Could this man be Yorkshire's oldest cricketer? Nidderdale's Ken on his 65 years playing for beloved village club

At 86, Mr Hainsworth is believed to be one of Yorkshire’s oldest cricket players, and certainly among its longest serving.

His first season for Glasshouses was as a teenager in 1958, some 65 years ago. Since then, he’s never missed a season and has also served as the club’s groundsman since 1979.

Life has changed in so many ways since the 1950s, and Mr Hainsworth, a retired electricity linesman, has fond memories of his earliest days playing for Glasshouses.

“There were two teams then, one in the first division and one in either the second or third,” he remembers. “We’d plenty of players. Most villages had their own cricket teams.

“People didn’t have the money in them days that they have now, or the cars to go gadding off.

“So all the lads used to gather at the cricket field and practise. Then on a Friday night, you’d be looking at the board to see if you’d made the team.

“We had a ladies’ league as well, Glasshouses had a team as did Pateley Bridge, then we had juniors for quite a few years.

“But this last 10, 20years, there’s not been as many people interested in cricket. Times have changed. People have more money, there’s more for the juniors to do - they have these magic boxes which they spend most of their lives on, it seems.”

Play has changed too, according to Mr Hainsworth. “In the olden days, we seemed to have some bigger hitters,” he says. “My house is next to the field, and quite often we’d get cricket balls into the garden and onto the house top.”

The village club has very much been a family affair too, with both his children Gillian and Martin playing at points over the years. But, Mr Hainsworth admits, his love for the club has sometimes taken precedence over his household obligations.

“When I’m not playing, I’ve got the facilities to look after. I paint the pavilion and the sheds every other year, and my wife has threatened to divorce me every year since we married in 1960, because I should be doing things around the house, but I’m out at the cricket club,” he laughs.

For Mr Hainsworth, though, the joy of cricket cannot be replicated, whether he’s batting or bowling.

“Cricket has been my life,” he says. “With being so near and being the groundsman, I’ve tried to raise money through Christmas raffles and a 100 Club.”

And asked if he plans to ever retire, he simply laughs and says: “They won’t let me. I’ve done it all these years, I don’t know any different.”