A CHAIRMAN of a village cricket team has slammed vandals who left a trail of damage at the pavilion.

The club in Castle Hedingham was targeted by yobs who broke into the building.

Chairman Terry Jackson found out about the damage from friends who were passing by the ground on a walk when they saw the mess left behind.

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Mr Jackson said: “The windows were smashed up and glass doors smashed. Inside, plates were smashed, fridges pulled out from under cabinets and they took one of the stumps and stuck it in the wall half a dozen times.

"Kits were strewn around outside - it was a mess.

“Maybe they thought there was something of value and broke in, and when they found there wasn’t they’ve smashed everything up.

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“From what we can see, there was no rhyme or reason to it. They literally broke in and smashed it up, seemingly for the sake of doing it. Nothing was taken either.

“Police came and took some forensics, and I know they are investigating.”

Since the incident, the club has had to postpone several matches and had to spend their own finances repairing the damage and adding extra security measures.

“We are having to spend money we don’t have”, said Mr Jackson.

“Of course we will be upping our security, but it is too late now.

“Hopefully by spreading what happened we can warn other clubs of the incident.”

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A spokesman for Essex Police said: “We are investigating a burglary at Castle Hedingham Cricket Club, Bayley Street, Castle Hedingham, that occurred between 6pm on June 13 and 9am on June 14.

“No arrests have been made.

“We need anyone who saw anything or has any CCTV, dash cam, or doorbell footage to contact us.

“If you have any information, you can submit a report online at essex.police.uk or use the 'Live Chat' button to speak to an online operator between 7am-11pm.

“Please quote crime report 42/151728/22.

“You can also call us on 101 or contact Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555111.”