NOVEMBER JUST THE TICKET FOR CRICKET
District cricketers will have to wait until at least November 6 to launch their 2021-22 seasons.
And that’s only if COVID-19 restrictions at that time allow it.
The state government has nominated Saturday, November 6 as a starting date for community sport to resume but the proviso is that 80 per cent of Victorians have received coronavirus vaccines by then.
Cricket Australia through Cricket Victoria wants all games for the new season to be one-day fixtures again, as was the case last year.
Goulburn Murray Cricket had listed two-day games for its A-grade competition in its original draw but will now have to revert to all one-day games in its four tiers of competition.
‘‘We had no two-day games last season and there was a bit of a push on to have some this season so that is why we included some in our original draw,’’ GM Cricket chairman Jason Turner said.
Turner said, like every other association, nothing concrete could be decided at this stage due to the uncertainty of COVID-19 conditions.
‘‘We would probably look at a November 13 start because I think we would need a few days to get things in order if a decision to get our season going isn’t going to be made until November 5,’’ Turner said.
– Cricket Shepparton will start its season on November 6, if possible, according to long-serving president David D’elia.
“It (the start) will depend on whether the COVID restrictions allow us to, of course, and at the moment we are trying to get clarification whether one or two (COVID) vaccines are needed to go ahead,’’
D’elia said.
He added that some associations may defer the start of their seasons to a week later, but if the all-clear for community sport is given by the government to resume on Friday, November 5, Cricket Shepparton would launch its season the following day.
D’elia said all games in all grades of Cricket Shepparton would be one-day fixtures and, all going well, 14 or 15 rounds, depending on the season’s starting date, would be played as well as finals.
The region’s highly successful Goulburn Valley Bush Bash League competition is planned to go ahead with a starting date in early December.
D’elia said organising the player draft for this competition was an issue officials were working through at the moment due to the pandemic.
For more on Cricket Victoria’s roadmap to a return to cricket, see page 16.