HURTLING cricket balls could cause serious injuries after new nets were installed in a busy location in Poole, it has been claimed.

Residents fear Parkstone Cricket Club’s new facilities on Branksome Rec have been erected too close to a car park and public footpath.

The netting has come loose on occasions, increasing the likelihood of a stray ball careering towards an unsuspecting member of the public.

Branksome West councillor Phil Eades said a number of residents had to come to him to share their safety concerns about the siting of the nets.

Mr Eades, a long-time cricketer himself, said: “I have never in all my cricketing career seen nets erected at such a busy location – at the entrance to a car park and right next to a busy pathway.

“The prospect of a small child or an elderly person being hit by a stray cricket ball fills you with dread.

“The chance of serious injury, with a cricket ball rocketing out of poorly maintained nets alongside a busy pathway, is immense.”

Planning permission was granted for the nets earlier this year, with just one objection to their location lodged.

The cricket club said they were doing their utmost to maintain the nets, which would only be up for another three weeks until the end of the current season.

Andy Thompson, Parkstone club secretary, said: “All residents’ groups were informed and consulted on the nets and any objections should have been made before.

“Most of the comments about them have been really, really positive and they have already had a huge amount of use.”

Cricket has been played twice a week on the rec for years with not a single threat to the public, added Mr Thompson.

Poole council said the club was responsible for the upkeep of the nets and they assisted in deciding on the location of the facility.

The nets were funded by a £16,000 grant from the Youth Opportunity Fund and were officially opened by West Indian legend Gordon Greenidge earlier this week.