The planned one-day Cricket Leinster Club Day is a month away. It will take place on Saturday 1st October in the Green Isle Hotel. The morning session will be about all things relating to the playing of cricket in Leinster. The afternoon will be divided into two sessions. The first will discuss the recently published Cricket Ireland strategy for the development of cricket up to 2020 and how this will affect clubs in Leinster. The second session will be on the proposed new organisation structures for the Leinster Cricket Union. The Conference, which is open to all players and clubs, will provide guidance and input to Cricket Leinster and its various committees on the key issues facing the sport. 

 

Throughout the day there will be stands representing a range of different bodies involved in Leinster cricket.  Anyone interested will be able to find out more about becoming a coach or taking up scoring or umpiring. They will get answers to questions such as what is involved in setting up a new club, how to get support for cricket in your school and where do I go to find out more about becoming a groundsman. 

 

Over the few couple weeks the agenda for the important morning session will be finalised. It is an opportunity for players and clubs to put forward ideas about how they consider the way the sport is organised in Leinster can be improved. 

Over the next week or so a number of articles will be published on the website with a view to bringing matters to attention. Feedback will be important in determining if these are issues that should be included for discussion at the Conference. Hopefully it will also prompt internal discussion within clubs so that on the 1st October we will be able to get a good sense of what is required to sustain and develop club cricket over the next very important period in the sport’s history in Ireland. 

 

We start with some broad headings [others might be put forward] based on informal comments heard around the grounds:

 

[a] umpiring of matches in lower divisions [where official umpires not available]

 

 

[c] how best to support the transition of youth players to adult cricket

 

[d] how to grow the sport among the key 20 - 30 year old age group

 

[e] the interface with representative cricket [Leinster Lightning, National Academy and Irish teams]

 

[f] the balance between volunteers and paid staff [coaching, grounds and administration]

 

[g] how to share the burden / responsibilities for hosting representative matches, cup finals and youth development sessions among clubs

 

Clubs / players might consider suggesting specific questions to be put on the agenda for discussion e.g. should clubs shift to coloured clothing for all competitive cricket or should there be approved cricket balls for different grades of competition.