A lot has happened in forty years. The Club's founders can be assured that the competitive and friendly spirit of the early Woodpeckers' sides lives on.
This book would not be complete without recording the monumental efforts over the past ten years or so of Martin Ruxton. Martin consistently puts so much effort into the Club's activities, from maintenance and preparation of the square and pitches to social events that it is inconceivable to imagine the Club without him.
Martin and Nigel Ruxton, ably assisted by other members, including Rob Hall, Earl Davies, Alastair Boore, Simon Probyn, Martin Watts, David Banwell and others have set up and run Sunday morning coaching and playing sessions for junior members of the Woodpeckers CC. In 1991 competitive matches have been played in the Leadon Vale under Fifteen's League with a good level of success. Many players are around 11 to 12 years of age and have performed admirably against sides often incorporating mainly 13/14 year olds.
The young cricketers of today can have no better example to follow than President Mike Edge. Mike is the only player to have performed over the full forty year period and whilst he only plays occasionally these days he still possesses that genuine enthusiasm for cricket that the youngsters look to for inspiration.
The photograph of the 1991 Junior Cricket Section Award Winners shows some of these promising youngsters who will, no doubt, help form the nucleus of the Club in years to come. The Club can, I feel, look forward to the next forty years (i.e. 2031 - what a thought!) with confidence encouraged by a very successful and sociable track record to date.
