chance to heat things up a bit down in Westminster,

you’ll find out more when you get to page seven but I really think the Save

Grassroots campaign is a chance to get our politicians listening to US for

a change. I travelled up to Bolton and had a good chat with the head of the

campaign, David Crausby MP.

The chat gave me an idea that we could run with: an equipment exchange

between us all. So, if you’ve got any grounds, club or personal equipment,

anything from boots to bats to pads to mower spare parts to goals then let

me know and I’ll start a section in here advertising them.

For those of you that are football clubs, good luck for the start of your

season, I hope the hard work you’ve put in over the summer is paying off,

and for the cricket clubs remember it’s always about how you finish the

season!

I hope you enjoy this month’s magazine.

Mat Court 5

The MD’s

Letter

If you would like to find out more about what we do at

Grassroot Media:

Go to our website www.grassrootmedia.com

Call 0800 8 20 21 22 or 01992 27 44 27

Email info@grassrootmedia.com

Be part of the team...

We make money for football and cricket clubs

by putting frames up in changing rooms, selling

the space and then paying a rent for you letting

us do it.

It is easy, does not cost the clubs a penny and

all you have to do is take a photo each month

of the posters once you’ve changed them (we

send them out in the post to you).

Some of you may be aware of the ‘Save Grassroots’ campaign, others may not. We

caught up with the man heading it up, a politician!

David Crausby - An

MP Campaigning For

Grassroots Football

The ‘Save Grassroots’ campaign

was originally launched over a

year ago by the man we’re talking

to today, and Kenny Saunders who

runs a junior football club in

Liverpool.

They saw the vast amount of money

being given to the Premier and the

disparity between the elite game

and the grassroots of the sport,

especially the youth element of

football.

So between them they started a

petition with a view to getting the

100,000 signatures such a thing

needs to trigger a debate about the

subject in parliament. It didn’t

make the 100k but nevertheless

Crausby was able to secure a

debate anyway and the decision

was taken to relaunch the

campaign in the run up to the

general election next year.

The new campaign is already up to

7,500 signatures but there’s a long

way to go to 100,000.

I caught up with David Crausby MP

in his constituency office in Bolton

to find out why we should all get on

board and sign the petition (which

by the way you can access here:

http://epetitions.direct.gov.uk/peti

tions/66835)...

An MP trying to ‘save grassroots’ 7

MAT COURT: What’s your personal

background with regards to

grassroots sports and grassroots

football in particular?

DAVID CRAUSBY MP: I’ve had a

long-term interest in football and

have been a fan for as long as I can

remember. I played amateur

football as a youngster and simply

love the game.

I’ve seen in recent years so many

football pitches lost to

development and removed, schools

under pressure, and I just think it’s

sad to see the grassroots game go

down.

Kenny Saunders, who runs kids

football teams in Liverpool,

approached me because he knew I

had an interest in grassroots

football; he made the point that

every Saturday morning they are

putting on football in Liverpool and

scouts from the big professional

clubs come down to try to watch

every kid in Liverpool every

opportunity they get. Then they

pick out the cream and then forget

the rest.

“...they take the cream

away and treat them

well but the rest have to

carry on getting

changed outdoors...”

They take the cream away and treat

them very well, they give them

very good facilities, great coaching

but the rest of the kids have to

carry on getting changed outdoors

next to the pitch because they

haven’t got any usable changing

rooms and showers. That just

doesn’t seem right to me,

especially off the back of the fact

that the Premier League are in the

process of negotiating what

amounts to a £5bn deal over three

years. So it’s gone from there really.

“...I see how keen kids

are...I see how good the

people are that put on

football...”

I have a grandson who plays

grassroots football so I’ll go and

watch him and his team. I see how

keen they are. I see how good the

people are that put the football on

and run the game, for nothing, just

because they believe in the game

in the same way that I do and I just

think they need some help and

support as they are not getting it

from local authorities anymore. I

understand why they are not

getting that local authority support

anymore; our own local authority

has to save £60m over the next

couple of years out an effective

available budget of about £150m

8

when you take out statutory

requirements such as schools and

other core services. Out of this

£150m, over £100m of it is to look

after vulnerable children and

adults and obviously no one wants

to cut these, so the cuts have to

come from everywhere else. So we

can see why the support from local

authorities for grassroots football is

lower than it used to be, and

although they’ve not been perfect

over the years we can’t blame them

for where we are.

That said, they’ve let go of too

many pitches across the country to

developers and not replaced them

with artificial pitches elsewhere

which would make a big

difference.

So you think artificial pitches are

the solution?

“...Artificial pitches cost

a lot of money and this

money isn’t coming

from anywhere

quickly...”

I think the great thing about

artificial pitches is they can get

fully used to a high capacity. They

are not as good as the old grass

pitches in terms of play and feel,

there’s nothing better, it’s a proper

football pitch, but I think the reality

is that if you want to allow lots of

people to play football then

artificial pitches are a big part of

the answer.

The downside is they cost quite a

bit of money and this money isn’t

coming from anywhere quickly. But

then you look around and see the

£5bn deal with the Premier League.

I’m not arguing for them for the

reason of the national team

performing better [Germany

reportedly has ten times the amount

of artificial pitches than the UK]. This

is not why I think children should

be playing grassroots football, but

if we do have more kids playing

football we will have a better

national team, but as I said that’s

not the reason I want better and

more facilities.

“...Everybody has the

fundamental right to

play football...”

I’m not in the business of finding all

of the really good footballers then

creaming them off and then

forgetting about the rest. I think

that everybody, especially

children, should have the right to

play football. A fundamental right,

9

and our government should in

some way deliver it.

What governments does is take

money from one group of people to

give to other people, that’s it’s

operation, it takes it from me and

you in taxes to give to other people.

So why don’t we take it from the

Premier League?

Now, I’m absolutely delighted that

Harriet Harman has picked up on

my idea today where the Labour

party has come out with a policy

where they will take money and put

it in to the game. I don’t think they

are thinking about taking enough

though.

“...the Premier League

said it would give 5% of

its TV money, but it

doesn’t deliver...”

The Premier League said it would

give 5% of its TV rights money but

it doesn’t deliver.

They never met their 5%

commitment and even when they

did make their version of 5% it

wasn’t entirely spent on the

grassroots, some of it went to the

semi-professional game. Anything

going in to football is good but I

just think true grassroots football,

and the kids that don’t play football

very well, are a completely

different thing but massively

important, not just to the kids

themselves but to society because

it does so much good.

You mention a distinction between

grassroots and semi-pro’ everyone

seems to have different ideas on

what ‘grassroots’ is. I work in a

company that has grassroot in its

name but even I’m not sure as to

what my definition of it is. What’s

your definition of grassroots?

My view of it is based around this

principle of every child should

have the right to play. If they want

to play, they should be able to.

I think that’s the real grassroots,

everybody playing, not just the

more talented ones. I want children

of every ability level to be able to

play football, and enjoy it, and get

fitter through it.

So I see that as the real grassroots. I

think other people might see the

grassroots as the more talented

grassroots that could be a benefit

to professional clubs and England

team, and I don’t decry that

because it would be nice if we

could win the World Cup, and

there’s no reason why we can’t, but

that’s not my version of grassroots.

