'Mindless' vandals barged their way into Hyde Cricket Club, tore up netting and damaged new equipment, according to the club's secretary. The Hyde Cricket and Squash Club, on Werneth Low Road, had its entrance doors smashed through sometime overnight, on Saturday (July 2).
Opening up early on Sunday morning, (July 3), Club Secretary John Buckley said he was left 'shocked' by the scenes he was greeted with. An indoor cricket practise area was main area which was targeted, with large areas of netting torn through and equipment left strewn across the floor.
The incident has now been reported to the police. John said that the club, which is kept running by the help of volunteers, plans to install more cameras and security after it fell victim to the crime.
John said: "The groundsman arrived shortly before me this morning, at around 7.30am because there was an under 13s cricket match on today so I came to check the pitch was okay.
"When I arrived, he alerted me to what had happened. They have targeted the cricket practise areas, which are netted areas where people can practise their skills indoors - those lanes have taken the brunt of the violence.
"They smashed up the entrance doorway to get inside, smashed up our new equipment container which we have just bought, and completely destroyed the door into the indoor practise area. Further to that they have thrown chairs and ripped the netting - it is utterly mindless.
"There aren't many people who randomly damage things for no good reason, but I am sure that is what has happened here. There is no obvious motive.
"It has never happened before, we are in a lovely rural location and loved by so many people who come to use our facilities. I was shocked, I just didn't expect this to happen at all, it is just really confusing and disappointing."
John added that now, at the expense of the club, extra CCTV cameras and locks will need to be installed to prevent it falling victim to more vandalism in the future. "This is will not only come at a cost, but will be a huge inconvenience to our members," he added.
Images of the damage were shared to the social media account for the cricket club, in a bid to urge people with any information to come forward. People were left outraged by the incident, with one person commenting: "Shocking. Beggars belief why anyone would do that."
Another said: "So sad, the few ruin it for the community. Speedy recovery to get back up and running on your facilities." Greater Manchester Police have been approached for comment.
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