History
By 1981 the new ground was ready and the official opening took place on Sunday 19th July. "Cricket at Wield Again" ran the headline in the Hampshire Chronicle. "The perfect setting for a village match" mused The Alton Herald.
The opening match was against The Chairmans XI - Keith brought a team which included T.V. sports personality Frank Bough, several Berkshire players and an ex-Hampshire player, B.Harrison. They got off to "a flying start" according to The Hampshire Chronicle when opener D.Byce was caught by Max McAlpine off the 2nd ball of the innings (some things do change). The Chairman's XI were all out for 164, Wield lost when they were bowled out for 115 (some things never change).
Keith Salter remained as Chairman until his sudden death early in 1983. The Club was devastated by this loss. A pewter jug was purchased in his memory and is kept at the Yew Tree, it is still used today to celebrate 5 wicket hauls (a rare occurence), 50's (not very often) and 100's (...!!).
The position of Chairman was left unfilled until the next year when John Gibson was elected. After his retirement in 1989 Margaret Salter became Chairman of the Club.
