YOUTH CRICKET: Corsham cricket club staged an open evening on Monday in recognition of the award of a bowling machine to the Club by the Stroud and Swindon Building Society, sponsors of the West of England Premier League.

The bowling machine will be used by playing members of the club at all levels, including the youth group and will be made available to other nominated clubs in the area.

The Bola machine costs nearly £2,000 and has been jointly funded by the Stroud & Swindon Building Society and Sportsmatch, who have each contributed £30,000 to the project which places machines with each of the West of England Premier League clubs.

The machines are a vital aid to help qualified coaches with the development of batting skills.

The youth group at Corsham was initially established in the mid-1950s but over the past four years, the club has taken positive steps in partnership with the Wiltshire Cricket Board to encourage youngsters to learn the game by fostering links with junior schools in the area.

The club now has over 150 junior members between the ages of nine and 15.

The club's under 13s are through to the Wiltshire semi-finals of the Subaru Cup and play Biddestone on Sunday for a place in the final.

Club chairman, Tony Shardlow, said: "The youth section has grown in recent years and we had so many youngsters wanting to join this season that unfortunately we had to turn some away.

"Monday night was an opportunity for parents to see how their children were getting on."