6th October 2021

To Cornwall Cricket

The 2021 season is now over and clubs and organisations through the county are at the point of saying thank you to all those that have made the 2021 season work. Cornwall Cricket Board would like to do the same as a whole game.

Thank you to each and every person that has made cricket happen this year, volunteers, players, spectators, parents and professionals.

There was an extraordinary effort made by people behind the scenes during the Winter and Spring of 2021, as the ECB put it, to ‘keep the lights on’, keep clubs afloat.  This effort enabled clubs to enter the season in a financially secure state. Some £850,000 or more entered into the game from various areas of support which enabled clubs to ready themselves and develop new projects for the upcoming season, such as new nets, scoreboards and social areas.

Everyone had to get to grips with the latest guidance issued by the ECB via government approval. At times this may have seemed challenging and confusing, but well done to all who had to embed and work towards these which ultimately minimised the risk of transmitting Covid. Cricket had a responsibility to be seen to do the right thing, to deliver and maintain the guidance to maintain cricket as a safe activity to do. Cornwall Cricket did this collectively with minimal disruption, so well done and thank you for your patience and hard work.

The ECB, Board and Clubs were eager to get people back playing cricket through the National Programmes. A lot of the work here fell to club volunteers, the Activators and Coaches to engage with parents and schools to promote their activity. Thanks for driving participation and delivering a successful All Stars, Dynamos Cricket programme in 2021. An excellent return to cricket.

Covid certainly impacted on Cornwall Cricket Boards ability to enter into Schools, but in the end, we were able to gain access to 55% of our planned schools in a third of the year. An extraordinary effort by the professional staff to engage children across Cornwall. The result from everyone’s efforts saw over 800 All Stars and 600 Dynamos enter cricket for what may have been for the first time or a return after a year’s absence. Credit to the clubs, your Activators and Coaches, previous positive experiences would have made the decision to return easier for players and parents.

2021 has seen more women and girls’ take up the game then what has been seen before, which is excellent news. There are now 38 senior women’s teams, playing hardball or softball cricket. Aligned to this there are 7 clubs with specific girl’s sections. Thank you to the clubs that have embraced women and girls’ cricket and made sure that those involved feel welcome and valued in the game.

It is fair to say that the County Age Group programme this year has seen its challenges with issues of Covid, in particular, people falling ill the day before or even the morning of the game. Credit to the managers and coaches of these teams to be able to react and make sure fixtures can be played. Often matches had to be rearranged to make sure young people keep getting the opportunities to play and develop. A huge commitment through the year not just the during the Summer months.

Aligned to this and all other formats of the game are officials who stood in matches and clubs, groundsmen who produced pitches for people and our young talented players to play on. To the umpires who stood in the County Youth and League fixtures, thank you. Without your involvement, the game would not be so enjoyable or possible. To the clubs who produced good quality pitches and outfields again thank you, especially the club volunteers and members who made access to facilities safe and possible.

To Cornwall Cricket Member Organisations who have managed to deliver an excellent programme over the Summer, thank you. Credit must go to the Cornwall Cricket League, Cornwall Cricket Women, Cornwall Cricket Youth, the Cornwall Association of Cricket Officials, the Cornwall Association of Cricket Groundsmen and all the volunteers aligned to them. To administer and support the amount of cricket played over the Summer under the current circumstances has again been quite astonishing. The amount of time some of your volunteers give to make cricket happen in a coordinated manner is second to none. I am sure clubs, players of all ages are extremely appreciative, Cornwall Cricket Board most certainly is.

On the 1st October Cornwall Cricket Board said thank you to some extraordinary people with the inaugural Grassroots Cricket Awards. With that said we would like to thank everyone involved in cricket over the last year.

We wish you all well over the winter and we hope that people stay fit and healthy over this period.

Here is looking forward to 2022.

Many thanks once again.

Yours sincerely

Cornwall Cricket