Carrickfergus Cricket Club intends to re-open for business at 4 pm on Friday 3rd July, but like all other businesses, things will look very different at the club to what we would see as ‘normal’ business.
The club will only be open to members and their guests, who must be signed in. To this extent you will need to renew your membership as soon as possible and a membership renewal form has been sent out to social members this week. As I have said, these are not normal times, so we are offering you a discount on your social membership. If you renew by 12th July, your membership subscription will be reduced to £15 until May 2021 (and just £5 for senior citizens) The 3 ways to pay are shown on the membership form, however due to the current situation, we would encourage you to please pay this online (Option 3 on the membership form). If you can’t pay online, please pay on your first visit to Carrick Cricket Club after we re-open on the 3rd July, preferably by contactless card. Playing members will be contacted separately in due course, once we find out if there will be any cricket played this season, but in the meantime they may use the premises. There will be no exceptions to this members only rule.
If you wish to come into the clubhouse for a drink, you will have to order food, and to this extent Stephen and his Square View Restaurant will also be open during the bar hours shown below. It will be table service for both food and drink and you will only be served drink if you are seated and are having food. There will be no standing facility indoors and no seats or stools in the bar area. The smoking area will also be temporarily moved to the front of the clubhouse rather than the back balcony. There will be no access to the back balcony at this stage except for staff.
We also intend to open a beer garden at the back of the clubhouse at the bottom end of the cricket field. Access to this will be via the gate to the right hand side of the clubhouse. Again this will be table service, or sat on the floor service, as it will be a relaxed area. In the beer garden you will not have to order food. All social distance and protocols will still be in place. This facility will only be open in good weather so let’s hope for a great summer!
Initially we intend to open the bar for the following hours:
Friday 4pm - 9pm
Saturday 1pm - 9pm
Sunday 1pm - 8pm
As I have stated it will be table service only and orders will be taken from your table. You will not be allowed to approach the bar to order drinks.
We encourage you to pay for your drinks by contactless card rather than cash. This can also be done at your table. This is to protect both you as a much valued member and also our dedicated staff.
We will naturally be observing all the government protocols on social distancing, hand hygiene and queues similar to how you see it in local shops and supermarkets. We will have a hand sanitising table at the top of the stairs as you enter the clubhouse and another at the top of the stairs as you enter the cricket field. Our queue system for inside the clubhouse will be at the front of the club, and once all tables are full you will have to wait outside until a table is free before you can enter. At this stage there will be no facility to stand and have a drink in the clubhouse. With limited seating it may not be possible to get a table for one and whilst still meeting social distance requirements, someone else may sit at your table to maximise capacity.
We also ask you to ensure all children remain seated at all times when inside the clubhouse to maintain social distancing requirements. Sadly if children can’t do this, then their families will be asked to leave. We will also have three ‘same household’ booths underneath the tv and big screens. These are for groups of about 6 from the same household or social bubble where social distance requirements are not needed. If you are from the same household please use these first before using the social distance seating.
The toilets will also have a limited capacity and a queue system and, due to lack of space, the baby changing facility will be out of action at this stage.
We also intend to re-start the club lottery draw, with the first draw being made on opening night in the clubhouse. Tickets will be on sale in the club from 4pm on the 3rd July from your table and from 26th June in our usual outlets. The jackpot is currently £3,007 and tickets are still only £1 each.
As I have said these are not normal times and as we slowly start to edge out of lockdown I ask you all for your understanding, patience and support as all of this is new to us all.
Things are also changing very quickly and I encourage you to keep checking our website and social media for any further updates. This will also be where you will find out if the beer garden is open in case of inclement weather.
We look forward to seeing you back at Carrickfergus Cricket Club in the very near future and I personally am looking forward to welcoming you all back.
Take Care and See You Soon
Billy Crook
Chairman