The sound of leather on willow is likely to return to Rickmansworth this weekend when the town’s cricket club begin their season a month late after badgers tore up a large section of their pitch.

A grant from the England Cricket Board (ECB) has helped Rickmansworth Cricket Club to re-lay 1,500 sq metres of turf which had been damaged by the animals.

The newly laid pitch must still be inspected by the ECB on Friday but all being well and weather permitting the first XI will fulfil their first Herts League fixture of the season on Saturday.

The arrival of badgers and the ensuing damage to the pitch, which was first reported in the Watford Observer, made headlines around the world.

Chairman Mark Raine described the pitch as looking like "somebody has turned up with a mortar and tried to trash it".

The arrival of badgers was blamed on the prolonged cold spell which prevented the club putting down a spray to get rid of leatherjackets which attract badgers to the surface.

The club was founded in 1787 and is believed to be one of the oldest in the country.