Is this the end for Harbury Cricket Club?

The side, who play Sunday friendlies at Waterloo Fields, have already had to pull out of two fixtures this season due to lack of players, while rain has decimated the remainder of their campaign.

And cricket club secretary Ian Holroyd fears 92 years of cricketing tradition in the village could be about to die without an immediate influx of players.

“We’re not alone. It’s happening to a lot of local clubs,” said Holroyd, who is also president of Harbury RFC.

“A lot of local village sides are folding but the villages aren’t the size of Harbury.

“It seems to be a problem with all village sport.

“Captain Phil Mugleston busts a gut every week, ringing around players to get a side out.

“But we’re talking five or six players for a Sunday and we can’t go on like this.

“We might struggle through to July when a lot of the younger players have finished their exams but then people start going on holiday.

“I don’t like to say we’re folding, but unless the situation changes it might come to that.”

Holroyd says a change in attitudes is one of the main factors behind the shortage of players, with young families, once the lifeblood of any cricket club, now having more demands on their time.

“Things aren’t what they were 20 years ago.

“People have other things to do.

“It used to be rugby in the winter and cricket in the summer.

“Young married couples with kids used to bring them down but that doesn’t happen any more. Maybe it’s peer pressure, or wife pressure, but I think it’s sad.”

Mugleston, 22, typifies the dedication which is needed to keep a village side going, organising the fixture list, sponsorship and nets in addition to his captaincy duties.

But while he says it is a role he enjoys, he agrees with Holroyd that home pressures are forcing many players to choose their families over cricket.

“The commitment levels aren’t there any more,” said Muggleston, who also plays Saturday cricket for Southam.

“A lot of people don’t want to give up their whole Sundays and say they want to have Sunday lunch with their families.

“I’ve even had two players tell me they can’t play this year because their wives won’t let them.”

Mugleston started playing for Harbury when he was 12 and believes by focusing on youth, the club can remain a focal point for the village for many years to come.

However, he says it needs other people willing to match his commitment to make it happen and worries that even now it might be too late.

“The teams that are thriving are those that have good youth set-ups.

“But I’ve not got enough time to do that on my own.

“The focus of Sundays has to be bringing on the kids, but we can’t be competitive the way we are at the moment - two or three weeks ago I was the only player available.

“Harbury is a very sporty village and the rugby club is thriving. There must be people who played cricket when they were kids who can come down and help us out.”

* If you are interested in playing for Harbury, contact Holroyd on 614443 or Mugleston on 077468 75553.