10

I think how your elite teams

perform are just an indicator of the

whole sport in general.

Yes. I also hear this argument that

it’s also the fault of the foreign

players that have come in. It might

be a bit but even with all of those

foreign players in the Premier

League, we still have the

Championship which is as good, or

even better, league than they have

in a lot of the countries that we are

competing against.

If the Championship and Leagues 1

& 2 were full of good quality

English players it wouldn’t matter

that there were no English players

in the Premier League as we’d still

have a good pool of players to pick

from.

One of the things I’ve been saying

is that it’s hard enough to get the

kids off the couch from the X-Box

on to the real thing. There is much

more to distract kids these days so

what we have to do is provide them

with absolutely excellent facilities

and we will get them off the couch,

and that just seems to me a really

good thing to do regardless of

whether we get a better national

side out of it or not. It’s a good thing

for society to do.

When you talk to people that run

kids football clubs they do it for

nothing, they do a fantastic job and

they’ll tell you all the time that it

brings down youth crime and all

sorts of beneficial things, they get

misbehaving kids back on track,

they connect kids that don’t feel

connected and it makes them feel

special.

All through a little football club.

Now you’ve brought up the issue of

English players further down the

professional leagues I’ll ask you

about the FA. Obviously a big piece

of recent news has been the

proposal for the B Team league

which came out of Greg Dyke’s

England Commission, do you have

any thoughts on that.

I’ve got an interest in it, and have

an opinion on it but I don’t think it

will affect grassroots football. That

said it doesn’t seem to have been

met with much support.

It didn’t sound like a really bad

idea to me but the reality is that the

professional game is a very

different game to the amateur

game.

“...the Premier League

is there to make

money...”

11

The Premier League is there to

make money, and to a certain

extent so is the Championship; I

think the purpose of the

Championship is for clubs to get in

to the Premier League and then

make money. It’s all about cash.

With all due respect to the FA, in

my view, they are just a little bit too

close to the professional game.

Their responsibility is to the game

but I think they take far too much

notice of the Premier League and

other professional leagues which

effectively fund them who are

owned by billionaires from all over

the world and who might not have

the same interests in grassroots

football.

“...with all due respect

to the FA, in my view,

they are just a little bit

too close to the

professional game...”

Your campaign shouldn’t need to

happen should it? The money is

there in the FA isn’t it?

I met someone from the FA once

and we talked about this issue. His

line was “I think what you’re doing

is fantastic, we’d love to be able to

put more money in to grassroots

but we have to be careful about

what we say and do.”

“...the FA shouldn’t have

to be careful about what

they say and do, they

should represent the

game...”

They shouldn’t have to be careful

about what they say and do, they

should represent the game.

But in reality we live in a world that

is dominated by big money so

therefore we can see why they feel

they need to be careful.

But I don’t give a damn about

whether professional football gets

upset with me and that’s what I see

as a good politician’s role; I don’t

care where the money is, this is

what I think is right and wrong.

Politicians and the government

should intervene on these sorts of

things, but I don’t want government

to get

12

its hand on running the game,

mainly because we would make a

mess of it!

Politicians and government

organisations are not famous for

running the most efficient of

operations. But there are some

things we need to intervene on,

and of course some things

government needs to run, such as

the Police and the Army for

example, but we don’t want to run

football.

We should be looking to put other

people in the position of providing

football.

“...what I want from this

campaign is for the

money to go right down

to the grassroots...”

We’re good at taxation, that’s what

we do, that’s our job; we tax,

hopefully take it from the right

people and make sure it goes in

the right direction and then let

people who know what they are

doing get on with it. I don’t want to

run the game, I don’t want to be

hands-on in any way, what I want

out of this campaign is for the

money to go right down to those

grassroots. If that’s through the

Football Foundation fine, I think the

Football Foundation does a really

good job but I want to see the

money in the hands of those people

who turn out week in week out to

put football on.

I talked to a married couple who

come out every Saturday morning

to put football on. They run a

Saturday league for children. They

run their own club too. They are out

there in all weathers putting

football on. I’m not sure even they

know why they do it, but they do.

They operate a boot club because

some of the kids can’t afford their

own boots, the idea being that

when a kid grows out of their boots

they go to the club for children

with smaller feet to have them.

That’s a nice idea, I like it.

Yes it’s a good idea but I don’t

know about you, I never wanted to

wear anybody else’s boots. It’s an

absolute indictment of the game in

this wealthy country of our that

people have to do something like

this in order to stop kids playing

football in wellies. It’s shocking. But

they do it and I want to see the

money going right down to this

kind of club, these kinds of people.

These people and others like them

13

across the country have to pay for

their own training courses and I

want to see the money going right

to them. I don’t want to see this

money going to some corporation

and people in flashy offices, it

needs to go to the grassroots.

OK, let’s say the campaign is a

success, you’ve got 100,000

signatures. You then take it to

parliament. It then gets enacted

and 5% of the £5bn Premier

League TV money, £375m, is

allocated to the grassroots game.

How does that then get distributed

and to whom?

There are 650 parliamentary

constituencies in this country,

about £1/2m per constituency.

“...in a town like Bolton

it would be worth

£1.5m...”

In a town like Bolton with three

constituencies within it, that’s about

£1.5m. Not an absolute fortune but

it would make such a difference to

those clubs. Now I would allocate it

locally through the local leagues

who would then have the power to

pass it on properly where it needs

to go, to clubs. The allocation of

money in this kind of way is always

very difficult and needs to be

studied very carefully as some

people will try and run off with it.

But in the main the vast majority of

volunteers out there won’t run off

with it, instead they will spend it

very, very wisely.

We would have to keep an eye on it

but not such a close eye that it costs

more money to police than what

you are distributing.

I saw a recent case where a couple

were prosecuted for taking a grant

meant for their football club and

then spent it on themselves, I think

they were locked up because of it,

but I believe they were found out

because of other members or

people associated with the club

thought something was up. So I

think publicising what each club

has been allocated would make it

self-policing, if the money isn’t

being spent where it should be

then other club member will have

something to say about it.

Yes, if we knew there was £1.5m

available for grassroots football

that has been put in the hands of

the local Bolton leagues we would

be able to tell very easily whether

it’s been spent on the right things

or not. But equally we don’t want to

be telling people what they should

be spending it on as long as it

benefits grassroots.

14

Going back to government, how

has the campaign been received in

Westminster?

The response I’ve had from the

present government has not been

fantastic, they’ve been very

defensive. When the original

petition hit 10,000 we are meant to

get a reply, and we got a reply at

about 20,000 as they seemed very

reluctant to answer. So I put down a

number of written questions

followed by an oral question which

going to be along the lines of “you

lot haven’t bloody answered” when

surprise surprise at midnight the

night before my oral question in

the House was going to be asked I

received an answer to the written

questions. Just a coincidence. But I

got an answer regardless and the

answer was effectively saying the

Football Foundation is doing ok,

they put money in to the game and

so on and that my campaign is not

necessary.

“...the response from

the current government

has not been fantastic...”

