Greatest Moment

Winning the Parish Cup on home soil in 2006.

Local Hero

Peter Jowett – player, SCC official and one of the club stalwarts who helped ‘dig out’ the Ashday Lane venue.

Bizarre Fact

The club was formed in a local pub in 1977 – the Cock and Bottle.

Born in The Cock and Bottle

The 'new' Southowram CC was originally a pub team based at The Cock and Bottle, at the other end of the village. Club spokesman Keith Walker says: 'The ground we've got today was once a quarried tip. It was converted into a cricket ground and then leased from Marshall's, a local company. At first, the pavilion was a hut, but in 1990, with the financial assistance of the Sports Foundation, members of the club erected the pavilion that stands today.'

In recent years, other work has been undertaken at the ground. At the end of the 1990s the whole playing area was 're-levelled' and in 2002 a new wicket was laid. Walker says the square has always been good: 'I would say that at one point, it was the fairest in the league. We dug it up, flattened it out, and now it's both fast and true. And all the plaudits have got to go to former groundsman Mick Pollard.'

Ashday Lane is also unique. It was the first ground in the Halifax League to witness six sixes being hit in the same over. The year: 2001. The opposition: Greetland. The man with the muscles: Fiaz Haider.

Serenity and Pretty Patterns

The cricket ground lies far off the beaten track. Indeed, as one looks out from the pavilion, one can see no other buildings at all - except for a plethora of large steel pylons.

Ashday Hall - whose history goes as far back to 1275 - is just up the road, but the residential areas of Southowram are nowhere to be seen. This is the venue's chief charm - the serenity that envelops the arena.

The ground is extremely well appointed. The SCC website states, 'Facilities: Rollers, Changing Facilities, Pavilion, Score Box', but this, of course, does not tell the whole story. The playing surface is of a good size and there are several pitches for captain and groundsman to choose from (in high summer the strips can look very parched).

The person who cuts the outfield does so very effectively, and also creates some pretty 'mowing' patterns in the process. In addition, the sightscreens are definitely above average in quality. One Halifax League player says: 'It's a nice ground to play at - the facilities are good but there is a downward slope to the playing area that makes things slightly tricky.'

Pleasant Semi-Rural Aura

There are baskets of colourful flowers by the pavilion - a nice touch - but the most appealing aspect of the ground, apart from its almost timeless, semi-rural location, is the seating: seven brown-and-white wooden benches to the left of the pavilion, double that amount to the right, and four more perched in front of the pavilion. The seats are not just attractive in themselves, but together give the venue a relaxed feel and a pleasant aura.

The pavilion is akin to a large modern bungalow. When there's no cricket going on, it is shuttered up, but the blue and yellow 'SCC' flag flutters continually from the roof - signposting a highly impressive local landmark.

In 2002, Southowram CC celebrated their 25th anniversary year by winning the right to host the Parish Cup final. (The club's 1st XI actually battled their way through to the final - so they had the bonus of home advantage). However, after days of torrential rain, the showpiece fixture had to be postponed a week - a huge disappointment for club officials, who had already ordered extra toilets for the big occasion from Leeds!