Almost three years to the day that floods destroyed Charlbury’s old pavilion, the sun shone gloriously as they officially opened their new facility.

Former Zimbabwe Test ace Henry Olonga and Oxfordshire’s cricket development manager Rupert Evans played in a special President’s XI match to mark the opening of the new pavilion.

July 10, 2007 saw the River Evenlode burst its banks, submerging Charlbury’s old pavilion under ten feet of water.

But now, after three years of fundraising, the club have a new building to be proud of.

Charlbury president Malcolm Harper said: “We were absolutely delighted with the day. The weather was fantastic, the cricket was very good.

“We had more than 100 people down during the afternoon, most of whom had been involved in the fund-raising.”

The new pavilion is the opposite side of the ground to where the old building was situated, which means it is above the flood plain.

Harper added: “We still have an interest-free loan to pay back to the ECB over the next five years, and so the fund-raising continues.

“It was as close to a perfect day as we could have hoped for, and everybody enjoyed themselves.”

Fittingly, the match was drawn after Charlbury scored 231-6, and the President’s XI replied with 174-7.