I’m not saying the Football

Foundation is not doing something,

what they do is very valuable but I

don’t think it’s enough. The Premier

League promised 5% and they’ve

never delivered so we need

government to lean on them and

say either you do it or we make you

do it.

I’d much rather they volunteered to

do it, I don’t want the Inland

Revenue to have to get involved as

they’d likely miss half of it and will

cost more to collect.

“...it’s in the interest of

professional football to

do this...”

At the end of the day it’s in the

absolute interest of professional

football to do this. As I say, that’s

not my motivation for this but the

spin-off to them is enormous from

what they will gain. There’ll be no

need to buy the Carlos Tevez’s of

this world and other multi-

millionaire footballs if there are

more playing at grassroots.

David Crausby MP (right) with

Kenny Saunders

15

What’s the worst-case scenario if

you don’t get 100,000 signatures?

Well, last time we didn’t get

100,000 signatures but the petition

won’t do anything itself, it’s an

awareness tool and I think what the

last petition and this petition have

achieved is making people aware

of the issue.

When you talk to people about it

they say, as you have this afternoon,

that you agree, it’s difficult to argue

against and that eventually that

gets through to politicians and

leadership of political parties.

“...clearly Labour has

picked up my idea and

noticed it...it can

become law...”

Clearly the Labour party

leadership have picked up my idea

and noticed it, and eventually if we

put enough pressure on it will

become law. Last time if it had got

to 100,000 I would have got an

automatic debate on it in

Parliament. I applied for one

anyway and got one, so I did a half

hour adjournment debate, and I’ll

just keep going with that. I’ll just

keep going and we’ll just keep

flagging it up.

It’s good that Labour is now at least

consulting on adopting it as policy,

I’ll contribute to the consultation

trying to persuade other people to

get in there. I’ll put down an early

day motion and get lots of

signatures and that makes

politicians aware. What politicians

are aware of most of all is most and

they think people are going to vote

for something they’ll get behind it.

There must be over a million

people in the UK playing football,

that’s a lot of votes.

Yes, and if you say to them here’s a

choice of Premier League clubs

paying a player £1/4m a week or

some goals for a grassroots club,

it’s a no-brainer. And it’s not just

about kids. I’ve targeted it mainly

at kids but it’s not just about kids.

One mother said to me she had two

sons and they were quite good

footballers and were taken on my

Manchester United when they were

13 or 14 years old. When they were

17 they were told they weren’t big

enough or strong enough, that they

weren’t going to develop so the

club let them go. They haven’t

played football since because in

their area there are no pitches.

They went from absolute football

luxury to not being able to play, so

there is that element as well.

16

I’ve read a lot about the

psychology of losing that chance of

playing pro. If I remember right

over 90% kids that go in to a

professional academy don’t get a

senior contract. And I’d imagine a

massive chunk of those don’t play

again because they lost their

dream.

The worrying aspect is clubs like

Manchester City who are

developing a fantastic set up

around the club but bringing kids

in from around the world at a young

age, which is not exactly in the

kids’ best interest is it? It seems to

me that bringing a child in from

Brazil at 14, no matter how much

they are looked after they’d still be

better off at home.

If George Best had stayed at home

he’d have been in a better position

with his family there.

“...clubs should be

training local

footballers, but if they

are not there then they

are not there to train...”

Clubs should be training local

footballers, but if they are not there

to train because they haven’t

played football then they are not

there are they.

Aside from money, what are some

of the issues facing grassroots

clubs?

I think land is an issue, and the

value of it. There’s an increasing

pressure on land particularly within

cities and I think the government

should intervene on that. It’s just

too easy to say there’s a shortage of

housing and we need to put some

houses on any green spaces in a

city as we don’t want to put them in

the green belt.

I think green land in the cities is as

important as it is in the green belt,

in some respects more so. So land

is very important.

We’ve got nearly 300 clubs as part

of our network, is there anything off

the top of your head that you think

our clubs could do for you?

Sign the petition. Get their families

to sign the petition. Get their

players to sign the petition. Keep

up the campaign. I’ll keep talking

about it in the press and in

parliament but you can’t really

keep repeating yourself saying the

same thing.

We know that in the media you

need a hook to hang things on and

17

we just need to keep finding things

to hang this issue on so that it’s on

the front page of all the political

leaderships going in to the next

election, and we should be

challenging them on what their

policy is regarding this leading up

to the election.

A note from Mat...

I enjoyed my talk with Mr Crausby

more than I thought I would; I

usually don’t have much time for

politicians (and never really

wanted to meet one) but the

passion he has for this campaign is

infectious. If I hadn’t already

signed the petition I would have

done it there and then. But he can’t

talk to every single person to

persuade them. We can... OK,

maybe not personally, but we can

help the campaign by not only

signing it ourselves but

transmitting the message through

the multitude of communication

routes we have available to us now.

We’ve never been as connected as

we are today through text

messaging, emails, Twitter,

Facebook, our own club websites

and anything else that makes it

easier for us to talk to each other.

Equally, as a society, we’ve never

been as disenfranchised with

politics as we are right now, I think

mainly because we feel as though

decisions are taken that we don’t

agree with or feel aren’t

democratic. We live in the world’s

oldest democracy but it doesn’t

feel like it sometimes, whatever

your political leanings.

I think this is a chance for

democracy to show it means

business again and show the

politicians what we think they

should be doing. If enough of us

get behind it they will because

come May next year they will all be

fighting for their political lives

canvassing our votes. Wouldn’t it

be great if all the main parties said

“yep, we’ll do this”, they might

even start listening to us on other

things!

This is a chance to actually change

the way the political parties look at

something so dear to a lot of our

hearts. A chance for us to actually

change something.

And all we have to do is take a few

seconds to sign this petition:

http://epetitions.direct.gov.uk/peti

tions/66835

Or retweet something from the

@savegrassroots Twitter account.

Or put a news story up on our

club’s website. Or a poster in the

club window. We can make a

difference on this one...

18

http://www.blockshop.co.uk/

Sports

First Aid

Common Cricket Injuries -

Part Two In the second part of this article on

the causes, treatment and

prevention of four of the most

common injuries in club cricket,

the focus is on finger and shoulder

injuries.

Finger Injuries

A cricketers fingers are

particularly vulnerable to injuries

such as broken bones and

dislocations, sprains and strains to

the finger joints. These injuries

usually result from being hit by the

cricket ball.

Mallet Finger

Mallet finger is a common injury in

cricket caused by the ball hitting

the tip of the finger. The end of the

finger is bent forward by the force

causing it to hyper-flex resulting in

a rupture of the tendon that

straightens the end joint (known as

the distal joint).

In addition to the symptoms of pain

and swelling of the affected joint,

when a mallet finger injury occurs

the tip of the finger will be remain

in a downward bent position and it

won’t be possible to straighten it.

Treatment for a Mallet Finger

Injury

It is not recommended that a mallet

finger injury is treated at home, so

(as with all of the types of finger

injuries outlined in this article) it’s

Sophie Hoskins from Physical Sports First Aid continues her column on Sports First

Aid. See more at www.physical-sports.co.uk

20

always necessary to seek medical

attention. Delaying a visit to a

doctor for any of these injuries

could make the treatment more

difficult and may lead to delayed

recovery or permanent stiffness

and loss of mobility in the injured

finger joint.

