For more than four decades, the Boxing Day Lads & Dads football match has been a cherished part of Sedgefield’s festive calendar. What began as a friendly kick about between generations has grown into a much loved community tradition, bringing families, friends and former residents together each year for a spirited game and plenty of good natured rivalry. This year, however, the event faced an unexpected challenge. Despite every effort, a suitable pitch could not be secured in Sedgefield. With limited availability over the Christmas period and no confirmed access to local facilities, organisers were left with a difficult decision: cancel the match for the first time in its history, or find an alternative venue at short notice.

In true Sedgefield spirit, the community refused to let the tradition lapse. Thanks to the support of neighbouring Bishop Middleham, the Lads & Dads were able to take to the field as planned, with players and supporters making the short journey to keep the tradition alive. The change of venue did nothing to dampen the competitive spirit. In a lively and good-humoured match, the Lads secured a well deserved win, much to the delight of the younger generation and the amusement of the Dads, who insisted they were simply “saving their legs for next year.”

While the match had to be played outside the village this year, the turnout and enthusiasm demonstrated the strength of the tradition and the determination of local families to keep it going. Organisers are keen to ensure that next year’s fixture returns to its rightful home in Sedgefield. Anyone who would like to support efforts to secure a local pitch, whether through advocacy, practical help, or simply lending their voice is warmly encouraged to get involved. Community backing will be vital in ensuring that this long- standing tradition continues on Sedgefield soil for years to come.

Organisers would like to thank everyone who attended, supported, and helped make the day possible especially Bishop Middleham for stepping in when needed. Kelly Dickerson

As I reported last summer, Sedgefield will be hosting the 2026 English National Cross Country Championships next month, in East Park. The Nationals will attract thousands of runners from around the country for a schedule of junior and senior races. Among them will be many of the country’s best athletes, some of whom have represented the nation at international events. They will line-up as equals (at least for the start!) with representatives from clubs of all sizes.

Thanks to financial support from the North East Mayor Kim McGuinness, host club Sedgefield Harriers has been able to put more resources behind promoting and staging the championships, and showcasing the area positively to the rest of the country. In addition, working alongside the mayor, the club will use the event as a catalyst to engage with more people, demonstrating pathways into better health outcomes through physical activity and sport.

Mayor Kim McGuinness comments: “Grassroots activity is where lifelong habits start, and events like this can spark that first step – whether it’s joining a local running club or simply getting out for a jog. We want this championship to leave a lasting legacy, creating more chances for people to be active and healthy, and helping make the North East the UK’s first Region of Sport.”

Sedgefield Harriers has already hosted three significant cross country championships and that began when club founder Ean Parsons brought the North Eastern Counties Cross Country Championships to Sedgefield in December 2015. Ean and team proved that East Park worked as a venue, and that the club had the ability and drive to host major events. The North Easterns returned to Sedgefield in 2021, followed by the Northern Cross Country Championships in January 2024.

The Nationals represents another (much bigger) step up and organisers have been recruiting a team of volunteers to ensure that it is a successful event. If you're interested in getting involved (for any part of the day), join the volunteer group on Facebook at www.facebook.com/groups/xc2026volunteers or contact me on chrisjlines@aol.com.

And regardless of whether you can help out or not, do go along and watch the championships. The Nationals is a big and exciting event, and should deliver some thrilling races. East Park offers several excellent vantage points and there’s no cost for turning up to show your support for all of the local runners who take part, and everyone else of course! The racing will start in the area of the park near the cricket club, at 11:00am on Saturday 21 February. Don’t miss out!

Moving into February at Sedgefield Cricket Club sees preparations for the 2026 season gather pace. The month will begin with kit suppliers Icon visiting the club, an opportunity for players of all ages to measure up for new or replacement playing gear.

If anyone missed the day, all orders are placed online so there’s still time to sort things out. Subscriptions are also due for the calendar year, for players, families and social members. Although everyone is welcome at the club, members enjoy notable drink discounts, so if you haven’t renewed or would like to join, either contact sccmemberships@outlook.com or enquire at the bar.

A first visit of the year to the club will also reveal the facelift undergone in the bar, with all the internal furnishings renewed, creating a great transformation and a more comfortable experience for customers.

Pre-season indoor training runs until late March at Sedgefield Community College with senior players training on Tuesdays from 6:30pm-8pm, and juniors on Fridays, timings depending on the age group.

Sedgefield Squash Club has enjoyed a positive start to 2026. Setting the scene is U13 junior star Huey Lamb. In January, Huey competed in the Junior British Open which attracted players from 64 countries and is dubbed the unofficial Junior World Championships.

He finished a creditable 39th in his age group, which lifts his ranking to ninth position in the country. Huey, with his dad Leon, has recently featured on a MatchPoint podcast, where he talks about his passion for the sport, documenting his journey from starting in the sport with Sedgefield Squash Stars programme to his current success in club, county and country. The podcast is available to listen to on Spotify.

