West Farleigh Cricket Club captain Paul Baines at the wicket where the couple were spotted

by Andy Gray

Village cricketers are known as a fairly prim and proper bunch.

It’s a gentleman’s game, which rarely inspires rages of pique or passion - especially off the pitch.

But one couple abandoned traditional etiquette and consummated their ardour in the middle of a wicket belonging to West Farleigh Cricket Club.

The pair were caught out in the throes of a lustful encounter by Darren Day, a West Farleigh player who was taking his dogs for an evening walk last Friday around the outfield in Church Lane.

Despite the pooches’ presence, the couple’s carnal clinch continued unabashed out in the middle.

It was only when Darren called the dogs, who had wandered over to get a closer look, that the lovers, thought to be in their teens, hurriedly pulled on their clothes and scampered off the field.

"if they hadn’t have heard me shout i reckon they’d still be at it" – player darren day

Darren, 42, said: “If they hadn’t have heard me shout I reckon they’d still be at it.

“I used to be a milkman, so I’m used to disturbing people who are ‘otherwise engaged’ in the middle of the night.

“But it’s the first time I’ve seen anyone carry on in the middle of a cricket pitch.

“I don’t know why they chose our ground but they weren’t doing any danger to anyone or the pitch which is in great condition.”

With West Farleigh’s season at an end the team won’t be taking to the field again until next summer.

But the bawdy banter flowed when Darren’s teammates, who play in the Invicta League, were told of the intimate interlopers.

“There were all sorts of jokes about bowling maidens over and middle wickets flying around,” Darren said.

“Everyone saw the funny side, even the groundsman.”

In a sport where bowlers deliver googlies and fielders take up position at fine leg, it’s tempting to think cricket’s rule makers were a red-blooded brood.

And Paul Baines, 52, West Farleigh’s club captain since 1994, said despite outward appearances, not all village cricketers are whiter-than-white.

He said: “It’s not unheard of for players to boast about having sex on cricket fields across the country.

“But as far as I know it’s a first for West Farleigh and who knows if it’ll be the last?”