“...delaying treatment

may lead to permanent

loss of mobility in the

joint...”

Treatment for a mallet finger injury

will usually involve the splinting

the finger in a straight position for

up to two months using a specially

designed mallet finger splint.

Keeping the finger in this position

allows the tendon insertion to

reattach to the bone. Once the

splint is removed the treatment will

focus on exercises and therapy to

straighten the finger and improve

mobility.

Finger Joint Dislocation

It’s relatively common for

cricketers to sustain a dislocated

finger and this type of injury

normally happens as a result of the

cricket ball striking the end of the

finger. A joint dislocation is when a

bone in the finger is moved

(dislocated) from its socket causing

damage to the tissue around the

joint.

“...it’s usually obvious

when a finger has been

dislocated as it won’t be

in a normal position...”

It’s usually obvious when a finger

has been dislocated as it won’t be

in a normal anatomical position: it

may be bent at a strange angle or

deformed.

Common symptoms are intense

pain, swelling and a loss of function

in the finger.

In severe cases symptoms may

include tingling or numbness, or a

break in the skin where the

dislocation has occurred. In these

cases the injured person should

visit an emergency department as

soon as possible.

Treatment of Finger Joint

Dislocation

The swelling can be reduced

immediately using an ice pack and

by raising the injured hand above

the level of the heart. It’s important

to seek medical attention for a full

diagnosis and correct treatment of

21

this injury.

The doctor will need to correct the

position of the finger be realigning

the dislocated bones. The PRICE

protocol should be followed for the

first few days after the injury. A

splint, or buddy taping, will be

used to support and protect the

injured finger for 3-6 weeks. To

help to reduce the chance of

decreased mobility in the finger it’s

important to carry out any

exercises recommended by the

doctor or physiotherapist.

Finger Sprain (Volar Plate

Injury)

The most common cause of finger

sprains in cricket is when the

finger is forced to hyperextend

backwards while catching the ball.

The middle joint of the finger

(known as the PIP joint) is most

frequently sprained and this occurs

when the volar plate ligament that

keeps the joint in a normal stable

position is damaged by the force of

hyper-extension. This type of injury

may also include an avulsion

fracture where a fragment of bone

is torn off at the ligament when the

injury occurs.

The symptoms of a sprain are pain

and stiffness in the finger joint with

a degree of swelling and in some

cases bruising. The amount of

swelling is usually an indication of

how severe the injury is.

Treatment for Finger Sprains

To treat this type of injury

immediately follow the PRICE

protocol. As soon as possible the

injury should be assessed by a

doctor who will decide on the

appropriate course of treatment.

“... Cold therapy using

can help reduce

swelling and pain...”

Cold therapy using finger cold

packs and compressive bandaging

using cohesive bandage can help

to reduce the swelling and pain.

The joint may be rested and

supported using a splint in the

initial phase of recovery, however,

with this type of sprain it’s

important to move the joint quickly

after the period of immobilisation.

Specific exercises for keeping the

joint flexible will normally be

recommended as part of the course

of treatment. Buddy taping may

also be recommended by the

physiotherapist/doctor as it is a

good way of protecting the finger

while allowing a normal range of

movement.

22

Causes of shoulder injuries in

cricket

Shoulder injuries are common in

cricket due to the repeated action

of bowling the ball and throwing

and catching the ball while

fielding. The most common

shoulder injuries are those which

affect the rotator cuff because the

arm is repeatedly extended up

over the head.

“... The rotator cuff is a

group of muscles and

their tendons that attach

to the bones of the

shoulder...”

The rotator cuff is a group of

muscles and their tendons that

attach to the bones of the shoulder

joint, enabling movement in the

shoulder and keeping the joint

stable.

Rotator cuff tendonitis occurs when

the tendons in the rotator cuff

become irritated and swollen and

this condition usually develops

over time due to ‘wear and tear’ or

repeated micro-trauma to the

tendon. One of the rotator cuff

tendons can also partially or fully

tear from overuse or from sudden

trauma, such as falling with the arm

overhead.

Symptoms of rotator cuff injuries

commonly include pain in the

shoulder which may spread as far

as the elbow and across the upper

back, swelling of the shoulder area

and restricted movement of the

arm; the pain will often worsen

when the arm is raised or when

lying on the affected side.

“...full diagnosis of a

rotator cuff injury

should be carried out

by a doctor...”

The full diagnosis of a rotator cuff

injury should be carried out by a

doctor and may include the

examination of the shoulder joint

using one or more of the following

tests: X-ray, MRI scan or ultrasound

scan.

Treating rotator cuff injuries

The first phase of treatment for

rotator cuff injury is normally the

same as for other soft tissue

injuries; rest the shoulder and

avoid any activities that worsen the

symptoms and apply ice packs to

the shoulder 20 minutes at a time

up to every two hours during the

first few days.

Taking some anti-inflammatory

medication, such as ibuprofen, can

23

help to reduce the swelling and

pain.

The shoulder should be rested until

it has started to heal, but doing

gentle exercises as soon as it is

comfortable enough to do so can

help to reduce stiffness in the

shoulder.

“...the GP may

recommend

physiotherapy treatment

to build strength around

the joint...”

The GP may recommend

physiotherapy treatment to

gradually build strength around the

joint and increase flexibility and

movement. It may be necessary to

wear a sling or shoulder support,

or to have the shoulder taped by a

physiotherapist.

In severe cases where a tendon has

been torn, or symptoms are

persistent, the GP may recommend

steroid injections, to reduce the

swelling, or surgery, to repair the

tear in the tendon.

Preventing shoulder injuries

One of the most effective ways to

prevent shoulder rotator cuff

injuries is to ensure that correct

form and technique is consistently

used during matches and training.

Following an exercise programme

leading up to and throughout the

season which includes exercises

for the whole shoulder complex

can also help to improve the

stability of the rotator cuff and

reduce the risk of injury to the

tendons.

The programme should include

exercises to build strength of the

muscles surrounding the shoulder

joint and stretches to improve

flexibility.

It is important to gradually increase

the amount of competition and

training, in particular bowling and

fielding practice, so that the rotator

cuff muscles aren’t overloaded and

they have time to adapt to the

increase in workload.

It’s also important to rest properly

between matches and training

sessions.

“...It’s also important to

rest properly between

matches and training

sessions...”

24

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This month Andrew Beaven, Coach at Oakfield Parkonians Cricket Club in

Barkingside, Essex gives us his thoughts on over rates!

Andrew

Beaven Over Rates...Get On With It!

All too often, as the over rate drops

and the game drags, you will hear

this cry from the stands, or the lone

fielder stationed out on the

boundary.

England bowled their overs so

slowly in the first Test against Sri

Lanka that they probably missed

the chance to start the summer with

a win.

“...England bowled

their overs so slowly in

the first Test against Sri

Lanka that they

probably missed the

chance of a win...”

