Bramble Bank: Yacht clubs meet for annual low-tide cricket match

Yacht clubs from either side of the Solent have met for their annual cricket match on an exposed sandbar in the middle of the strait.

Royal Southern Yacht Club and the Island Sailing Club met early on Saturday at Bramble Bank, which is only revealed during low tides.

Believed to have started in the 1950s, the tradition sees play continue until it is stopped by the rising water.

The match winner is always decided ahead of time, with teams taking turns.

The annual cricket match takes place at low tide

The game began at 06:00 BST.

Royal Southern Yacht Club, based in Hamble, Hampshire, last won in 2021 and last year's game was cancelled following the death of Queen Elizabeth II, meaning this year's victor was Island Sailing Club.

Team captain Tim Devlin, who is commodore of the Cowes-based club, said: "The Bramble cricket match is a wonderful tradition that both clubs look forward to and thoroughly enjoy taking part in."

Bramble Bank, also known as the Brambles, is about half-way between the Isle of Wight and the entrance to Southampton Water, and is only revealed for short periods at low-water spring tides.

It presents a hazard for shipping traffic and numerous vessels have run aground there, including the ocean liner Queen Elizabeth 2 in 2008.