Sedgefield’s 1st team recently played Norton Squash Club in the Boss County Cup quarter finals, winning the match and progressing through to the semi-finals which will be held later in the year. Three of the club’s 1st team players have been selected to play for Durham & Cleveland County in the first round of the National Inter Counties competition to be held at Norton Squash Club on Saturday 14th February. They are Oliver Walls, Rob Pearce and Stephen Rowsby. Meanwhile, the Sedgefield Ladies team resumed their County League matches with a resounding 3-0 home win against Leyburn. Well done to Jess Weatherspoon, Karen Naunton and Emma Rowsby.

By the time you read this, Sedgefield Squash Club will have hosted the County Masters Championships. This is the first time that the club has been awarded a county event, which is an accolade for the hard work by the committee. I will includa report on the event next month.

If you are interested in joining Sedgefield Squash Club, please email info@sedgefieldsquashclub.com.

Back in 1995, Dave Goad took over the Nag’s Head pub. Dave was a keen golfer and set up Sedgefield’s very first golf society – initially calling it the Nag’s Head Golf Society. The idea was to get together once a month from April to October, visiting different golf courses up and down the country for a round of golf in the Stableford format. Interest soon grew and before long, over 20 members signed up – including John Adcock, Mick Thompson, John Forster, Ian Thompson, Dave Garood (original captain), Richard Grey, Billy Teesdale, Phil Fellows, Grayden Makepeace, Neil Hocking, Wayne Henderson, George Alderson, Dereck Jepson, Tony Cullen, Jimmy Seymour, Ray Hodgson, Craig Yetman, John Stokell, and others.

Dave Goad ran the society for about five years before Neil Hetherington took over as landlord, and started hosting the society in 2000. By this time, the group had grown in size to over 30 members, including Kevin ‘Keg’ Jones, Paul Archer and Micky Price, who was (and still is) in charge of keeping track of each member’s handicap to keep everything fair and allow players of all abilities to compete with each other.

For several years, the society was successfully run from the Nag’s Head before being taken on by John Hannan. It was at this time that the members decided to rename it simply Sedgefield Golf Society and host it in Sedgefield Social Club. This carried on until eventually John Adcock took the reins alongside Micky Price (handicaps) and Kevin ‘Keg’ Jones (admin/fees).

The society runs a variety of competitions for its members through the year, with trophies and prizes. The final outing of the year is always played at Hartlepool Golf Course, and is a ‘Yellow Ball Team Game’ format, where members are split into teams of four with a total handicap of roughly the same in each team. Each player must take turns using the yellow ball which allows the user to double the amount of points earned on that particular hole. The best two scores from each team are added together and the team with the most points after 18 holes wins the competition. This competition was always Keg’s favourite and following his untimely passing last year, the society decided to dedicate it to him, with Steven Defty kindly donating the Kevin Jones Shield in his memory.

During 2025, in honour of Keg, the society decided to use the longest drive competition to try and raise some money for Cancer Research UK which has affected many of the members, most recently Ian Thompson who sadly passed away last month and was a much loved member of the society. Every single member took part in the competition, which raised £170 - 50% was due to go to the eventual winner Mark West, but he kindly re-gifted the winnings to cancer research.

Kevin Jones and Ian Thompson were both much loved members of the society and will be sadly missed by all. Members are aiming to raise more funds for Cancer Research UK in their honour during the upcoming season and appreciate any support from those who would like to get involved. Contact Lewis Archer on 07875 755690 if you’d like any further information about Sedgefield Golf Society.

This year’s presentation night took place at the Dun Cow Inn in Sedgefield where the following winners were presented with their trophies:
New Season Shield - Daniel Archer
Henderson Shield – Shaun Evans
Ian Thompson Shield – Lewis Archer
Craig Yetman Trophy – Don MacLennan
Dave Goad Cup – Harold Jones
John Foster Shield - Mark West
Kevin Jones Shield – S Brown, M Thompson, S Evans, S Gerry (team).

Sedgefield Harriers is preparing for two events early in 2026. First up will be the winter handicap race on Sunday 11 January, starting and finishing at Bishop Middleham Village Hall. The race is approximately 10k on a two-lap multi terrain route along path and trails surrounding Bishop Middleham. It is free to enter for members of clubs who are affiliated to England Athletics. There is a £2 charge for others. All entries take place on the day and handicapping for the event is based on each runner’s best 10k time in the previous 12 months.

Then, on Saturday 21 February, for the first time, Sedgefield will host the English National Cross Country Championships in East Park. Organised by the English Cross Country Association in partnership with Sedgefield Harriers and supported by Durham County Council, the championships will include 10 separate races for junior and senior runners, and are sponsored by SportsShoes.com. The event was last staged in North East England in 2013 and will be returning to County Durham for the first time in 25 years. Thanks to some additional financial support from the office of the North East Mayor at the North East Combined Authority, Sedgefield Harriers will be able to put more resources behind promoting the championships, and staging an event that showcases the area positively to the rest of the country.

The ‘Nationals’ is the most prestigious event in the winter athletics calendar and has been the proving ground for some of the nation’s greatest athletes, including North East stars such as Brendan Foster, Mike McLeod, Charlie Spedding, Steve Cram, Aly Dixon and Laura Weightman. Look out for more information about the event next month, but in the meantime, organisers are recruiting volunteers to help stage the championships. You can join the event delivery group on Facebook at www.facebook.com/groups/xc2026volunteers, or send me an email (chrisjlines@aol.com).