Young players (and not-so-young

players, brought up on 40- and 50-

over cricket), get bored when a

time game meanders along. So too

do more experienced "time"

cricketers...but we have the

responsibility to do something

about this!

I have railed against slow over-

rates before, without ever setting

out what I thought needed to be

done. Shouting "get on with it",

whilst heart-felt, doesn't actually

help!

Fines for slow rates, or penalty

runs, can really only be applied

when the game is run by

independent match officials.

So - what can be done by the

players to speed up the game?

26

You could try running into fielding

position between deliveries and

overs, but I find this a little artificial,

and ineffective, especially when

one player (often the bowler, or the

captain) doesn't keep up with the

rest of the team. This just leads to

frustration for the batsmen, the

umpires, and the other fielders, as

they wait for the late-comer(s).

“...running between

overs can give the

impression of a rapid

over-rate, but there are

better, more reliable

methods...”

Running between overs can give

the impression of a rapid over-rate,

but there are better, more reliable

ways of keeping the game moving.

Between deliveries

1. Have the bowler get straight

back to his mark after he has

bowled. Don't let him stand at

the end of his follow-through,

waiting for the ball to be

returned - return the ball to the

bowler only when he is at least

half-way back to his mark.

2. Send the ball back around the

inner ring of fielders. Short,

under-arm throws, from hand to

hand, via the "designated

polisher" if you have one. There

is nothing more tedious (or time

wasting) than having to run to

retrieve a wayward throw. Make

it easy for your team mates!

3. As captain, you need to field

where you are close to his

bowler. Unless you are a

specialist slip catcher, get used

to fielding at mid-off or mid-on,

so you can talk to the bowler

between deliveries as he walks

back to his mark. No

conversations in mid-pitch,

please!

“...no conversations in

mid-pitch please...”

Between overs

1. Consider having a "mirror"

field. At the end of the over,

cover becomes mid-wicket,

mid-off goes to square leg, etc.

(and vice versa). We all notice

when someone has to run from

long-on to long-on between

overs, but how often do we still

see four or five players crossing

the pitch between overs? Save

the fielders' legs (and a few

minutes in every hour, waiting

for players to cross over). One

caveat - if you do have only one

27

fielder who can be relied on to

hold the skied catch at long-on,

then you will just have to wait for

him to get there. Keep your

specialists in position. And that

includes the captain himself.

2. Get the ball to your new mid-

off or mid-on immediately the

previous over finishes, and

deliver the ball to the bowler at

his mark. Have a fielder collect his

cap and sweater and take them to

the umpire. Don't watch the bowler

walk all the way in to the stumps,

have a chat with the umpire, then

amble back to his mark...

“...save two seconds on

each ball and you’ll fit in

at least and extra over

per hour...”

Save just 2 seconds on each ball, 12

seconds per over, and 10 seconds

between overs, and you will fit in

(at least) an extra over each hour -

you can do the maths!

Keep the game moving, and not

only will you bowl your overs

quicker, but you will make the

batsmen feel as if you want to get

on with the game, and get them

out.

Get on with it!

Looking for:

TROPHIES

AWARDS

MEDALS

SHIELDS

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And free engraving?

And free centre caps?

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Or email Mat at Grassroot Media

on mcourt@grassrootmedia.com

One of our member clubs, Harold Wood Cricket Club in Essex, recently completed

a 24 hour fundraising cricket net marathon! Read all about it here...

Grassroots

Cricket News

A group of cricketers from Harold

Wood CC successfully completed a

gruelling 24-hour net at the club

from 8pm on Thursday 10th July to

8pm on Friday 11th July.

The reason for this challenge was

to raise funds for new nets at the

club and improve the now ancient

practice facilities, which have been

at the club for several decades.

The group of 14 started out

hopefully on a glorious Thursday

evening, but come the small hours

the group had to deal with heavy

30

rainfall and that along with the

tough challenge it took its toll.

“...the boys started

brightly and people

were really bending

their backs...”

Tom Clarke Harold Wood CC

Chairman, “It was a really tough

task, the boys started off very

brightly and people were really

trying to bend their back at the

start, but as the hours ticked by so

did the enthusiasm wane. We must

say a big thank you to everyone

who came to support and helped

keep our spirits up by bringing

refreshments and even just

dropping in to say well done.”

“Of course we must also thank

everyone who has donated some

money to the cause, the club is

lucky to be in a beautiful park with

a clubhouse which is only 5 years

old, but the nets really let us down

at the moment and with all the

different teams we have, including

boys, girls, adult men and women

and also our disabled side, new

nets will really make the park a

great place to play cricket for the

entire community.”

The club’s new nets are estimated

to cost approximately £30,000 with

the club looking to raise at least

15% of that money themselves.

If you would like to donate to the

cause then you can do so by going

to

www.justgiving.com/teams/hwcc2

4 or you can text HWCC £2/£5/£10

to 70070

31

32

We chat with Neil Wooding, Trade Marketing Manager of Greenways

Publishing, the company behind The Cricket Paper

Earn Money For Your

Club With

The Cricket Paper

As many of you will be aware April

saw us bring on board The Cricket

Paper as our newest changing room

poster advertiser. The deal is a nice

one as it not only brings money in

to your clubs through the poster

advertising, but the campaign itself

is all about giving clubs the chance

to make more money through The

Cricket Paper’s new club affiliate

scheme so it fits nicely with what

Grassroot Media is all about.

I sat down for a chat with Neil

Wooding from The Cricket Paper to

let him explain how the affiliate

scheme works and how it can make

your club money...

So, what’s it all about?

We recognise that grassroots

cricket club players, members and

supporters are our readers and

wanted to give something back to

them in return for helping us grow

our readership.

We wanted to do something new

and we’re not aware of any other

publication trying to work with

sports clubs in the way we’ve come

up with.

Can you give us a little background

on The Cricket Paper in case our

readers aren’t familiar with it?

The Cricket Paper is the UK’s

number one selling cricket title. It’s

all about covering cricket matches

from around the world in unique

depth. We cater for all cricket

lovers, featuring more than 60

match reports in each weekly issue

as well as round-ups from all 26

ECB county leagues and feature-

led interviews.

How does the affiliate scheme

work?

We are giving clubs the chance to

earn a commission on all

subscriptions with The Cricket

Paper .

34

website, you can then start

promoting to your members and

supporters straight away and begin

earning a minimum of 10%

commission on all referred

subscriptions. Commission

increases to 15% on five or more

subscription orders per month.

Do you offer any help to clubs in

terms of them promoting or

marketing the opportunity?

As well as investing in the

changing room posters we are also

keen to help you as much as

possible. As I mentioned

previously, we have the web

banners & adverts that clubs can

place on their websites, and we

have also made posters and flyers

available for clubs to download

and print off, just click here: A3

Poster & A5 Flyer.

And of course if you’ve got any

other questions at all on the

scheme then feel free to get in

touch with us directly by emailing: subscriptions@thecricketpaper.com

If our football clubs are feeling a

little left out have you got anything

for them too?

Yes - we have,. Our three football

titles (as well as our other sports

publications) will be running

similar schemes soon. You can

keep to date on the progress of the

other titles’ schemes if you follow

@GreenwaysP on Twitter.

