An elite cricket coach who was crushed by a bowling machine during a training session at a £45,000-a-year private school is suing his bosses for £200,000. Ex-Derbyshire bowler Andrew Woodward, 57, says the 75kg machine fell on him at Ryde School on the Isle of Wight in February 2023.
Mr Woodward was taking a weekly under-12s county coaching session when the wooden box containing the machine 'landed on top of him' as he was moving it into position. He was treated for multiple injuries including widespread bruising, soft tissue injuries to the left knee and neck, and an injury to his lower back 'causing severe back pain and restriction of movement'.
The 'elite level' coach says he was also left with long-lasting physical pain and psychiatric symptoms in the shape of 'low mood, anxiety and reduced confidence'. The Bola machine which crushed Mr Woodward is over 7ft tall and is an electronic ball throwing apparatus designed to simulate bowling speeds of up to 95mph.
Mr Woodward is suing the Isle of Wight Cricket Board Ltd - whom he worked for as a head coach - alleging negligence in failing to ensure he had the proper lifting equipment or assistance available to carry the machine. The Cricket Board has accepted breach of duty in failing to provide a trolley to move the heavy machine, but disputes that the accident caused the extensive injuries claimed by Mr Woodward.
Ryde School, where the injury occurred, is the Isle of Wight's only boarding school, was founded in 1921 and charges over £45,000 per year for full boarding pupils. In court documents, Mr Woodward's barrister Mark Lomas claims the coach had to transport the bowling machine without assistance or a trolley, adding the combined weight of the equipment reached 75kg.
'He lifted the box by the handles and rested its weight on his thighs, leaning back to counterbalance the size and weight of the box, and walked it, resting on his thighs, across the sports hall but with the lower end of the box clear of the floor,' he said. 'He manoeuvred the bowling machine in its box towards the required location, by raising the box upright on its shortest side and walking it across the floor when he lost his balance and fell backwards onto the floor, the equipment landing on top of him, whereby he suffered significant injury.'
The former bowler claims the accident has heavily impacted his career, hampering his ability to carry on top level coaching activities due to lasting pain and disability. Before the accident, he was named as an England and Wales Cricket Board’s Coach of the Year in 2022 in recognition of his efforts to get young people on the Isle of Wight involved in cricket during the pandemic.
'The claimant worked as a cricket and sports coach, including coaching cricket at an elite level, and in related cricketing activity, including umpiring matches,' said the barrister. 'He has been unable to continue with his coaching and related activities as before because of the symptoms of his injury and he has suffered a substantial loss of income, which continues,' the barrister added.
Lawyers for the Isle of Wight Cricket Board accept 'breach of duty' in 'failing to provide a wheelie trolley for the bowling machine,' but deny that the February 2023 fall triggered the injuries Mr Woodward now complains of. And although Mr Woodward went to the hospital following the accident, the board says he has displayed 'inconsistent' symptoms and dispute that the accident is the cause of the problems he says he suffers.
The case reached court last month for a brief hearing before Master Guy Lê-Thornett deals with preparations for a full trial of Mr Woodward’s compensation claim. It will return to court at a later date, unless the parties agree a settlement outside of court. No allegations have been made against Ryde School, which is not a party to the case.
