2014/2015 Money Shield

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Delboy said:
So by your judgements, every team that doesn't win a Premiership in their A grade every year, then they have "stuffed it up" have they?
You can sit and pontificate all you like about your opinions and your judgements. Your opinion is just as valid as anyone else. However, it is only an opinion and not a fact.
I was responding to comments made about my club and I came on here to explain what happened. Not justified, not blamed anyone. Just a simple explanation.
You have offered no food for thought, no content for discussion. Just a pot at my club.
I would love to enter into an interesting, intelligent conversation with you about the state of cricket, the DVCA and even the GCC. But I don't think that I am going to find to many intelligent observations here. Just another "keyboard warrior", sitting behind a screen, taking anonymous pot shots at people with ideas.
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As a president of your club Delboy why would you feel the need to respond to any of this rubbish and defend the burra? After all you've just admitted it yourself? You're not going to get any intellectual convo's happening here?
 
Midwicket85 said:
As a president of your club Delboy why would you feel the need to respond to any of this rubbish and defend the burra? After all you've just admitted it yourself? You're not going to get any intellectual convo's happening here?
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As with cricket, I hope that we can see positive changes. I believe that there are people out there with great ideas and this forum could be a terrific environment to share those ideas and discuss issues that effect us all. I live in hope that intelligent conversations can take place and that people can feel free to voice their ideas without being howled down by those that have nothing to contribute other than vitriol and diatribe.
Why do I feel the need to respond? There were inaccuracies and untruths that were being spoken about that I wanted to clear up. Whether others can take that on face value is another thing. But that's not my concern.
Opinions are like assholes, everybody has one ;)
 
Here's a question; how many cricket adverts have you seen on tv? I've seen almost none and the few I did see were during the Ashes series. Compare that to how much footy advertising you see for Auskick and it's clear the cricket governing bodies are just sitting back and expecting club volunteers to do their jobs for them. There has to be a more active advertising campaign for junior cricket.
 
Delboy said:
You are absolutely spot on Blackhawk. I think that Women's Cricket and Girls Cricket has to be the way forward. It's almost impossible to get Council funding unless their are juniors and/or girls/women involved at the club. However, we have found this to be somewhat of a lose/lose situation. We can't attract women to the club as we have no facilities for them. We have a very small toilet and no changeroom or showering facilities at the club. We can't get funding from the Council as we have no Women's/Girl's Teams at the club. We can't get women/girls to the club as we don't have the facilities......and so the issue tumbles around with no resolution.
I genuinely think that the way forward is to amalgamate sporting clubs. This has already happened in a number of areas. This involves creating a new identity, for example, the Greensborough Sporting Club. This would be an amalgamation of the footy club, cricket club and netball club. Then as a Sporting Club, you apply for your funding to cover all areas including women and children. I believe that Heidelberg have already taken steps along this path and I heard that Riverside have been attempting something similar (although I haven't had that confirmed).
This will pose issues as some people involved in the individual clubs will not want to lose their identity or give their power away to a larger group. But is it not better to survive and thrive as part of something bigger than it is to shrivel and die with your own identity?
It's a very interesting concept and It's the best idea that I have seen so far. However, one thing is certain, if we don't change and adapt, we will perish. For those that don't believe that cricket is in trouble, you really need to look outside of your club and see what is happening right across the country. The Junior numbers put forward for this coming season are a huge red flag. When you have 5 Barclay Shield sides that can't offer at least one side in each junior grading, then there is trouble ahead.
Juniors are dwindling across the competition. If I look at the last 10 years at Greensborough, we have gone from regularly having 7 junior sides every season. Down to 5 sides, then down to 3 sides and last year we couldn't put a single junior side on the park. After extensive off-season work, promotion and recruitment, we may be lucky to get 2 sides on the park this year. This is despite a very strong Milo Cricket program with 40-50 registrations and a successful T20 Blast program.
Granted that some of those issues were internal and we took our eye off the ball somewhat. But every club is guilty of that from time to time. But to go from 7 sides, which is essentially 80 kids, down to single figures, is alarming. If this was just isolated to the GCC then I wouldn't be so concerned. But after seeing the Junior nominations last week, this is a serious situation that is effecting everyone.
We need to take our club caps off and stop beating our chests and start looking at the sport and how we can restructure to remain competitive and successful. I would love to hear any ideas about how this can be achieved. We approached the DVCA this year about coloured shirts with names and numbers on them for all Junior Cricketers. I thought that the popularity of T20 Cricket and the T20 Blast may excite kids to want to play. If they can wear similar outfits to their heroes, then that may improve junior engagement. Is it time to look at T20 cricket for all Juniors up to U16's? Scrap the one day and two day games and make all cricket T20. We can then progress to one day and two day cricket from U16's onwards.
Any other ideas?
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Agree with a lot of what you say Delboy, and it is increasing hard to attract junior numbers, but the comp will tell us that numbers are actually up across the board, and will be backed by CA who are saying numbers are at a record high.
Maybe it is more to do with geography and changing demographics of the area, as well as a huge competition with 6 clubs within a 2 km radius, compared to the expanding areas in the north that have a greater pool of schools to target and attract.
2013/14 - 159 junior sides nominated
2014/15 - 164 junior sides nominated
2015/16 - 165 junior sides nominated
 
