A 10-year-old boy from Corsham has spent three consecutive days at his local cricket club to complete a unique bowling challenge to raise thousands of pounds for his beloved cricket club.

Henry Dummott, a committed cricketer and year six pupil at Corsham Primary School, decided to set himself the challenge of a five hour ‘bowl-a-thon’ in a bid to raise money for the refurbishment of Corsham Cricket Club.

Henry, who plays cricket for Corsham under 11s, was inspired to undertake the challenge after he was tasked with planning and designing a fundraising event as a school activity during lockdown.

Over the Easter holidays Henry took to the nets in a bid to bowl as many overs as possible, ably supported by friends and fellow club members who acted as wicket keepers.

On the first day, despite a frosty chill in the air and flurries of snow, Henry took a total of 75 wickets. He went on to take a grand total of 250.

Henry, who is about to start training for Wiltshire under 11s cricket, said: “I felt I needed to work on my bowling and thought this could be a good way to raise money for my cricket club at the same time. I love the club, but I feel as though it’s time to give it a new look, so I wanted to do what I could to help.

The Wiltshire Gazette and Herald: Archie Dummott Archie Dummott

“It’s been harder than I thought. After the first day my arm was beginning to ache, but I kept on going. I’m really pleased to have taken so many wickets.”

Steve Vickery, chair of Corsham Cricket Club said: “Henry’s ‘bowl-a-thon’ was an inspired idea and we’re so grateful to him for his fantastic fundraising efforts.

“We’re delighted to have been granted permission for our plans to upgrade our pavilion. The refurbishment will bring a light, fresh and airy vibe to the building as well as making it more accessible and really make it something to be proud of in the local community.

“To make this happen we need to secure the necessary funding and throughout the year our members will be taking on a series of challenges and events to fund this exciting project. Henry has proved to be a real inspiration and has made a brilliant start to our fundraising efforts. We can’t thank him enough.”

Henry had initially set out to raise £150, but surprised by the generous support he received he upped his target to £1,500 and has now raised more than £1,700. People are still able to donate to Henry via his Justgiving link: www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/philippa-mayo-10

Henry, whose favourite cricketer is Joe Root, added: “I feel really proud that I’ve been able to raise all this money and that it will help the club look better. I’ve felt really disappointed during lockdown because I’ve not been able to play much cricket so I’m really looking forward to it starting again and to see my friends and play some actual matches.”