THE Sunraysia Cricket Association is riding the wave that is women’s cricket with the establishment of an under-14 girls’ competition for season 2020.
With the popularity of the Women’s Big Bash League, the Women’s National Cricket League and the Australian Women’s teams skyrocketing, the SCA is now looking to build the girls’ game here according to president Andrew Farlie.
Mildura West, Workers Gol Gol and Nichols Point are the three clubs who will have teams of their own with girls from the other club set to combine for a fourth.
“Cricket Vic have been doing the Sunraysia Renegades program for a few years so it’s sort of a progression from that to bring it more to a club-based competition rather than a program run by Cricket Victoria,” Farlie said.
The competition is going to run on Sundays, from mid-October through until December, it’s going to be similar to the J2 format we are currently running, we’re hopeful of starting with three clubs at the moment and hopefully a combined Sunraysia side for the fourth.”
J2 cricket shortens the pitch by two metres, and uses a smaller ball with nine players a side on the field.
Farlie said long term the girls grade would help grow the senior women’s competition.
“It gets clubs to take more ownership of it to develop girls to come through and hopefully play in their senior women’s competition later on, he said.
“Predominately from a SCA point of view it’s to try and underpin the women’s game long term.
“If we can get all clubs on board with under 14s hopefully that can progress into their senior women’s team for the future.
“Hopefully down the track we can have two divisions of senior women’s rather than just the one and we can build it.”
With this year’s under 14 girls the SCA is also aiming to form a representative side to compete in Junior Country Week the same as the junior boys do each season.