We’ve tried to make it as simple as

possible – either download our

manual order form or process

orders on-line via Affiliate Future.

To do it manually ‘offline’,

download our form here. You can

then collect orders and payments

from individuals, deduct your club

commission and return the form to

us, along with a cheque made

payable to The Cricket Paper Ltd,

to the address provided on the

form. The same commission rates

apply whether you do it manually

or via your website.

To run the scheme on line follow

these three simple steps: :

1. Sign up for a free Affiliate

Future Account: here

http://www.affiliatefuture.co.uk/

registration/affiliates.asp

2. Visit The Cricket Paper’s

Affiliate programme either by

finding us in the Affiliate Future

Merchant Directory or by

clicking here:

http://afuk.affiliate.affiliatefutur

e.co.uk/merchants/AddProgra

mme.aspx?id=6278

3. Then click on “Get Link” and

choose website banner/s to

embed on your website.

Once the banners are live on your

35

Call:

01727 809867

Follow:

@SquareOneInjury

Square One Therapy

Sports Injury Specialists

Highly qualified sports injury

professionals dedicated to injury

treatment and recovery

Our services include:

Injury Clinic

Sports Massage

Fitness Training

Sports Team Cover

www.squareonetherapy.co.uk

Ian Avery gives us his thoughts on artificial football pitches and tells us

what we need to be doing on our cricket squares this month.

The Grassroots

Groundsman

Artificial Pitches = All Weather

Pitches? Not Really...

Football

Having just hosted a IOG course on

artificial pitch maintenance I

thought I’d talk about the use of

artificial pitches in sport,

especially football as Maidstone

United have their ground just a few

miles from me. As you go past you

can see the pitch in use every

evening, something which is

impossible with natural turf during

the winter.

This obviously is a great funding

stream for a local town club from

hire and bar takings and the

playing characteristics stay the

same. However, there are

drawbacks and many in sport

believe (wrongly) that artificial

pitches are all-weather and non-

maintenance; nothing could be

further from the truth.

To maintain a 3G pitch in tip top

condition one hour of maintenance

for every 10 hours of use is

needed. These pitches rely on a

rubber crumb to keep the

filaments upright and reduce

possible damage and this infill gets

moved around during usage and

needs brushing back into position,

especially around the goal mouths.

As usage continues the infill

becomes contaminated from such

things as leaf rubbish dust and, yes,

blood & skin. This needs to be

removed with specialist equipment

and the infill replaced in situ.

37

There also needs to be strict

control on footwear. Not long ago

we had footballers wearing boots

on our hockey-only pitch - the risk

of damage not only to the pitch but

to the players’ ankles etc.

Therefore as a club making a big

decision on its pitch maintenance

needs to be implemented from day

one as does a system of control on

access and usage.

Also in some parts of this country

you will be closing the pitch at

times in the winter as snow and ice

cannot be cleared easily.

A frozen artificial pitch is

dangerous and the fibres become

very fragile.

“...a frozen artificial

pitch is dangerous...”

The other decision is how far up

the footballing ladder your club is

planning to go as only leagues

below the conference level

currently allow a home pitch that’s

not natural.

Premier league clubs in the main

have hybrid pitches which are

grass but have artificial fibres sown

into the root zone and as the fibres

are green give a natural green

tinge even in the middle of the

winter.

“...only after a few more

seasons will we know

the effect of 3G pitches

on player injury rates...”

Only after a few more seasons and

clubs laying 3G pitches will we

know if injuries increase or

decrease or just the nature of

injuries change so the long term

future of artificial pitches is

unknown.

However they will never disappear

even if they are just used as a great

training aid, and for hockey they

are the permanent way forward.

“...for hockey artificial

pitches are the

permanent way

forward...”

These pitches also have a finite life

span of around 10 to 15 years and

with a replacement carpet in the

region of £150,000 (new instillation

including lights of £600,000) you

need to keep the money rolling in

and maintain it properly. No

maintenance on a pitch could cut

the life span down to five years.

38

Cricket

Now with the season entering the

penultimate month the autumn

renovations are looming and you

need to sit down and programme

the work and ordering of materials.

I keep a diary of notes on each

pitch now is the time to look back

and recognise any issues also look

at your square, check levels etc.

If you have weeds and moss treat

now before the season ends also if

finance will stretch to it a low

nitrogen feed with seaweed extract

will give it a boost and help seed

germination after the repairs.

If you have high points then hire in

a spiker.

In the autumn use a hollow tine and

remove the cores, soak and then

roll this to be done before seeding

and spreading the top soil making

sure of the levels.

If you have recognised a major

issue then now is the time to plan a

way out of it if you have a problem

which you’re struggling with I’m

happy to advise on possible

solutions.

My email is

ianaceavery@hotmail.com

Looking for:

TROPHIES

AWARDS

MEDALS

SHIELDS

SALVERS And want 30-40% off RRP?

And free engraving?

And free centre caps?

Go to grassroottrophies.com

Or email Mat at Grassroot Media

on mcourt@grassrootmedia.com

http://www.easyfundraising.org.uk/grassrootmedia

http://www.easyfundraising.org.uk/grassrootmedia

Colin Smith from Elvington & Tilmanstone Colliery Welfare Cricket Club

continues his monthly column with more tips for our clubs.

Colin Smith

Elvis Raises £1,100 For The

Katie Piper Foundation And

Eythorne Rovers

I recently organized an Elvis

themed fund raising event at my

local club Tilmanstone Miners

Welfare Institute, based in Lower

Eythorne, near Dover in Kent. I am

proud to say my event was a

complete success and raised £900

for the Katie Piper Foundation, £200

for Eythorne Rovers Youth Football

and Activity Club and we took a

record bar take at the club. We

actually beat the previous record

bar take by £600, so yes we did

have a merry evening.

Raising funds for good causes can

be hard work but the rewards far

outweigh the stress involved in

putting on an event. My event was

seven months in the planning

starting with booking the venue,

organizing tickets and advertising

the event locally.

Talking of advertising I think our

MD at Grassroot Media, Mat Court,

knows a lot more about this than

me. My advertising consisted of

putting up three posters local

shops and at work. I ended up

selling out the venue with a week

to go. Just the 185 people attended

– scary I know.

[Advertising is all about results, and

that’s a great result so the

advertising must have been great!

Mat Court]

42

Here’s a top tip: set the ticket price

low. I charged just £5 for the Elvis

event which ultimately meant I

managed to have 185 people

attending.

“...top tip: set the ticket

price low...”

Now as all good fund raisers know,

once you have a crowd that is when

you can really make your money.

Not only via the bar takings but on

the raffle. Another top tip: have a

star prize and I would now go as far

as saying pay for it. I had a holiday

for two in September with flights

and 4 star accommodation as first

prize. I was lucky enough to have a

local business donate the money to

pay for this. This came to £400. This

enabled me to sell the raffle tickets

at £10 each for one number.

