DISASTER has struck a cricket club after the latest spate of vandalism has left it wondering how to pay for repairs.

After a group of youths damaged its covers, Dalton Cricket Club has been left with a bill of around £3,000.

First team captain Daniel Sharp said: "Kids are down there quite a lot. Mostly they just play rugby and football not causing trouble but recently we have had to chase them away more and more.

"Not long ago we said we don’t mind them coming and playing if they are not causing any trouble but that has come to bite us in the backside now.

"I was a kid once - I remember what it was like. We used to come and play around the pitches but we never caused any damage like this."

He says that the vandals use e-scooters, which makes it hard for them to be caught.

The vandals have damaged the covers used to keep the pitch and wickets dry. If it rains and these become too wet, it can mean the game is called off.

Mr Sharp said: "We just have to cross our fingers and hope it does not rain between now and Saturday but it could definitely impact our games if we are not lucky."

The damage is irreparable and will cost about £3,000 to remedy - more than £2,000 for the framework and more than £500 for the sheets.

Mr Sharp said: "We can't really afford to deal with it. We have recently upgraded to get the juniors back up and running to ensure a future for the club.

"We added new nets, scoreboards and cover sheets, so this is a big setback.

"When lads are down there the majority of the week doing voluntary work to make the place better - it feels really disrespectful."

There will be a club meeting later this week to assess the damage and discuss how to deal with it.

One of the ideas floated is to crowdfund the new kit but nothing has been set up before the meeting.