COVERED 2025 Spring

35 @TRENTBRIDGE JUNIOR CRICKET Junior cricket in Nottinghamshire is in the throes of a reinvention. With the sport facing a battle for attention in the modern age, and with stalwart volunteers shouldering a heavy workload, a more centralised, innovative, integrated and inclusive county- wide structure aims to harness strong interest levels and smooth the pathway to the adult game. STORY BY Matthew Freeman UNDER ONE ROOF B enThompson first picked up a cricket bat almost before he could walk. Cricket was a family affair in his Oxfordshire village, and the sport has remained a part of his working life and his free time ever since. Now, as Chair of Nottinghamshire Junior Cricket, he is determined to ensure the next generation have ample opportunities to keep their passion for the game alive. This summer sees a reorganisation of junior cricket in the county. Formerly the preserve of four separate regional structures in Bassetlaw, Newark, Mansfield and Nottingham, grass- roots cricket for young people in the county will now all be brought together under one roof. It is, Ben hopes, a plan which leaves junior cricket equipped to thrive in the modern era.