A glimpse of the past and a view of the future as Lightcliffe's long-awaited new clubhouse takes shape and rises above the historic 100-year-old wooden pavilion

League photographer Ray Spencer called in at Lightcliffe this week to catch a glimpse of the impressive new clubhouse which is starting to take shape and is casting its shadow over the much-loved wooden pavilion that has served the club for 100 years.

Club official Martin Barrowcliffe has provided an update on progress which was hampered in recent weeks by the wet weather. He said: "The steel frame is now up and the insulation is going onto the exterior walls. In February the roof and windows  go in to make it watertight before we start on the interior with the final push to see if we can get close to ready for the start of the season in mid April.

"The crowdfunding campaign during November was a huge success raising over £40k towards the costs. This was followed by the 24-hour Cricket-a-thon involving all junior and senior teams just after Christmas. Fair to say it was even more of a challenge given that most of it was outdoors in the rain, cold and dark weather of late December. The community raised around c£6k towards the new Pavilion showing that they are right behind the project."

Lightcliffe are incorporating an air-source heat pump and solar panels to aid energy efficiency.