Shapwick and Polden Cricket Club is well on its way to hitting its Covid Recovery Fund Crowdfunding target after raising £10,000 so far.

With 44 days left of the club's Crowdfunding campaign to secure its financial position and invest in future improvements, more than £10,700 has been pledged from 78 supporters towards a target of £12,500.

The disruption caused by a delayed start to the 2020 season together with the restrictions that were in place inevitably impacted the club's finances, resulting in significantly reduced levels of income being received from its three main revenue streams.

Firstly, playing fewer fixtures with a smaller number of players meant that income from membership subscriptions and match fees fell to about 50 per cent of the budgeted figure.

Secondly, uncertainty about the cricket programme and the business environment caused contributions from sponsorship and other donations to total only around a third of the that received in 2019.

Finally, social distancing requirements and restrictions regarding hospitality venues made it impossible to run most of the club's usual fundraising events.

This major loss of income was not matched by an equivalent reduction in outgoings. Spending on ground maintenance and equipment, the club's biggest item of expenditure, was in fact higher than in 2019 as the club needed to replace broken sightscreen panels and to purchase a roller which had previously been on loan.

Although a full season of cricket in 2021 now seems a distinct possibility, the club still faces the risk of less than normal levels of income and of higher costs in staging matches.

In particular, likely continuing restrictions on using indoor space and changing rooms, at least in the early part of the summer, mean that the club will have to invest in additional outside facilities for players and supporters.

Jon Ball from the club said: "We have a desperate need to replace or upgrade the equipment required to providing a pitch of suitable standard for Premier League cricket including covers and mowers for preparing the wicket.

"We also need to address the problem of balls escaping on the southern boundary, to not only reduce expenditure on lost balls but also to reduce the disruption to games which is far from ideal for the level of cricket played. We will do this by erecting a low fence as a barrier.

"With Covid restrictions, at least in the first part of the 2021 season, likely to forbid the use of changing rooms and restrict the social use of the pavilion, we intend to purchase gazebos to provide shelter and secure space for players and outside furniture for the benefit of both players and spectators.

"In addition to purchasing these items, we need to generate sufficient revenue to cover our normal playing costs such as ground maintenance, match balls, umpires' fees, coaching fees for juniors, etc, and to invest in new aids and equipment to ensure we deliver the best training to all our sections."

The club fields three Saturday Men's XIs with the 1st XI competing in the West of England Premier League and the 2nd XI in the Premier Division of the Somerset Cricket League.

Also run is a Sunday XI and the club has had an encouraging response to its aspirations to form a women's team in 2021.

Shapwick and Polden has also committed to be a Somerset Cricket Disability Silver Champion and will work with the Somerset Cricket Board to increase its association.

In pre-pandemic 2019, there were around 90 junior members attending training sessions under the supervision of ECB qualified coaches.

The club had teams for both boys and girls up to the age of 15 while the ECB "All Stars" programme provided a first experience of cricket for younger children aged between five and eight.

Shapwick and Polden was formed in 2014 following a merger between the Ashcott & Shapwick and Chilton Polden clubs, both of which had been in existence since the second half of the 19th century.

In fact, had it not been for the continuing uncertainty regarding Covid, the club planned this summer to commemorate the 150th anniversary of the inaugural meeting of the Chilton Polden club held on June 7, 1871.

The club has Clubmark Status, the accreditation by the England and Wales Cricket Board confirming it to be a well-run and safe environment for both seniors and juniors.

It is run by a volunteer management committee with all cricket activities, social events and much of the maintenance organised and undertaken by volunteers.

You can contribute to Shapwick and Polden Cricket Club's Covid Recovery Fund by visiting its Crowdfunding page HERE.