There will be cheers, beers and tales of yesteryear when the celebrations get under way to mark Cirencester Cricket Club’s 175th anniversary.

The fun starts on Friday 30th June with an evening with celebrated Test Match Special commentator Henry Blofeld.

It continues until Sunday 9th July and includes matches involving an MCC XI, a Gloucestershire over-70s team and a women’s XI.

There are also games involving the club’s thriving junior section and while many visiting the club during the 10-day extravaganza – a beer festival will only add to the party atmosphere – will spend time looking back at the club’s glorious past, 1st XI skipper Gareth Williams will also have one eye on the club’s future.

“The good thing about these celebrations is that it is not just about the 1st XI,” he said.

“It’s a club-wide event and features girls’ games and plenty for the juniors.”

As befits someone who has been chairman of the club’s junior section for the past three years – his 10-year-old son Dylan is part of the set-up – Williams is very keen to use the celebrations to showcase all that is good about cricket and the future of the game.

“It’s all about involving the community and getting more people playing cricket,” said Williams. “We’re very lucky at Cirencester, we’ve got a very strong junior section. We must have 200-odd kids at the club.

“The trouble is that a lot of the smaller clubs around the area are struggling. We’re losing a lot of fixtures because other teams can’t get a side and it’s very worrying.

“The problem is when the kids get to the age of about 14. There are always plenty of kids playing from the ages of seven to 13 but we need to find a way to keep them interested once they reach 14. It’s something we have to address.

“At Cirencester, we can play the youngsters in the 3rd XI and they can progress from there.”

In addition to their thriving junior section, Cirencester have also had more than 50 youngsters turn up for their All Stars Cricket evening sessions – the popular programme run by the ECB to get five-to-eight-year-olds to take up the sport.

While these numbers are obviously good, Williams is also able to see the bigger picture.

“A few years ago, the CDCA ran three divisions,” he said, “now there’s only two.”

Williams knows what he’s talking about because since leaving the Army he has played for clubs at the opposite ends of the playing spectrum.

He has played for his village side Crudwell as well as Lechlade, who these days are at the top of the West of England League’s pyramid.

The 47-year-old joined Cirencester in 2008 and soon became a key figure at the club.

The son of an off-spinner, he bowled seam until the age of 18 “until I realised I wasn’t quick enough and it was a lot less tiring to bowl off-spin”.

He also used to open the batting but these days bats in the lower middle order.

“I could probably still bat higher but we’ve got some good young lads coming through,” he said. “It’s much better that they get a chance.”

While many people, quite rightly, will be looking back with fond memories at the anniversary celebrations, Williams, clearly, has his eyes on the future as well.

Anniversary Dates:

Friday 30th June: Evening with Henry Blofeld and Lashings at the Park.

Saturday 1st July: 2nd XI v Oaksey CC 1pm. Club fun six-a-side cricket competition from 12.30.

Sunday 2nd July: Under-9 district festival and girls’ festival. Barbecue and cream teas, bouncy castle.

Tuesday 4th July: Cirencester XI v MCC from 11.30, lunch and cream teas.

Wednesday 5th July: Cirencester T20 XI v CDCA T20 Select XI 6pm. Barbecue.

Thursday 6th July: Gloucestershire v Warwickshire Over-70s 2pm.

Friday 7th July: Women’s XI v Langford, All Stars Finale.

Saturday 8th July: Cirencester U12/13 v East Devon U12 10.30am. 2nd XI v Cam CC 1pm.

Sunday 9th July: Club birthday lunch, bake cutting, bouncy castle. Three club youth
games. Senior XI v Old Ciren XI T20. PM