bar again with our standard of work and what we are looking to achieve”. The way the GCB is going, and the
forward-thinking of the board, is what is keeping me in the job and my enthusiasm for it.
Since Guernsey has joined the ICC, as well as giving the island the chance to host international tournaments, it gives us more funding to make the improvements we need and want. In terms of equipment, we are much better off now than we were, but we are nowhere near what ideally we could do with. We are never going to be Lord’s, but we can make the most of what facilities we have got. Because we are a smaller place than many others, there is a lack of specialist machinery that you can get here - it has got to come from the mainland, and you have got to plan well in advance so that you have got it here when you need it. On the other side of the coin, though, is that, because the island is small and some machinery you only need once or twice a year, certain equipment can be shared by various venues, associations and workplaces. Ideally, I would like to see an unofficial groundsmen’s association here in Guernsey so that happened more frequently.
On the subject of sharing, the GCB has also developed links with Sussex CCC and I take quite a bit of advice from the Sussex groundsmen. In future, I will be visiting there to see how they work and their methods. Also, having been a
member at Northants CCC for many years, I have struck up a relationship with the groundstaff there who are always keen to listen and advise. Next year the bar has been raised again for us because we are to produce a wicket for a second XI county game and, after that in 2011, we will be looking to produce one for a full-blown first class county one-day match. Following the two senior international tournaments we held here - the European Division Two Championship in 2007 and World Cricket League Division Seven in May - we came out really well, and it is not just the wickets, but the bigger picture of the whole organisation of such events and the multitude of aspects that go into them.
The GCB are now investigating the possibility of laying a third square at another venue in the island and that would enable us to host bigger tournaments. It shows how far we have come.
When I first came, the KGV was full of potential - it just needed a little TLC and expertise. The biggest difference that has been made since is that they have put a full-time groundsman here.
Being an ICC member has enabled the GCB, with the funds, slowly but surely to get better equipment and more people employed.
Alan Hamilton
We are a long way on now, but the further you go down that road, the further you can see and I think it is really exciting.
I have also been involved in the Indoor Cricket Guernsey project, designing and constructing a purpose- built centre, which is the envy of many across the UK.
It just emphasises the enthusiasm for
cricket in the community and how it continues to grow as the world becomes a smaller place.
The C-Range
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