Another top tip: do not sell any

tickets before the night so all raffle

prizes are won on the night in the

room. This will help you sell them

as £10 is a considerable purchase

for one raffle ticket. My answer to

this is announce the raffle early and

explain that the first prize is not a

packet of biscuits – it is a holiday

for two and you could win it for a

tenner. A no brainer as they say.

Now some people still won’t have a

go – just move on. I sold 80 raffle

tickets on the night and had 22

donated prizes. The second prize

was a new mountain bike, the third

was a meal for two at the Abode

(Michael Caine’s restaurant).

“...with a raffle you must

have a star prize...”

So you do the math as they say,

donated prizes and £800 raffle

receipts alone. In hindsight and

next time I might try a £5 raffle and

see if I make more money, but you

must have that star prize i.e. the

holiday.

On the night my holiday was won

by a very kind man called Tony

Condon who donated the prize to a

family member called Mary and

her husband Terry. I booked the

holiday for them after the event

through onthebeach.co.uk, who I

can recommend, and I spoke to a

very helpful young lady called

Sophia.

Being a fellow fundrasier Sophia

gave me the best deal she could

including a room upgrade for Mary

and Terry for their chosen holiday

of 5 nights in Rome.

The reason Sophia gave me a good

deal was I sent her a signed copy

of Katie Piper’s book, Beautiful, for

a fundraiser she was organising in

43

her home town of Cheadle for

Cancer Research. See us

fundraisers have got to stick

together and help each other out.

Thanks Sophia.

As I have said previously a great

night was had by all. My work was

not however finished after the

night. I not only booked and paid

for the holiday for Mary and Terry

but I had to arrange for thank you

letters for all the raffle donations

and discounts I received along the

way.

This included companies such as

Balloonarama and Partyarama for

discounts on balloons, backdrops,

invitations etc. I also have to

deliver these letters from the Katie

Piper Foundation to the many

shops that donated prizes in the

nearby city of Canterbury.

This is all enjoyable work though

and the glow of the success of the

evening is still with me.

So go ahead organize an event but

remember these Top Tips:

• Give yourself enough time to sell

out the gig.

• Book a good popular act with a

local following.

• Book a local suitable venue with

a licensed bar.

• Theme your evening.

• Dress the venue accordingly.

• Ask for discounts for invitations,

balloons etc.

• Get a star raffle prize donated

and other good prizes ( not

biscuits).

• Only sell the raffle tickets on the

night for either a £5 or a £10 to

encourage people to buy.

• Announce on the night several

times the star prize which you

might win for a fiver and tell

them over and over it will be

somebody in the room.

• Have two sets or even two acts

and draw the raffle at half time

after the first set.

• Don’t stress on the night – ENJOY

IT YOURSELF.

If you follow these top tips you

cannot fail to have a great night of

fun and raise lots of money.

“Ladies and Gentlemen Elvis has left

the building.”

Colin Smith

44

45

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The Secret

Non-League

Footballer

Key Signings Can Boost

Gateshead Promotion Push

Each month we print an article from the excellent Secret Footballer

website – you can see more at www.thesecretfootballer.com

After tipping Cambridge United as

the “dark horses” of the

Conference last season, I hope I’m

ideally placed to pick out the

teams to get promoted this season.

I have taken some time to look at

the clubs in the Conference and

how they have strengthened their

squads during the summer.

Each year, the league becomes

stronger and makes it even harder

to get out of.

47

I still believe the rules for

automatic promotion should be

changed. It baffles me to as why

only one team can get promoted

automatically.

Yet, above in League 2, it is three

that go up with an extra team in the

play-offs. It doesn’t make sense.

This needs to change. Rant over …

on to my predictions.

I feel the two favourites for

promotion are Gateshead and

Forest Green Rovers.

With Gateshead’s dreadful start to

last season, if only Gary Mills had

been manager from the start of the

campaign. I’m sure, then, they

would have been close to

automatic promotion.

“...they went on a strong

run and reached the

play-off final at

Wembley...”

Nevertheless, they went on a strong

run and reached the play-off final

at Wembley, only to be defeated by

Cambridge.

With Gateshead making seven key

summer signings, I believe that

they will certainly challenge.

Looking at the signings that Mills

has made, the one that stands out

for me is Jon Shaw.

He scored 45 goals in two seasons

previously at the club before

moving on to Luton Town, where he

gained promotion to the Football

League.

The other stand-out player is Alex

Rodman. The winger was at

Grimsby Town last season but

turned down a new deal.

A friend of mine informed me that

Rodman had agreed a deal at

Scottish Championship side

Hibernian and had signed the

player’s agreement form only to

receive an email saying that he was

no longer wanted and would not be

joining the club.

I believe he is in talks with the club

over taking this to court as he is

legally allowed due to the

contractual agreement between the

club and player.

However, with his addition, I fancy

Gateshead to upset a few people

next season.

With Forest Green’s constant and

generous input of money from

Web: thesecretfootballer.com Twitter: @tsfnonleague

Facebook: /TSFootballer

multimillionaire owner Dale Vince,

maybe this is third time lucky for

the Gloucestershire club.

“...maybe this is third

time lucky for the

Gloucestershire club...”

They certainly aren’t shy when it

comes to opening the cheque book

and recruiting players.

With the big budget that they have,

they have enticed a lot of big-name

players – Lee Hughes, Luke Rogers

and Jon Parkin, to name a few.

Manager Ady Pennock clearly is an

ambitious and loyal man after

opting to stick with Forest Green

when he was offered a job as a

coach at Crystal Palace, when his

pal Tony Pulis called him last year.

This demonstrates the vision that

he has for his club and players. He

has a huge playing budget but it

has been shown in the last two

years that money doesn’t

necessarily buy you success.

Forest Green struggled under

former boss Dave Hockaday but,

with some strong and influential

signings this summer, I predict that

they will ultimately be successful.

The team has a wealth of

experience and big names in the

dressing-room so I’m confident that

they will be up there.

“...my dark horse team

for next season is FC

Halifax Town...”

My dark horse team for next

season is FC Halifax Town. OK,

maybe they shouldn’t sneak into

the category of dark horses as they

reached the play-offs last season.

Nonetheless, they are a part-time

team who are still looking to

develop their squad and club after

re-entering the Conference in the

past few years.

With top scorer Lee Gregory

departing for Millwall, some may

say that Halifax will struggle after

losing the striker who notched 31

goals last season.

However, I firmly feel that Halifax

will continue to strengthen, with a

few astute signings from manager

Neil Aspin during the close-

season.

You can download the TSF app for

iOS and Android.

Web: thesecretfootballer.com Twitter: @tsfnonleague

Facebook: /TSFootballer

After searching for a while I’ve found a company that offers not too expensive safes

- the idea is that safes inside changing rooms could prevent a lot of thefts.

Club Security

Players know they should take as

much care of their valuables as

possible, but sometimes people

forget leaving wallets and car keys

in trouser pockets, not locking the

changing room door, or leaving the

valuables bag near the pitch within

easy reach of passers by.

“...I’ve played in a few

games where things

have gone missing from

changing rooms...”

I've played in at least a few games

where people have had things

stolen from inside the changing

room and I reckon it's a common

occurrence across the country.

