Cricket club raises £10k after weed killer attack leaves pitch destroyed

The pitch at Barkby United was destroyed by vandals.

A village cricket club whose pitch was destroyed by vandals who poured weedkiller over it has raised £10,000 to cover the cost of repairs.

The attack on Barkby United Cricket Club's ground in Leicestershire happened during the early hours of Sunday 18 June.

All of the grass on the pitch was killed and became unplayable.

But thanks to a wave of support from the cricket community, the club reached its crowdfunding target.

The club says it's "still blown away" by all those who have donated.

As many as 40 games had to be rearranged before the season ends. Credit: ITV News Central

Support came from far and wide, with the groundsmen at Edgbaston Cricket Club in Birmingham getting in touch to see if they could help out.

Forty games were affected with the club left without a pitch for its home games - with a loss of revenue estimated around £5,000.

The club had worried the loss in match-day earnings and the cost of finding a new home venue while repairs were underway would be "far from negligible” for their finances.

Barkby United continue to work with Leicestershire Police, which is investigating the vandalism.



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