Following the Youth Participation Group (YPG) meeting on the 01 April, we felt it would be worthwhile to write and update you on all areas of youth Cricket.
The initial update is a reminder that all cricket is currently suspended and the game, along with society as a whole, is working under the government guidance around social distancing and isolation. As a consequence, no decision around returning to play can be taken until the government decides the time is right to relax the current stipulations.
We know that this puts Clubs in a position of uncertainty with many questions around the summer on people’s minds. We hope the guidance provided will answer some of those questions but recommend keeping up to date with the weekly updates on the Essex Cricket website and also the Essex Cricket in the Community Social media channels where information will be posted.
Latest Recreational Update: View Here
Essex Cricket in the Community Social Media Channels: Follow on Twitter | Facebook
If you have any further questions or require any further information, then please feel free to get in contact with the Essex Cricket Operations Director, Dan Feist via email – [email protected]
We wish you all the best and look forward to getting back out on the field and activating our community soon.
Pathway
Across the Boys and the Girls pathway, the team have been in conversation and looking at all contingency for the summer so that we can return to cricket as soon as possible. Players on the programme have been sent activities to help them continue to develop at home in all areas of technical, physical, mental and tactical. The pathway team are also exploring all the implications around selection and the likelihood is that players selected for squads this summer will be asked to attend programmes between September – December, leading into the normal assessment period in January.
As for games including regional sides and the “U15 Smash”, we will explore all options once we have a better understanding of the window that may be available. This may include playing some games on non-turf pitches and using school facilities in September and October.
If you have any questions around the pathway programme, please contact:
Barry Hyam (Boys) – [email protected]
Natalie Samaranayake (Girls) – [email protected]
County Competitions
The decision was taken at the YPG that all County competitions for 2020 will be postponed for the foreseeable future with the view to look at opportunities that may be available once we know the window of the summer we have available. This may require new, shorter formats of games as well as extending the season a little but all this will be discussed once we have clarity of information.
It was agreed that any club who has paid an entry fee into a competition would be entitled to a refund, or the entry fee could be carried over to 2021 with a smaller amount taken out for entry in 2020 once we have clarity.
If you would like to action this process, please contact [email protected]
As for the ECB National competitions, South Loughton were the county’s representatives at Under 13 level. In the Under 15 competition, it is unlikely that we will have the opportunity to play this before the deadline in June so regions have been asked to nominate the club they feel would be best suited to compete at this level. This will be followed with a draw agreed by the YPG and a decision on the county representative will be made if the competition takes place.
Junior Cricket
The focus for the ECB is that Junior Cricket will be the priority after the social distancing measures are lifted. However, this may incur some requirements to be in place such as hygiene regulations, individual balls and smaller sized teams. There is a possibility that clubs can run their own in-house sessions but this will be decided once we have clarity.
The key message is that we will all work together to get children back enjoying cricket at our clubs as soon as possible.
One area we are working on as the YPG is what may be possible in shorter windows, plus the opportunity around non-turf pitches in September and October and indoor cricket during winter. We would very much welcome any ideas and thoughts around this, so please get in contact with your Regional Groups.
At the current time, we ask for Clubs to engage with the Junior Members as much as possible with activities they can be doing at home. There are some great examples being circulated and we encourage Clubs and individual to share with the Essex Cricket in the Community social media channels where possible.
Make sure you that your Club is still being well promoted in the local community as you all play an important role. Here is a great example from Saffron Walden Cricket Club – www.saffronwaldencricket.co.uk
National Programmes
The National Programmes are also currently postponed for the moment. We have been informed that people who have signed up will receive their kit and there is likely to be some online engagement for participants which link into the England players. Once we know more information on this, then we will share across the cricket community.
The current discussion points are that ‘All Stars’ and ‘Dynamos’ will possibly be rolled back into later 2020 and maybe even through the winter. If this doesn’t suit anyone who has signed up then we believe that a refund will be possible.
Conclusion
Once again, we would like to highlight the importance of protecting ourselves, families and friends, and push the government guidelines which must be followed to continue the fight against COVID-19.
Please keep up to date with the Essex Cricket website and social media channels and if you have any questions, then please contact [email protected].
Please stay safe and if we all work together we will soon be back playing the game we all love.
