![Walcha and Uralla join Armidale cricket and combine to form sides Walcha and Uralla join Armidale cricket and combine to form sides](/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/T7RGn6Wqupu9DPpBgesVjF/9def6141-8f58-4108-91cd-fdf7fde58a05.jpg/r0_114_2272_1392_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg)
For a number of years, the Walcha cricket competition has run with four senior teams.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
or signup to continue reading
But one withdrew on the eve of their competition the association was forced to reconsider the future of their competition.
A phone call to the Armidale and District Cricket Association saw both parties come up with a solution.
Walcha and Uralla have joined the Armidale competition and will field second and third-grade teams in it.
For Walcha's Dan Hunt, it was a positive solution to what initially looked dire.
"This association has been going for a long time and we didn't want it to disappear," he said.
"Some of the players, their sons or daughters play junior cricket in Armidale so it is not a reach for us to go to Armidale.
"We really enjoyed our comp, most people we talked to around our area are sad to see the comp but in the end it is about having cricket available for both towns."
Coupled with the juniors having the combined competition, Walcha and Armidale have enjoyed friendly matches in Northern Inland's second tier representative tournament in the Connolly Cup.
SEE ALSO:
And Hunt sees the benefits including playing against a wider range of cricketers as well as giving their younger players a pathway to senior competition.
"It is very natural, we do know a lot of the people there," he said.
"The first phone call we made was to Armidale and we thought that would be a better fit than anywhere else.
"Especially for the young kids, it is going to give them a bit more broad view of cricket.
"Being such a little comp before, it was a bit sheltered.
"It is going to be interesting for those young people to get more exposure and more opportunities."
Hunt said they should have enough numbers to field teams in both grades.
"We have got a few young fellas but mainly it is the usual suspects," he said.
"We have had a few retirements, a few of them thought it was a good chance to step back a bit.
"But overall, it is the same people."
The competition's start has been pushed back to November 5.
Our journalists work hard to provide local, up-to-date news to the community. This is how you can continue to access our trusted content:
- Bookmark northerndailyleader.com.au
- Make sure you are signed up for our breaking and regular headlines newsletters
- Follow us on Twitter
- Follow us on Instagram
- Follow us on Google News