COVID-19 could result in a boon for junior cricket as youngsters look to undertake physical activity after six months without community sport.
Training for most Sunraysia Cricket Association (SCA) clubs will be under way by next week and early indications are that there will be plenty of kids keen to don the whites and take to the field.
Mildura Settlers Cricket Club junior president Tim Aldridge spent a nervous few days in anticipation for what his club’s first training session on Thursday may hold, but was thrilled by the initial turnout.
“We just didn’t know about numbers,” Aldridge said.
“Obviously we’ve got the competition going on full steam ahead, but I was pretty reluctant to commit to numbers until we actually saw who was turning up and the numbers and got feedback from parents,” he said.
“But we had a lot of new faces and lots of new mums and dads who were keen to help out as well, which was fantastic.
“It was a little bit crazy at the start, but everyone was supportive and happy to sanitise and do things a little bit differently and the mums and dads were very happy to have their kids training.”
Aldridge said the club also expected some regulars missing this week were absent because of school holidays and should further bolster numbers as time goes by.
“It will be interesting to see over the next few weeks how that continues to grow, but we had some really positive feedback and lots of kids who just wanted to get out and play cricket.”
Aldridge said SCA clubs had committed solid team numbers this season and there was every indication that would come to fruition.
“We’re so thankful that we’ve got cricket whereas football clubs obviously couldn’t, so it’s just a matter of everyone doing the right thing and using common sense and developing the kids,” he said.
“What happens after this year we’ll have to wait and see, but if we can do the best coaching for the kids this year then the benefit will be the next couple of years afterwards.”
