Report to the Leinster Cricket Union

Annual General Meeting – November 2011

The 2010 Annual General Meeting of the Leinster Cricket Union restructured the organisational framework of the Union and created one competitions committee where previously there had been two. In the stroke of a pen the work undertaken by two groups of people were to be managed by one group of 10 people.

The committee was very lucky to have Michael Sharp among its members. Michael had served for more than a quarter of a century as the Hon Secretary of the Junior Branch, and was therefore well placed to give us the background of most rules, regulations and quirks. His in-depth knowledge of the competitions, clubs, players and administration meant that the job of merging the running of the two competitions was easier than it might have been.

That is not to say that it was perfect. This merging of rules and regulations for all competitions was the largest challenge for the OCC in 2011. In some cases the existing regulation from what was ‘Senior’ cricket was used, in some cases the ‘Junior’ rule applied, and a few times it was necessary to rewrite the rule completely. In all this the committee set as their goal that all clubs would be treated the same, and that all rules should apply equally through all the divisions. It is now the case that any club can genuinely aim for promotion to the very top level in Leinster cricket, and it is important that the OCC makes this process as clear and fair as possible.

The bulk of the work previously done by Michael Sharp was this year done by the OCC Chairman, Paul Reynolds. With the updating of the Cricket Leinster website allowing for electronic submission of results most of Paul’s weekdays were spent collating these results and updating league tables, cup draws and player registration lists. Previous versions of this report always referenced the administration of starring lists and this one will be no exception. Each meeting gives up an inordinate time on the adjudication of these lists; this process was only shortened by a serious amount of pre-planning by the Chairman. The OCC is committed to reviewing how the starring process can be amended to make it simpler to manage for the club and simpler to administer at committee. Any suggestions in this area are most welcome.

The OCC wishes to thank many individuals for their assistance during the season.

• Leinster Cricket Club provided facilities for our meetings, and was always co-operative when needed.
• The Leinster Cricket Umpires & Scorers Association provide umpires to matches at many levels. Their Appointments Secretary Peter Thew has a thankless task, one that was expertly managed this year. Extra thanks are due to David Cooke who acted as appointments secretary for some portions of the season.
• All clubs who host Cup Finals are due generous praise. It is acknowledged that this provision is not always easy for the clubs involved, but without it the competitions could not proceed.
• PRO Fergus Carroll deserves thanks for ceaseless promotion of the game at all levels. Gerry Byrne provides a vital statistic role for the top four divisions and this is greatly appreciated.

Previous versions of this report have given extensive lists of batting, bowling & fielding performances. With the storage of all this information on the website this is no longer required, but the following winners of Cup & League competitions should be noted.

Looking Forward

The members of the OCC are also due thanks for their efforts this year, but the work doesn’t stop there. Already since the end of the season much work has been done in the areas of league structures, fixture dates and regulations.

Firstly the most important thing to note and welcome is the entry of 5 new clubs to league competitions in 2012. With the further entry of 4 additional teams from existing clubs there is no doubt that the game is continuing to expand in the province.

For the 2012 season it is planned to introduce new regulations in relation to starring lists, re-fixing of matches, umpiring of lower league matches and abandonment of matches. The OCC is very keen to hear as many voices as possible so please do makes your views on these or any other topics to any member of the committee.

Finally it would be remiss not to specifically mention the input of Paul Reynolds this year. Paul took on the task of chairing the committee, but more importantly also acted as the first point of contact for results, starring lists, complaints, comments and moans. It is impossible to appreciate the quantity of work this produces on a daily basis during the season. He deserves the appreciation of the rest of the OCC and the entire cricket community for this work.Kevin Gallagher

Hon Secretary OCC