Brighter future for Dunmurry CC

In August 2013, The Star published an article which highlighted Dunmurry Cricket Club’s struggle to survive following years of sustained vandalism and break-ins. However, just over one year on the situation has improved.

The club Chairman, Peter McFadzean, commented: “Just over a year ago we were extremely close to folding with falling playing numbers, severe vandalism to our ground and clubhouse running to tens of thousand of pounds, and mounting debts.

“However, the members who stuck with the club decided that we would not go down without a fight and agreed to give it one more year with a real push to ensure the club survived. Since then, with a lot of hard work both on and off the pitch, we are in a much better position.”

One of the main objectives to secure the future of the club was to relocate from its home of over 65 years, McComb Park, following the prolonged and sustained campaign of vandalism.

Peter said: “This was not a decision we took lightly.”

“In an ideal world we would have rebuilt from our home McComb Park,” Peter continued.

“However, this was just not possible following the destruction of our clubhouse which was our main source of income. Without this income, the damage caused by each attack got harder to repair which resulted in the pitch falling into such a state of disrepair that it could have been deemed dangerous.”

At the end of the 2013 season, club officials engaged with Lisburn City Council to relocate to its playing fields at Fullerton Park in Dunmurry from 2014 onwards. Peter commented: “Once the decision to relocate was taken, the priority became ensuring that we did not have to move from the Dunmurry area – we are a local club with extensive links in the local community and it was very important to us to retain these roots.

“We held several meetings with officials from Lisburn City Council’s Leisure Services Department to utilise its existing ground at Fullerton Park. These meetings were very useful and I would like to thank the Council for its support with the move to Fullerton Park. Without our new home, I have no doubt we would not have played cricket this year which would have been the final nail in the coffin for the club. We are therefore indebted to the council for its support in keeping cricket alive in Dunmurry.”

Peter added: “We also owe our governing body, the Northern Cricket Union, a great deal of gratitude for its support during our recent difficult times. The Union has been very supportive in our efforts to save the club, not least by being flexible with our fixtures which has allowed us to use a multi-sport venue like Fullerton Park.

“The cricket season overlaps the football season during April and September so it is important that we play as many home games as possible in the months in between.”

With relocation confirmed, the club turned its attention to playing numbers which have been declining over the past number of years. This resulted in the club fielding only one team during the previous three seasons. Members embarked on a recruitment drive and their efforts paid off with an increase in playing numbers and a new team being entered in the Northern Cricket Union’s Midweek League.

Peter said: “The playing side has been a real struggle over the past number of years. Many players stopped playing, moved away from the area, transferred to other clubs or simply got too old. The impact of the decline in numbers was that we could not fulfil all our fixtures during the 2012 and 2013 seasons, forfeiting four games in the process. Members made a conscious effort to recruit more playing members over the winter months and the results were very positive – we increased our regular playing membership by around 60% which has allowed us to fulfil every First XI fixture during 2014.

“In addition, we had a new team competing in the Midweek League. This team consisted largely of new players from our local Indian community which is a very positive development for the club. We are keen to build on these recent successes and I hope that we will be in position to field a 2nd XI in the not to distant future.”

To round off a positive year, the ground at McComb Park has recently been sold which will help the club in its fight for survival. Peter commented: “With McComb Park being our only tangible asset, it was essential that we sold the land to reduce our overheads and, importantly, pay our debts. I am delighted that the hard work paid off with the ground recently sold to a property development company, Braidwater. The sale has allowed us to restructure financially to secure the short / medium term future of the club. This would not have been possible without the innovative deal with Braidwater.”

Peter is under no illusion that a lot of hard work lies ahead: “The club has completely changed over the past 10 years. However, I believe we have made the necessary changes to ensure we are in position to be here in another 10 years and beyond. We have recruited new blood which will hopefully bring new ideas and enthusiasm to secure the future of the club.”

If any one is interested in playing cricket in the 2015 season, please contact Dunmurry Cricket Club by email [email protected]. Players of all ages and abilities are most welcome.