Hardys, the Official Wine of the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB), has linked up with England fast bowler Stuart Broad and News Quiz host Miles Jupp for a campaign that celebrates one of the quirkiest sports events in UK calendar – the Bramble Bank Match – to explore the eclectic, unique ways cricket can be played.
The yearly Bramble Bank game is played on a pitch created on top of a sandbank in the middle of the Solent and sees the Royal Southern Yacht Club take on their Isle of Wight based rivals the Island Sailing Club.
This cross Solent grudge match between Cowes and Southampton yacht clubs is an annual affair and one of the oddest cricket matches anywhere in the world.
The campaign, launched in late July to leverage spiking cricket interest ahead of the showpiece England versus India summer series, is fronted by a hero video which is running across both Hardys digital and social platforms – including Twitter,
Watch as @StuartBroad8 & @HardysWineUK prove all you need is a bat, ball & enthusiasm to have a game of cricket, even in the middle of the sea! pic.twitter.com/xidxIjT1Yi
— England Cricket (@englandcricket) July 20, 2018
Last weekend we were with @StuartBroad8 and Miles Jupp to join in the fun of the annual #BrambleBank cricket match, not your average Sunday morning! pic.twitter.com/WDkaVlTzko
— Hardys Wines (@HardysWineUK) July 20, 2018
and Facebook,
and is also being amplified by the ECB,
and on the player’s own channels too.
I’ve played all around the world, but never in the middle of the sea
I had a great time playing for @RSrnYC & @HardysWineUK on Bramble Bank. It goes to show that you just need a bat, ball & enthusiasm to have a game of cricket. pic.twitter.com/DqJMP6ZLXw— Stuart Broad (@StuartBroad8) July 20, 2018
Comment:
Broad has been a stalwart of Hardys cricket activation for some time now and most of the creative, like this new campaign, has a comic touch and a light-hearted tone.
Hardys has a long track record of putting cricket at the core of its marketing mix and has penned partnerships both with the ECB and with the Australian Cricket Board.
Indeed, some of its most notable cricket campaigns have played on this dual sponsorship and the rivalry between the two old enemies: such as its Ashes campaigns in 2017 (see case study) and 2015 (see case study).
Links:
Hardy’s
https://twitter.com/HardysWineUK/
https://www.facebook.com/Hardyswineuk
https://www.youtube.com/user/hardyswineuk
ECB
https://www.youtube.com/user/ecbcricket
