A Game Sustained

56 Keeping going: 1914-1915 This did not prevent scores being kept and sent back home for publication. Some soldiers were surprisingly blasé about their situation. One sent the Yorkshire Evening Post scores of two games behind the lines, adding that ‘The fact that we were not shelled robbed the games of excitement’. Looking ahead Despite the deteriorating war situation and the divided views about the appropriateness of playing in wartime, at the end of the summer many clubs in Yorkshire looked ahead to the next summer. Kirkburton advertised for a professional and groundsman for 1916, and Great Horton advertised for two ‘real bowlers, one left arm slow and one fast, also opening for good batter’. Lidget Green sought a ‘good wicket keeper, batsman preferred’, while Pudsey Britannia advertised for a first-class all-round professional. George Leach, the former Sussex player, signed for Great Horton, and George Thompson, the Northamptonshire professional who had played six Test matches for England, was engaged by Eccleshill. Elsewhere, some reassessed their situation. In August, the Yorkshire Cricket Council agreed by 17-5 that competitive cricket should be reinstated in 1916, following a summer of friendlies. One speaker argued that players who had worked hard during the week should be able to play cricket, but if it was competitive it should be on a limited scale. Some still argued that it was inappropriate but others protested that it was no more unpatriotic to play competitive matches than friendlies. At the same meeting, it was announced that 500 members of clubs from the Council had now joined the forces, which no doubt helped to salve some consciences. In many places, the game continued to be taken very seriously. The Bradford League’s Ground Inspection sub- committee made its routine visits. Some grounds were considered fine, but Laisterdyke’s outfield was viewed as very unsatisfactory, the wicket only moderate and players’ accommodation inadequate. It was also resolved that as negotiations to revive a club for Bradford Park Avenue had