DENBY Dale cricketers will go head to head with Cawthorne in a relegation decider this weekend – vandals permitting.
Hooligans have struck at the village club’s picturesque cricket ground.
And they forced the cancellation of one of the two games planned for last weekend in the Arrow Central League.
Now club officials are hoping they can complete this weekend’s final, vital fixture without any more problems.
The vandals dug up a wicket prepared for last Saturday’s match and also dumped stone from a drystone wall across the pitch, spelling out an offensive word.
It was the latest blow for the club, which lost weeks of the season, and a lot of income, when they were hit by the summer floods.
The pitch was out of action for weeks because of the torrential downpours and the floodwaters left an inch of silt across much of the playing surface.
Club chairman Richard Hobson said: “We are going to dig up and re-lay the square after next weekend’s game because of the impact the floods had.
“But the vandalism was a sickening blow just as we were getting prepared for last weekend’s games.
“The police are investigating and want to know if anyone saw anything.
“It was a surprise. We have a lot of activity down at the club, with sides in every age group and a lot happening each evening.
“It also us very costly, as we are a club without a bar and rely on donations and fundraising efforts.”
