Too many of our playing fields are now full of houses

Jun 30 2006 By Nicholas Craig, The Journal

It's good news that the cricket ground at Jesmond has been saved. The Royal Grammar School, which has taken up the lease of the famous space, has agreed to let league and county teams use the ground and community teams to book time there.

I was professionally involved in the leasing of the ground on behalf of owner Northumberland County Recreation Ground Limited and am delighted that a sport close to my heart will continue to be played in Jesmond.

Northumberland County Cricket Club has played cricket at Jesmond since 1897. There have been some glorious cricketing moments there. Bobby Smithson and Ken Earl in the 1950s were magnificent batsmen who attracted large crowds to the club. It also welcomed international cricketing giants such as Ian Botham, Viv Richards, Imran Khan and Geoff Boycott.

I am a strong supporter of playing fields being kept for sports training. Without such opportunities our sports suffer, and ultimately business loses out.

Too many of our playing fields are now full of houses, sold to developers by cash-strapped schools to raise money for books. It is easy to understand the reasons, but the benefits are sadly short-term against the lifetime's influence a good grounding in outdoor sports can bring.

Apart from better health and fitness, the team-building, networking and competitive aspects interlink with qualities needed for successful future careers. As a former minor-counties cricketer, I have been lucky enough to play against teams throughout the region and the country and appreciate how sport breaks down barriers.

What I would like to see are more examples of accessible sports facilities. I'm very impressed with the facilities at Westgate Community College and Benfield School Sports College.

Benfield, like Deerness in Durham, is now a gymnastics centre of excellence and will also soon have a training pool.

Sport requires serious investment because it is so fundamental to our early lives. The good news about the cricket ground and our budding centres of excellence augur well for the next generation of sporting stars in the North-East.