IN August 2019 Olicanian Cricket Club was left reeling when their wooden pavilion burnt to the ground in an arson attack.

Ilkley Gazette:

The Ilkley-based club quickly submitted plans for a replacement in January 2020.

The pavilion took around 15 months to build and cost more than half a million pounds. The build was funded through a variety of donations, an insurance pay-out and some financial support from the England and Wales Cricket Board and Sport England.

After the long rebuilding project, the new clubhouse will be finally be opened on Sunday, May 22, by former Yorkshire and England bowler, Ryan Sidebottom.

Ilkley Gazette: The new Olicanian cricket club

And to celebrate its official reopening it is holding its own version of The Ashes.

The open day will see an Olicanian Select XI and a team of overseas players from across the Aire Wharfe League compete for a trophy containing two charred cricket bails which have been mounted in oak and glass.

The bails were retrieved from the wreckage of the club’s former pavilion and are all that remains of the former clubhouse.

The match for the Olicanian Ashes will start at 1.30pm, with the formal opening taking place at 1pm.

Club president Mick Christopher said: “We’re delighted to be able to open the building to the general public. We’ve had enormous support from so many people and organisations during this difficult period and this is our way of saying thank you.

“We want people to come from far and wide to have a look at our new home and we hope they like what they see.”

The open day will also feature Otley Brass Band which will entertain the crowd before play commences and, again, during the tea interval.

“It’s going to be a great day for all of us at the cricket club, and an emotional one. The clubhouse will be named the ‘David House Pavilion’ in memory of our former chairman who died in December. He won’t be far from our thoughts,” said Mr Christopher.

The same applies to the club’s main sponsor Tony Jefferies who also died during the winter. Mr Jefferies, a former winner of the Isle of Man TT, was Olicanian’s main sponsor for many years and the new clubhouse bar is to be named after him.

Sue Redfern, from the ECB said: “In conjunction with Sport England investment we are delighted that Olicanians have been able to rebuild their pavilion.

"Upgrading their facilities to make them more flood resilient in challenging climate times and also embracing a design that makes the club more appealing for everyone within the Ilkley community means the club will have the opportunity to grow their activities in the years to come.

“We would particularly like to thank those volunteers who have worked tirelessly on this rebuild over several years. It is their hard work that has enabled this project to be delivered.”

The pavilion design is the work of Ilkley architect Bill Horsley. Addingham builder Nick Kenyon was the main contractor.