Forget about league cricket on the Fylde coast this year says Blackpool captain Paul Danson

Captain Paul Danson questions whether any cricket will be played at Blackpool Cricket Club’s  level this summer after the ECB ruled out any domestic action in the professional game until August.
By Andy Moore
Published 2nd Jun 2020, 16:45 BST
Updated 2nd Jun 2020, 19:18 BST
Paul Danson's Blackpool were Northern League champions in 2018 but slipped to third last year - and there is no chance of the 2020 season going ahead as planned Picture: BLACKPOOL CCPaul Danson's Blackpool were Northern League champions in 2018 but slipped to third last year - and there is no chance of the 2020 season going ahead as planned Picture: BLACKPOOL CC
Paul Danson's Blackpool were Northern League champions in 2018 but slipped to third last year - and there is no chance of the 2020 season going ahead as planned Picture: BLACKPOOL CC
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The long-serving skipper was relishing the 2020 campaign after Blackpool’s disappointing defence of their Northern Premier League title last year, but he admitted: “It’s fantastic cricket weather, but with no professional cricket before August 1 it becomes very difficult for any recreational cricket to be played this summer.”

A conventional league campaign seems out of the question, though Danson hopes the season can be salvaged but admitted there are more important considerations than cricket.

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He told The Gazette: “We all just want to play but we have to make sure it is safe for everyone.

“There’s a lot of hypothetical stuff going around but we have to forget about the 2020 season as it was planned.

“The sensible thing would be to look at a local round-robin competition or maybe friendlies at the back end of the season but we may not even be able to do that.

“We could play Fleetwood and St Annes in a mini-league, like we do in the T20, but there are so many things that outweigh cricket at the moment.

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“A lot of people haven’t met up with family members for a long time – I have a mother recovering from pneumonia – and you can’t expect all the players to drop everything to train twice a week and then spend their weekends playing matches.”

It means Blackpool’s hopes of hitting back after last year’s frustrations must wait.

Danson added: “We were excited about the season after falling short last season, when something was just missing.

“We had good performances but we didn’t back them up and sometimes we made the wrong decisions.

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“We had a new professional from South Africa, Codi Yusuf, with lots of potential.

“We’d just started training in the nets, then all of a sudden everything stops.”

Net sessions have resumed and Danson was relieved to get out of the house and take his son to one last week.

“We’ve been working from home and doing some home schooling for the kids,” he added.

“My wife Vic is a teacher, which helps a lot, and I dip in to help. I’m not sure I could have coped if it was just me at home with the kids.”

Related topics:FyldeBlackpoolSt AnnesThe Gazette