Issue 11

Matt and Holly Many readers will remember Matt Crowther, who came to Carlton as Coach in 2013. Even more will remember Holly, whose circuits of the Grange Loan boundary every Saturday and Sunday became legendary. How have they been and what do they remember from their summer at GL? Hi Everyone - we were so pleased to be asked to contribute to the Newsletter! We keep in touch from afar and enjoy following Carlton updates via Twitter. We often sit and remember our summer in Scotland, and all the people who made it so special! After a short stop back in Leeds, we moved west to take a lecturing job at the University of Central Lancashire in the summer of 2014. After a once in a lifetime trip to Australia, we found out that the two of us would become three! We celebrated Christmas 2016 as a new family and now have a 3 ½ year old, Libby, keeping us ‘entertained’! We’re also pleased to say that Libby will be welcoming a little brother very soon. What we often look back on and brings a smile to our faces is the number of people who took the time to get to know us, and the friendships we developed, both inside and outside of Grange Loan. As always there’s too many to mention – and we’ve been terrible at keeping in touch. Perhaps this will act as the catalyst - so keep your eyes peeled for an out of the blue text message. The 150th anniversary dinner was a lovely occasion in our final few weeks. A more specific memory from Holly comes from a club night out. Arriving at a nightclub and boldly saying to the doorman “We’re with Drummo” and immediately being waved in to the VIP area for free!! What did I learn at Carlton that has stayed with me? I think it’s this: 1. Carlton is Scotland’s leading cricket club. 2. You get out what you put in. It’s no surprise what Carlton gets out, when you see how many people put in. 3. Don’t try and sweep up the hill at GL. It’ll never go for 4! We moved to Carlton for the job and never considered we would have such a wonderful experience. And Holly misses de Luca’s ice cream, more and more each day. Great to hear from you Matt and Holly - good luck with the new arrival!

Two years ago, Carlton decided to take a step into the unknown by taking on the ‘All Stars’ programme. This has been specially designed by the ECB in order to engage children at the age 5-8 with cricket at the very simplest level. Our risk paid off. An exceptional eight-week programme was run by our young coaching team. The sessions aimed at being a fun introduction to cricket. They grabbed the attention of the 55 youngsters who signed up. Many had never held or seen a cricket bat before, but this did not hold them back. The adults who accompanied them also got fully involved. Every station was fast paced and energetic. Old hands hadn’t seen anything like it - grown-ups and children throwing, catching and batting - diving everywhere and chasing balls to every corner of the ground. Pure enjoyment. The first year was such a success we thought we would give it a go again. With a change of time and date to a Friday evening we weren’t sure how many would come for the 8 week block. I don’t think we could have predicted the 79 sign ups - a reflection of the success of the previous year and the hard work from all involved. The second 8 week block was also a huge success and we saw a great influx of 5-8 year olds trying cricket for the first time and looking to join the Carlton primary school section. The All Stars programme has been a highlight at Carlton over the last two years, opening the game to many children who may never have taken that first step towards the club or towards cricket. If only a handful of those newcomers stays with the club in the years to come, I can hold my head up high to say we have started someone’s journey in cricket. Hopefully they can enjoy many great years at this amazing club. Plans were being made to build on these successes this year - but of course COVID got in the way. We are looking forward to next year. Go All Stars! Calum Sibley reports