TWO Barney charities are hoping to be bowled over with donations when they take to the crease later this month for a fun cricket match to raise money for a group supporting men with mental health problems.
ManHealth have teamed up with The Clique, to organise the fun charity cricket match on Sunday, August 21, at Barnard Castle Cricket Club.
Barnard Castle ManHealth group leader Chris Johnson said: “We’re not selling tickets, it’s free for everyone to come along and we’re just asking for donations on the day.
“The purpose of the match is to fund the Barney group going forward and we’d like to think we could make this an annual event, something for the whole family to enjoy.
“All of the ManHealth groups are doing something different to raise funds, but our team will be made up of members from all the Durham groups.”
ManHealth was founded in 2015 by Paul Bannister to try to get men to talk more openly about their struggles. The groups are designed to provide an opportunity to meet new friends and help end the social stigma and loneliness of mental ill health.
The charity now operates eight support groups across County Durham and money raised from the cricket match will go towards funding the Barnard Castle branch, which meets every Wednesday at The Witham, between 6pm and 8pm.
Both charities will field a team for the match which starts at 2pm and they are hoping for a big crowd to cheer on each side during the afternoon.
In the evening there will be live music and food as well as a prize raffle and auction featuring sporting memorabilia, including a signed Ian Botham cricket bat.
Clique chairman Matthew Croom said: “It will be nice to work with ManHealth again. The last time was the Walk for Andrew back in April 2019.
“We’re hoping people will support us on the day. Come along, enjoy the match – bring a bottle for the raffle or a prize for the auction. More than anything it should be fun to watch as I think the last time, I played cricket I was in school.”
