Over 40 apprentices from National Grid worked tirelessly at Teignmouth & Shaldon CC (T&SCC) last month to help give the facilities at Hazeldown Oval a much-needed revamp.

Every year, National Grid carry out a number of community projects for non-profit organisations as part of their apprenticeship scheme and this year, through club member connections, T&SCC's Hazeldown Oval was selected as one of these community projects.

"One of our club members, Henry, works for National Grid," said Glynn Ballman, Chair of T&SCC, when we spoke to him on Day 1 of the project. "Henry decided to put our club forward to get this treatment and I'm glad to say that National Grid agreed to it.

"Henry, his wife Jo and their family have brought so much enthusiasm and energy to this club."

Henry, his wife and both his sons all play their cricket at T&SCC, with Henry having gained his 25 league appearances cap for the club last summer.

"Every year we do a community project with our apprentices where we get them involved in the community, carrying out work for a charitable organisation," said Henry. "I decided that it would be the perfect opportunity to put them forward for this project, and the company accepted it!

"The preparation has been really stressful, but getting the boys on site today and watching them all just start their jobs and get on with it has really made me start to think that, hopefully, we'll get it completed by the end of the week."

Speaking about the facilities prior to the project, Glynn was honest about the long-term plan for the club: "We have the ambition to have a new clubhouse, but we have to be honest and say that's probably some time away.

"I think it's pretty well known how much our club has grown over the last 15 years. We've almost outgrown ourselves with the facilities we've got here [at Hazeldown Oval]. This week is really about future-proofing the buildings that we've got. I think it's going to make a massive difference."

Henry was also keen to echo the great work that has been done to grow the club: "It's a fantastic club. I've watched it grow from 13 juniors to 200 juniors and three senior teams, and it's just so exciting to see young cricketers coming through."

Just halfway through Day 1 of the project, Glynn was excited with the progress made, admitting: "I don't think I'm going to be able to resist the temptation not to come back every day and see an update! To see it culminate on Friday is going to be fantastic."

It was an emotional scene when Devon Cricket returned at the end of the week to speak to Glynn and Henry once the project was complete.

"I feel relieved and emotional," said Henry shortly after his speech to the apprentices wrapping up the project. "At the end when I spoke to them I was nearly in tears. It's really come on and I'm so proud of everything that they've done for themselves, for the club and for the company. They've done an amazing job."

Speaking in front of the revamped clubhouse, Glynn was equally as emotional: "I'm just full of admiration for what Henry and the National Grid team have done. It's beyond what we would have hoped for.

"I think it's going to make such a difference for us. It really does future-proof the club for, hopefully, 10 years. It's really important for us, we have an absolutely burgeoning youth section and if this sees that forward, then it's absolutely fantastic."

Alongside the revamp of the clubhouse, the benches and the interior of all of the club's buildings have been repainted, new steps have been placed outside both pitches' changing rooms, rails have been added at the far end of the ground to stop balls from getting lost, and the club have reclaimed a small bit of land to be able to extend the boundary of the Pitch 2.