A keen and dedicated sports supporter is furious after being forced to take a police check to be a cricket scorer at a Deal club.

Richard Green, 68, has been involved in the playing and organisation of sport since 1958 and was one of the founder members of Deal Wanderers.

He has now been told that unless he takes a criminal investigation check he will be unable to continue taking down the scores at cricket matches. So he is taking a stand and refusing to co-operate.

Mr Green said: "George Orwell was obviously a man with great foresight, although it has taken slightly longer than 1984 for Big Brother to be breathing down all our necks. Surely not all citizens are either criminals or peodophiles or am I just naive?"

He played rugby, hockey and cricket for Deal Wanderers, as well as coaching rugby to the under 15 and under 16 teams. He later became a rugby referee.

In the early 1990s he joined Deal Victoria and Barns Close Cricket Club and when playing became difficult he took a course to become an umpire.

Mr Green, of Bowling Green Lane, Deal, said: "This kept me in touch with the game I love and I went onto score for Victoria teams when required.

"Now I am told that unless I undergo a CRB check I am unable to continue as a scorer. This I refuse to do for although I have absolutely nothing to hide I interpret this as an infringement of my civil liberties."

* For full story see this week's East Kent Mercury front page