THE Milo Twenty20 Blast and In2Cricket seasons came to a close at Wade Park on Thursday, and if you ask co-ordinator Pete Jarick, the future of Orange cricket is in safe hands.
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Well over 150 kids took part in the two adapted competitions, for 5 to 10-year-olds and 8 to 12-year-olds respectively.
The kicker, a substantial number of those children were girls.
“That’s one really encouraging part,” Jarick said.
“We had about 15 girls in the In2Cricket program, and over 20 in the T20 Blast.
“And we had about 130 kids in the T20 Blast alone, we were very happy with the season, especially considering it was Orange’s first.
“There was some pretty talented kids too, but it caters to all levels of ability, which is good.”
Described as “a fun, fast and exciting program for 8 to 12-year-olds with music, big hits and classic catches” the program is a modified, eight-a-side form of cricket designed to give every participant the opportunity to bat, bowl and keep wicket.
Sixteen teams, with around eight or nine players in each, took part in the 10-week T20 Blast season, at Wade Park every Thursday evening.
“Having it all in one location was a massive advantage,” Jarick said.
“That made a big difference, not having parents dropping kids all over the place.”
“I definitely think it will get bigger and better next year, we might have to look at some different thing to expand it a bit.
“But, we were very happy with it. It was the perfect way to kick off the concept in Orange.”