WanderingUnity said:
Agree with a lot of what you say Delboy, and it is increasing hard to attract junior numbers, but the comp will tell us that numbers are actually up across the board, and will be backed by CA who are saying numbers are at a record high.
Maybe it is more to do with geography and changing demographics of the area, as well as a huge competition with 6 clubs within a 2 km radius, compared to the expanding areas in the north that have a greater pool of schools to target and attract.
2013/14 - 159 junior sides nominated
2014/15 - 164 junior sides nominated
2015/16 - 165 junior sides nominated
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Just on the figures argument the closer DVCA figures would be 2009-2010 (U16,U14,U12, Dev and Joeys) = 133 teams at seasons end.
2014-15 = 132 teams. That is also with new clubs Heidelberg, Banyule and Rosanna as well as PlentyValley Lauriston(new estate) added. Looking at this I'd say figures are down. There could still be a discrepancy counting sides as one side may have 12 players and another may have 16. Just an observation. Tipping the local soccer teams numbers have skyrocketed in this period as soccer nationally has planned to attack cricket at junior levels, hence the NSL being played in cricket season. Balance the advertising and airtime on SEN and TV that soccer gets against cricket. Meanwhile the cricket bosses use T20 blast figures to boost their participation rate. (most of these numbers are just a double up of Milo and Joeys numbers.)
 
I've heard some rather unflattering things said about the T20 Blast program. I can't imagine how it's good for junior development, just think how a team of 12 year old's coming out of that program straight into under 14's would go....yeh, not good. Doubling up is also not a good thing as parents are struggling for time as it is, playing cricket on another day of the week would push it too far for most.

I think junior cricket is going to continue to suffer in the short to medium term and there may not be a lot many of us can do about it. Games like soccer, basketball and football are easier to play as in, you don't need to be that good at them to have a good time. In cricket, as we all know, you need to be half decent at bowling or batting, or you could spend a lot of time watching your team mates bat and/or standing in the field doing nothing. Hell, even some of us who can play end up doing that from time to time. In an age of shortening attention spans, cricket is in trouble.
 
In relation to T20

Care to elaborate on what you've heard, the age demographic you think the program is catered for and what you think the program is designed to do?
 
Well the program is aimed at 7-12 year old kids and I don't understand what it offers that isn't on offer with the current Mods and Under 12's divisions within the comp. I've actually got NFI what the program is designed to do. It says it's designed to prepare kids for club junior cricket, however I contend it doesn't; using soft rubber balls, having a 90 minute game (less time than a Mods game usually lasts) and supplying all equipment does NOTHING to prepare a kid to play under 12's or 14's. Hell, even the Mods kids use a harder ball. All the things that the program claims kids will learn, is easily teachable at normal training or during Mods games.
 
I also think the rise in technology is to blame for the decline of interest in cricket as it leads to shorter attention span. kids these days would rather spend time on facebook or instagram instead of the good old days where u would go the park and play some cricket.
 
Take the juniors conversation elsewhere ^

Haven't heard anything from the DV on the camrea situation.if they can scramble together two sides for the first couple of rounds , my guess is that won't last and they will pull the pin mid way through the season
 
If they do where does that leave the re-structure of the comp. The new b grade would be 7 teams now including PV. very well thought out move dvca.
 
lower11 said:
If they do where does that leave the re-structure of the comp. The new b grade would be 7 teams now including PV. very well thought out move dvca.
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So if CT pull out and PV are in by default, that leaves only 26 teams.
They should pull the pin on the proposed re-structure now and leave BS as 12 teams with MS & 3rd Shield as 8 teams...
The proposed structure and fixture of the new BS as 10 teams is a disgrace. Having to play some teams twice!!
 
Ex Prez said:
So if CT pull out and PV are in by default, that leaves only 26 teams.
They should pull the pin on the proposed re-structure now and leave BS as 12 teams with MS & 3rd Shield as 8 teams...
The proposed structure and fixture of the new BS as 10 teams is a disgrace. Having to play some teams twice!!
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But even at 12 we play SOME teams twice now.

There will be more clubs coming in from the outside.
 
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