The deal, announced at The Spitfire Ground, St Lawrence, in Canterbury, is Kubota UK’s fourth significant brand partnership in the professional sports arena. The company already supports Northampton Saints - one of the biggest clubs in English rugby, Andrew Hoy - the Olympic level equestrian rider and the Buildbase Suzuki British Superbikes Team. This latest announcement with Kent County Cricket Club is Kubota’s first advancement into professional cricket.
Karen Tipping, Kubota UK’s marketing manager, said, “Kent County Cricket Club is one of only 18 first-class county clubs in the country. The team plays top class county cricket with a culture that is committed to excellence and performing to first class standards. These are values that are also synonymous with the Kubota brand and our products and service offering, so supporting Kent Cricket is a fantastic match for our business.
“The partnership with Lister Wilder to support Kent County Cricket Club is all about continuing to raise the profile of the Kubota brand, whilst at the same time promoting their recently opened flagship depot in Ashford.
“This Depot has undergone significant investment over recent years, with this site supplying the local market with Kubota’s complete range of agriculture, groundcare and construction machinery solutions. We are delighted to be teaming up with our local dealer to support Kent County Cricket Club and hope this will enable us to reach a much wider audience.”
As part of the collaboration, Kubota’s L5040 utility tractor has been donated to support Kent County Cricket Club’s groundcare and maintenance team in the daily preparation of its pitches.
Simon Williamson, Head Groundsman at The Spitfire Ground, St. Lawrence, leads the team. Having spent the past 20 years maintaining Kent’s grounds, Simon now heads up a team of four professionals who look after the playing surfaces, day in, day out.
“For Kent County Cricket Club to be successful playing and practicing on first-class pitches is essential,” added Simon. “This means the type of equipment we use is crucial. Kubota machinery is renowned for being the best on the market for performance and reliability, so we are delighted to be working in partnership with them and Lister Wilder.
Simon continued, “Ever since partnering with Lister Wilder we haven’t looked back. As we are looking to increase capacity of the grounds, hopefully there will be room for more Kubota machines to join our fleet in the future. The power, performance and quality of the machinery is certainly a massive asset to our club.”
In return for the support, both Kubota and Lister Wilder will have the opportunity to host seminars, demonstrations and ground maintenance training at the iconic venue. This will support the region’s grassroot clubs and institutions in developing both their playing performance and pitch maintenance, as they look to Kent County Cricket Club as the ultimate standard of cricket.
Phill Hughes, Divisional Sales Director for Lister Wilder, concluded: “We’ve had a long-standing relationship with Kent County Cricket Club for almost a decade, servicing and maintaining all of its machinery to the highest standard. We are delighted to now be working together with Kubota to offer our unwavering support in ensuring the continued maintenance of such a high profile ground.”
