Ilkeston - Saturday
On The Gallows
w/e 26 July 2015
All of this week's pictures were
taken with a Kodak DX6490
In recent weeks we've been blessed with Carnivals,
Festivals, Summer Fayres, Open Days and many other events but
as the schools closed for the summer holidays, there has been
a bit of a lull this weekend. We've had a busy and tiring week
with a pretty full calendar so photographic opportunities have
been few and far between and if the weather forecast is to be
believed Sunday's Summer Sounds on Victoria Park looks like being
a washout. So as a last resort and anticipating heavy rain and
the possible cancellation of that event, we paid a brief visit
to Gallows Inn Playing Fields on Saturday afternoon for this
selection of images.
Near the entrance to the playing fields (frequently shortened
to "Gallows" and named after gallows that once stood
nearby) which are sandwiched between the River Erewash and the
Erewash Canal, there was a little activity on the play equipment
but not much else seemed to be happening.
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Further on however some youngsters were having a kick-about on
the football pitch.
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And looking back towards Nottingham Road more youngsters were
using the rugby posts as a makeshift football goal.
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It was in the middle of the playing fields however that most
action was taking place where a cricket match between two local
rivals was in progress. The fielder moving to his right was just
too far away to catch the ball but several wickets fell as I
walked around the pitch.
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In the next over, the bowler roared in again with another delivery
but this time the ball was fended away successfully.
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And in this shot I caught the ball on its way to the boundary
to add another four runs to the score.
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The game was being watched by a few spectators but mainly by
the batting side from the pavilion.
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The next batsman to take to the middle was having some last minute
practice as I approached and was soon on his way as another wicket
fell.
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The scoreboard read 119 runs for the loss of eight wickets but
as the last man went out to bat the wickets down had just ticked
over to nine.
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A light drizzle started to fall as I left the ground and on the
canal towpath I wondered if any of the cricketers would follow
the cyclist at the end of the match to drown their sorrows or
celebrate their successes at the Gallows Inn pub on Nottingham
Road. By the way, it's a good job I had the foresight to go to
the playing fields on Saturday as Sunday's Summer Sounds event
in Victoria Park actually was cancelled. It was due to start
at 3pm but news came through at 1pm that the show was off due
to the bad weather. That means rain has forced the abandonment
of two of Ilkeston's main summer events this year, the Carnival
and Summer Sounds. We can only hope that the Classic Car Show
in the town centre on August 16th does not go the same way.
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