De Boer created a media centre at “the most beautiful cricket ground in England” when bad weather threatened to dampen the spirits of the press covering a high-profile match.
Rain was forecast when Wormsley Cricket Ground in picturesque Buckinghamshire staged its most important fixture for five years. The Clydesdale Bank 40 contest between the Unicorns and Surrey was the first competitive match featuring a first-class county side to be played at Wormsley since 2005.
The Unicorns team is made up of the best players in the country without full county contracts and allows talented young players to showcase their ability while giving others a second chance.
But in the 40-over county cricket competition the Unicorns failed to beat the strong Surrey side which included Steven Davies who scored a century and the ever-popular Mark Ramprakash.
Sir Paul Getty created the stunning oasis of cricket on his family estate near High Wycombe almost 30 years ago to celebrate his love of all things English. Set in a fabulous landscape and boasting wonderful facilities, the ground is described as “quintessentially English”.
Tim Munton, the former Warwickshire, Derbyshire and England fast bowler, who looks after cricket at Wormsley, said: “De Boer came to our rescue at short notice when we became concerned about bad weather reports in the lead-up to an important match which generated a lot of interest.
“Although the facilities are marvellous here we didn’t have a dedicated area for the press to shelter. We were delighted when De Boer came up with a solution and became involved with the event. They created a small media centre for us and we are hoping it will lead to further collaborations in the future. We were very grateful for their support.”
The creation of the media centre also demonstrated the tremendous team spirit within De Boer – with office-based staff, including sales and health & safety personnel, involved in the actual build process.
John Cochrane, De Boer’s Sales Director – Events, who was among the build team, explained: “De Boer has always believed in a hands-on approach to its assignments. Contracts such as Wormsley enable our sales staff to have greater empathy with our day-to-day build teams and with our customers’ needs. They also show we’re not afraid of getting our hands dirty!”
Celebrity cricket matches are a major feature of the fixture list at Wormsley although the season is now almost over. Tim Munton said: “We were very pleased with our programme for this summer. It offered a big cross-section of people the chance to use the marvellous facilities and we enjoyed welcoming large audiences.
“Even for those who are not fanatical about cricket, the chance to take in the stunning Wormsley views and atmosphere is not to be missed.”
Background on De Boer
De Boer is one of the leading international suppliers of temporary accommodation for large events and festivals, storage purposes, airport baggage handling and supermarkets. De Boer was established in 1924 and is headquartered in Alkmaar, The Netherlands. The company now has offices in The Netherlands, Germany, the United Kingdom, Belgium, Austria, France, Spain, Sweden and Dubai. De Boer is also represented in Qatar, Russia, China and the USA.
It employs more than 350 people internationally and during high season another 150 temporary workers are deployed. NPM Capital has been major shareholder since August 2005.