I've even read stories during 2014's

cricket pre-season of players

turning up for a trial, claiming to

have to leave early and then

making off with a player's car and

several wallets. While we can't do

much about that form of crime from

here at Grassroot Towers, we think

we have come up with something

that could help with the issue of

opportunistic thieves going in to

changing rooms while the game is

on looking for something that isn't

theirs... Safes...

“I’ve never seen a safe

at a club I’ve played at

and I wondered why...”

Has Your Club Been Victim Of

Valuables Theft?

51

I've played at many football and

cricket clubs and never seen a safe

and I'm not sure why as it seems a

relatively simple thing to install to

prevent crime.

“...Maybe it's because

keys get lost, maybe it's

because it's expensive,

as I said I don't know. ...”

Maybe it's because keys get lost,

maybe it's because it's expensive,

as I said I don't know.

But, if it's the latter then I've found a

company that is willing to help

reduce the cost of small safes for

clubs to put up in their changing

rooms: Simply Safes (you've

guessed it, they specialise in safes).

They've got together a special deal

to get more safes inside club

changing rooms - and by the way

we aren't making any money out of

this, we're promoting them because

it's a good idea and I think it’s a

good deal that we have negotiated

for you.

Each month we'll be running an ad

for them, this month’s is on the next

page, so don't worry about keeping

hold of this so that you've got their

details.

From the research I've done it

seems as though the price is good

on what they are offering.

“...As with everything,

shop around, perhaps

on your local high

street, to compare

prices...”

But of course it’s always a good

idea to shop around, perhaps on

your local high street, to compare

prices.

They come with everything you

need to put them on the wall, the

only thing you'll have to worry

about is making sure the keys are

kept safe! (Although if you lose

them Simply Safes can supply

replacements on models).

Keep Safe...

Actually while I’ve got you, if you

are thinking of getting some safes

but don’t like these ones

advertised, whatever you do don’t

get a digital hotel-style safe, they

are incredibly easy to break in to;

I’ve done it. Ask me no questions

and I’ll tell you no lies...

52

Twitter

Directory

Birmingham County FA: @birminghamfa

Bosham FC: @boshamfc

Bronze CC: @bronzecc

Clifton CC: @cliftoncricket

Clifton CC ground: @cliftonccdevt

Crawley Down Gatwick Football Club: @officialcdgfc

Epping CC: @eppingcc

Gateshead Fell CC: @gatesheadfellcc

Hailsham Cricket Club: @hailshamcc

Lodway CC: @lodwaycc

Marsden CC: @cuckooscricket

Old Parkonians Association: @oldparks

Old Parkonians FC: @oldparksfc

Parkfield Amateur AFC: @parkfieldafc

Rotherfield FC: @rfc1983

South Loughton CC: @southloughtoncc

Southgate Compton CC: @sccricketclub

Stapleton CC: @stapletoncc

Steeple Langford CC: @steeplelangford

Sussex County FA: @sussexcountyfa

Thaxted CC: @thaxtedcc

Tynedale CC: @tynedalecc

Westinghouse CC: @westinghousecc

Whickham CC: @whickhamcc

Winterbourne CC: @winterbournecc

Woodnesborough FC: @woodiesfc

Worlington CC: @worlingtoncc

Worthing CC: @worthingcc

Worthing FC @worthing_fc

List your club’s Twitter account in here so everyone else can get following you. Only those clubs that are members of the network like yours are allowed on this list. To get listed just drop Mat a note at mcourt@grassrootmedia.com or on Twitter @grassrootmedia Grassroot Media recommends: @birminghamfa @fvhtweets @sussexcountyfa @meadonscricket @4grants @chance2shine @vscricketsn

54

We’ve found out about a new entrant to the sun block market, called Block Shop –

and they’re keen to be stocked in your clubs – and you can make money out of it

Help players look after

their skin while making

money for your club

I came across a company called

Block Shop on LinkedIn – if you’re

not on LinkedIn I’d recommend it,

especially if you’re involved on the

coaching side of things, yes there’s

a lot of rubbish but every now and

then you see something that’s

incredibly useful. But I digress. I

ended up having a chat with a new

company called Block Shop about

their zinc sun block and whether

we could get it stocked in some of

our clubs. Well James was already

ahead of me and had already got

the product in a few cricket clubs

and the model was working well.

So I’ve agreed to promote the

product to you, our clubs.

Being mostly blokes we are mostly

pretty rubbish at remembering to

buy things, especially products like

sun block so I think that clubs

stocking this is very much making

the right product available to the

right people at the right time.

We all know the damage the sun

can do to our and our kids’ skin,

and it should work well being

stocked behind your bars or

elsewhere in your clubhouse; I

remember constantly having to

borrow other people’s when I’d

forgotten to pick some up on the

way to a match.

The deal for you guys is quite

simple, if you want to stock the

product, you buy it at £2.50 per tub

and then sell it to your players at

the RRP of £5.95, or whatever other

price you want.

You can see a bit more detail on the

page advert we’ve put in towards

the front of the magazine, but you

can always take a look at their

website here:

www.blockshop.co.uk or drop

James an email on

james@blockshop.co.uk or give

him a call on 07900338863. They

are also on Twitter @blockshop01

55

A quick update on an idea I’ve had to help you sell sponsorship and advertising in

your clubs to local firms. I’ve imaginatively called it ‘Sponsor A Local Club’...

Use grassrootmedia.com to

showcase your sponsorship

opportunities

Just another quick reminder on the

“Sponsor A Local Club” page on

the website we launched last

month.

We’ve got a few opportunities up

on there but space for plenty more.

What we’re trying to do is build up

a portfolio of sponsorable

opportunities that businesses can

have a look through and hopefully

find something they want to buy.

I’ve no idea if it’s going to work but

it feels like a good idea. I don’t

want Grassroot Media to make

anything out of it and all we’ll do is

effectively put the idea in the shop

window and then market the shop

window. You guys will still need to

talk directly with the companies

that show an interest but my plan is

that if we can get plenty of ideas on

there I can go to organisations such

as the Federation of Small

Businesses, the Chamber of

Commerce and other small

business organisations and try to

get them spreading the word

among their members.

So if you want to get your club

listed up on there just drop me a

line with what you want (try to keep

it as short/punchy as possible) and

one or two images and we’ll get

you listed. We’ll never charge for it

and will never look to take a cut of

anything you end up selling off the

back of it - that’s not what this is

about. Instead it’s about promoting

the fact that small businesses can

really benefit from getting involved

commercially with the one of the

most important hubs of their local

community, their sports clubs.

If you’ve got any

questions/comments/concerns

please give me a shout in the usual

way, you can see the page itself

here:

http://www.grassrootmedia.com/s

ponsor-a-local-club

56

http://www.electronicscoreboardunits.com/

http://www.easyfundraising.org.uk/grassrootmedia

http://www.easyfundraising.org.uk/grassrootmedia

Looking for 40% off:

TROPHIES AWARDS MEDALS SHIELDS?

Go to grassroottrophies.com Or email Mat at Grassroot Media on mcourt@grassrootmedia.com

We have recently

supplied trophies for

the Gloucestershire

Cricket Board

Golf Day