DYMOCK Cricket Club will be in the mood to celebrate its 150th anniversary, having received a £75,000 windfall from Sport England, the maximum possible grant.

The money means the club's dream of a new pavilion, to mark the special anniversary, now looks set to become a reality.

Work on the new building could start before Christmas, if similar support can be obtained from the English Cricket Board, and a decision on this is imminent.

The community has also done its bit for the appeal. Proceeds from the annual Dymock Music Festival put around £12,000 in the club's campaign pot each year.

Club Chairman, Martin Fowke, said: “We are absolutely thrilled to receive this grant funding and very grateful for all the support given by Sport England and that of the community.

"Having secured this investment along with other great funding activities, such as The Dymock Festival and an Anniversary Dinner held at the club, we can begin to upgrade our pavilion building."

He added: "We are now waiting expectantly for similar support from the English Cricket Board (ECB) which will allow us to start the build before Christmas. We still need to find some more funding in order to make this project happen, but this is now very achievable with a bit of local support. To have a ‘fit for purpose’ facility that will serve the community for years to come is a dream come true.”

Dymock Cricket Club applied to the National Lottery for a grant to so that it could upgrade it’s out of date club pavilion.

The club’s facilities were no longer large enough or safe enough to cope with its growing numbers. After three years of planning and preparation, the club has been offered the maximum grant amount from Sport England.

As a condition of the award the club has made changes to its constitution, enabling the club to provide more for the community. There are plans to develop ladies cricket, and to make the new facility available for other sporting activities such as cycling and running.

Sport England Property Director, Charles Johnston, said: “The Inspired Facilities Fund has had a huge impact on grassroots sport across the country. Since 2011, we’ve invested £94 million into more than 1,800 projects to improve and refurbish sports clubs and transform non-sporting venues into vibrant community sports clubs.

“It’s great to see Dymock Cricket Club join the long list of successful clubs to benefit from this fund.”