OUR PLACES | Wade Park curator Bruce Cousins explains the process in preparing the ground for the WNCL match between NSW Breakers and ACT Meteors

But preparation is everything, and for the past two weeks Cousins had been working hard to curate a Wade Park pitch perfect for the WNCL match between NSW Breakers and ACT Meteors.

To ensure the pitch is the right balance between offering something for the bowlers and batters, Cousins explained the formula is simple.

"Lots of love and attention," he laughed.

"Lots of rolling and water at different times, you just try and get the pitch hard."

It's not just the pitch Cousins has to attend to.

The outfield copped a battering of rain in the lead up to the WNCL fixture, but the Wade Park surface held up perfectly.

"It's looking good, everything has worked well there - to me it looks really good anyway," he laughed.

Punters agreed on Friday before play, with members of the Cricket NSW team commenting the field was in a better condition than some Sydney grounds.

Having battled significant rain before the start of the BOIDC season, Cousins has been kept busy throughout summer.

In November, he rolled out a pitch that was used for multiple days during the Country Championships between Western Zone, Central Coast, ACT and Riverina Cricket Zone.

It's not the first major tournament Cousins has prepared a pitch for though in his 25-plus years of working at Wade Park.

While he's never had a WNCL game, there's been Sydney Thunder vs Hong Kong and the Thunder and Sixers Indigenous matches.

Throw in a few A-League trial games, City vs Country rugby league and you've got a handy tally of sporting games.

Cousins is hoping the momentum can continue for even bigger events to be hosted at Wade Park.

"We're just building up, hopefully we can get into the WBBL, BBL and shield cricket," he said.

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