The Napa Valley Cricket Club (NVCC) completed its move to Napa over the winter months and recently finalized their schedule of matches. NVCC will host visiting teams in Napa at either the Midway Green at Napa Valley Expo or McGrath Field on the grounds of Napa State Hospital.
“The building of the new Boys & Girls clubhouse in Calistoga was the catalyst for us to move to Napa” said NVCC president Rob Bolch “as the lawn on which we played at the Calistoga Fairgrounds will see increased usage with its proximity to the clubhouse. We had a good innings in Calistoga and for five years we hosted a plethora of visiting teams and played over 50 matches there.” continued Bolch.
For 2017 the NVCC will be playing their matches at two venues in the City of Napa. Kicking off this Sunday June 4, they host trans Mayacamas rivals the Sonoma Gullies at McGrath Field on the grounds of Napa State Hospital. NVCC will host a number of additional matches at this field details of which can be found on the calendar page of their website here.
“We’re grateful to the administration folks at Napa State Hospital and the Sheriffs Activity League for making room for us to play a number of matches on McGrath Field” said Bolch. “There’s a lot of pressure on that field given the quality of its surface so we’re very happy that we’ve been able to carve out some slots for matches.”
In addition to McGrath Field NVCC will play matches at the Napa Valley Expo, on the Midway Green, the area that annually plays host to the fair rides during the annual Town & Country Fair. The first NVCC match scheduled there is an intra-club game pitting club members who live in the City of Napa against members who live outside the City limits in what the NVCC are calling a City v County match. This match is scheduled for Sunday June 18. The Midway Green will also host the annual Napa Valley World Series of Cricket, the clubs largest game annually, scheduled this year for Sunday July 23.
To accommodate playing in two separate facilities the NVCC invested over the winter in an enclosed trailer for storage of all of their equipment. In addition, a Flicx cricket pitch was flown in from the UK to allow the club to play their matches with minimal impact at either facility.
With two away matches already played NVCC are looking at a schedule of at least 12 more matches in 2017, which includes their annual tour game, this year in Vancouver in late June. NVCC will also host traveling Paso Robles CC at the Midway Green in late October in addition to matches against teams from San Francisco, Marin, Davis, Sacramento, and Sonoma.
The move to Napa has coincided with an influx of new members for the club who now boast a playing roster of over 30 and a total membership that is close to 100. NVCC is always looking for new members and anyone who’s interested should get in touch with them via their website or head down to one of their matches and see what the second most popular game on the planet is all about.
Next Game
Sunday 4th June 2017 – HOME to Sonoma Gullies at McGrath Field, Madrone Drive in Napa State Hospital – from 10.30am (check website for details)