CHAIRMAN Tony Blake believes Frinton Cricket Club are bucking national trends and creating a legacy for the future.

The Gibbs Denley East Anglian Premier League outfit officially unveiled their new pavilion during Saturday’s drawn match at home to Horsford.

The sparkling facility, coupled with the natural beauty of the ground and the standard of cricket being played, means the club are going from strength to strength.

And while exciting for the current crop of players, Blake believes the set-up will be of huge benefit to future generations, too.

“I’ve always been a great believer in investing in cricket and this new pavilion is a real statement of that investment,” he said.

“We’ve had lots of ambition to change things but if you want to provide cricket into the future, you have to have the facilities.

“You have to make it attractive and providing what we have here gives young people something to aspire to.

“It’s a role model for cricket and it’s put us way ahead of the game, because we’re bucking the trend.

“If you look at cricket nationally, it’s really struggling.

“Here, it’s going from strength to strength and those involved are doing this for the youth.

“We owe it to them because we’ve taken so much out of this club.

“My earliest memories are down here because my father used to play in every game going and was player, captain before being chairman and then president.

“He and his contemporaries put a lot into the club and invested in my generation.

“We’ve invested for our children and now our children are doing the same.

“Because of the camaraderie and membership here, there is a will to underpin this investment in cricket.

“That’s my mantra and it’s so close to my heart.”

Blake believes Frinton are firmly established in the top-100 clubs in the country, given the strength of the East Anglian Premier League.

And he says things will only improve when the club’s winter project – building new indoor nets – comes to fruition.

He added that the club are hugely fortunate to receive so much financial assistance, helping them make their ambitions a reality.

“We have a phenomenal amount of fortune, because we have some serious benefactors,” he said.

“There are people and families who donate large amounts of money and this year has been exceptional, with some very generous contributions towards the infrastructure of the club.

“We provide the most wonderful facility and now we’re investing in these new buildings which, coupled with the large number of members who love to come here and socialise, underpins the future of cricket in Frinton.”