Armidale Cricket: Fears for representative cricket's future

Armidale’s representative cricket coordinator Brad King informed their scheduled opponents late on Saturday they wouldn’t be taking part with just seven players available for the War Vets game. 

That was reduced to six when paceman Jackson Gwynne picked up an injury on Saturday in the Easts and Hillgrove clash. 

Fellow teenage quick BJ Cameron was only available as a batsman due to an ongoing back injury. 

Armidale did field a team in the second tier Connolly Cup clash but players battled through with injury and the side lost by 105 runs. 

“We can only do what we want to do, if the players aren't available then they are not available, if they don't want to play, you can't make them play,” King told The Armidale Express. 

“I can see how frustrating it would be for Tamworth but I couldn't send our seconds team there, who couldn't even beat Walcha, and there were kids there who have only just started playing third grade cricket in there. 

“I just don’t know the answer.

“We have gone to meetings, we have discussed things, we have tried to get things happening but I just don't know what to do. 

“We just can't field a side.”

One suggestion put forward was to withdraw from the War Veterans Cup competition. 

Association president Mike Porter said it is looking like the best solution. 

“I think ultimately we will end up pulling out of the War Veteran's Cup and just playing the Connolly Cup,” he said. 

“There are some young guys that are keen to play that and a lot of the senior blokes just don't want to play. 

“Go back to Connolly Cup, get some of the youngsters to go back there with some of the older heads and see if we can bring it all back together next year.”

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Although Porter is “disappointed” with players not wanting to step up to representative level, he can see both sides.

“I have got to be mindful a lot of these guys have played a lot of rep cricket in their lives and they are now married with kids and that changes life,” he said. 

“Across the board we are all finding hard to put all their teams on the park every week and that has flowed on to rep cricket as well. 

“The attitude is not there and the dedication that used to be.

“I find that hard to understand because blokes in my time would have played rep cricket anywhere any day, we were very proud to play for Armidale.

“It is not even honour anymore.

“It is just if you are available you get picked, we can't even pick teams on ability anymore.”

Porter feels with the lack of interest, there are question marks remaining over the future of the competition. 

“I am just not sure the War Veterans Cup is going to survive,” he said. 

“I hope it does because it is a good level of cricket for blokes to play but there is a bit of dominance there from Tamworth.

“It is just difficult to get blokes to go and play in those games whereas the Connolly Cup, it is more of a country cricket atmosphere, there is a bit more fun about it all and they seem to want to play that.”

Another suggestion made by players within Armidale cricket was to hand Connolly Cup responsibilities to Guyra and the remaining four Armidale clubs can make up the War Veterans Cup team.

Both King and Porter said they will aim to come up with a solution for the remaining representative fixtures season soon.