A Deserted Uni No.1 Oval
Dear valued members of the SUCC community
Who would have thought at the beginning of June 2021 that NSW would be in this position and that cricket would be on hold? Certainly not me.
Season 2021/22
The season has officially been delayed by CNSW with the earliest possible start being the end October early November. This delay means the fixture scheduling has been postponed until there is a more definitive commencement date with the normal two-day, one-day and T20 format ratios like to change to accommodate the reduced season. We are receiving regular updates from CNSW and Premier Cricket and these are being conveyed directly to our playing group and members.
Director of Cricket Training and Player Engagement
Our New Director of Cricket, Murray Creed, who joined the Club at the beginning of June, has had tough initiation. He had commenced coaching the early committed groups face to face, with Nick Larkin and Rhys Williams, before the lockdown put a stop to this. Since then, he has been coordinating players and coaches, strictly adhering to Government and Health NSW regulations, to encourage one on one sessions. This has been well received by numerous players.
Zoom Sessions
There have been several Zoom sessions held across the grades that have been well received and the focus moving forward will concentrate more towards player welfare and team building until we have the definitive season start date announcement we are all waiting for. Through our Club Captain, Oli Zannino, our grade team captains are being engaged to increase the group communications by asking players to “Buddy Up” within their teams and LGA’s where possible. A group of players completed a mini marathon within their 5km restrictions and tracked their routes using a GPS App that provided interesting competitive comparisons at a zoom meeting held later in the day. Congratulations to those who organised this and completed the run, a great initiative and fantastic way to build team spirit.
Player Fees and Player Welfare
Our board met last Thursday evening and unanimously decided to hold off on the player members fees until we have more clarity on what the season has to offer. Our players mental wellbeing and membership values will be paramount when the decisions are made. Further to this we have sent out an anonymous survey to ascertain the clubs training requirements and expectations in this current lockdown situation, in conjunction with the players, coaches, and staff vaccination status, understanding that being vaccinated is a personal choice. This is the information we will most certainly require, assisting us in our return to training and play strategies when restrictions begin to ease.
In writing this, I sincerely hope that the entire SUCC community is staying safe and well and would ask anyone who has any concerns or knows of anyone who is struggling during these unprecedented times to contact me directly on:
Email: info@sydneyuniversitycricket.com.au
Keep safe and well
Kindest regards
Colin Robertson (General Manger)