With league cricket having a week off as the T20 competition saw the first regional rounds, and in this mixed summer of weather, once again, fixtures in the North Group were affected, writes Ashely Tiffen.
Dalton won the South Group by defeating Millom and Furness, while Workington progress from the West group with wins over Egremont and Cleator.
But it is rumours of major changes to Cumbria Cricket emerging that could see clubs joining the North West Pyramid structure that has fans and players talking.
Major changes to the structure within Cumbria, bringing together the Cumbria league with the Eden Valley league were implemented this year with a plan to review at the end of the 2025 season.
The current arrangement allows for movement between the leagues but recognises the challenges for smaller clubs in terms of player availability and travel time and distances.
At the same time, the Northern League implemented a reorganisation that brought together that league with the Westmorland League and the Palace Shield, a league based in and around the Preston area.
This structure was named the MHA Northern Pyramid and was recognised by the English Cricket Board as a way to unite cricket across the North West.
Following on from their Cumbria Premier League wins in 2022, 2023 and 2024, Carlisle left the Cumbria League to seek challenges in the Northern League this season, joining Barrow and Penrith who had previously made the change from the then North Lancashire and Cumbria Cricket League.
Of course, particularly via the Westmorland League, many teams from Cumbria play their first teams within the Northern Pyramid already as do other Cumbria League teams with their 2nd Xis, so further links into the ECB pyramid system may have additional benefits by having more ‘local’ matches and less of an administrative burden to clubs.
Acknowledging that formal discussions have taken place, Northern Pyramid Cricket management said talks with the Cumbria Cricket League have the following aims for cricket in the region:
- To protect the integrity of the Cumbria Cricket League
- To allow aspirational clubs a pathway to ECB Premier League Cricket
- While providing strength and depth to the Northern League while not affecting existing links with the Palace Shield and the Westmorland League
While the discussions are ongoing, they appear to suggest that leading clubs from Cumbria would join a Cumbria-focused branch of the Northern League but any formal, detailed, proposals, have not been released.
Cumbria Cricket League told Cumbria Crack that discussions were at an early stage and once talks were concluded, it will issue a formal statement.
