Forum

Re Steven - just my opinion in a few words (didn't fancy an extrapolated pro's and cons - excuse the pun!).

Each to their own.

Andy Kennedy...I am sure you will slag something else off at Belmont given time...

to paraphrase a former Lord Mayor of Belfast, Tommy Patton, in relation to gondolas in Victoria Park, I was delighted to see the successful breeding programme of sightscreens at Belmont over the close season!!

You have my apologies. There is of course nothing wrong with Taverners cricket and it is great to see more cricket being played and enjoyed.
It was a bad turn of phrase from me.

Bruce:
What's wrong with Taverners cricket?
When the Portadown club quit in 2013 the Taverners side was left with an all weather pitch that needs replaced, no players, no mowers a neglected cricket square and a roller that wouldn't run. While we played our beer and charity games we quietly set about repairing the square,building mowers from spare parts and fixing the roller. Our cobbled together machines have even been used by another senior club when their machines Were being repaired. This season the Taverners entered a league with Dungannon, Clogher and Monaghan. A league which turned out to be a lot more competitive and played at a much higher standard than we expected. Our players are mostly former Portadown players and although some play various levels of Saturday cricket for other clubs they are lining up to play for the Taverners. Our first social match was V Dundalk and we had 9 players which included a few over 50s. Now we have beaten Dungannon, and Clogher. We Play Monaghan this week and there are 17 players chasing 11 places for that match.
So here we are a social Taverners cricket team that would now in all likelihood beat any section 3 team. Every club should have a Taverners team, even if like us it's only to pick up the pieces of broken cricket club and build them up again.

Re Ryan Haire

Sorry Ryan - should we bow to that almighty comment from you ?

Hardly surprising considering the Club ethos that you were brought up in lol

Great for the big boys Pro's alright - keep us little uns below stairs.

Inspiration wears a bit thin when your attack is continually beaten around the park by the opposition pro with regular personal scores in excess of 150. lol.

I know, I know - we are simply not good enough and need to work harder.

It is good fun watching when your own pro does it to the opposition though!

I do take your point however that some overseas players are inspirational coaches. Then again so are some local coaches.

Well, it is almost the weekend...

A Gentleman of Wealth

A gentleman of wealth, enquiring after my health
asked me to his plush abode,
thinking I'd been blessed, I agreed to his request
so together in his sports car, off we rode

His house was mighty fine, likewise, the vintage wine
sipped from crystal glass,
vast rooms full of art deco, contrasted to the echo
of servants polishing up brass

Then as was my fate, he took around his estate
over land where they hunt the fox,
as I listened to the sounds, of bugle and baying hounds
he turned and promptly said, ' aren't I the dog's bollocks ? '

So with a look of disdain, I answered simple and plain
''I'm afraid, I disagree,
your car may look nifty, do one hundred and fifty
but it only has two seats, no good to me

Your home may be grand, but I find it rather bland
bereft of frivolity and atmosphere,
I prefer my humble house, no servants but a loving spouse
and kids who fill each room with cheer

Though my garden's small, it's big enough to play ball
where we all take turns to bat and bowl,
so now take me home, I no longer care to roam
with a man who has neither heart nor soul !

Agree 100% Ryan.

Two items :
Pro debate - change the record (they inspire and develop local cricket - simple)
Knights - good to see the Knights 21s in action at Belmont today - all involved should be commended for their vision of developing what is a critical yet often disregarded age group locally in cricket development 19-25.

Have to agree with Jeff Maguires comments about too much Sunday cricket as I feel that it is unrealistic to expect amature cricketers to leave the house at 9am nearly every Saturday and Sunday in July and August having already spent most weekends in May and June playing cricket and I feel that this is more likely to lead to players quitting than getting home at 9pm.
(Though maybe this is because it takes me to Wednesday to recover from a game on Saturday)
With regards to banning "overseas" players, were would we draw the line? What about people that have jobs here that migrated to find work, or married a local lass and settled here? Or young people whose parents move here?
The idea that a club should have to play a set number of players that came through their youth set up is also beset with problems, i played youth cricket with Waringstown many years ago but have been with Victoria for 20+ years now, should I be denied a place because I wasn't "home schooled"?

I am not sure that banning overseas players in section 1 and below would be a retrograde step.

I have definitely benefitted from advice and coaching from pros over the years but I would look at on a value for money basis.

I suspect that all the money paid out by section 1 clubs in bringing overseas pros annually could pay for maybe three full time shared development officers whose sole focus would have been delivering coaching programmes and summer schemes in all the clubs.

Hi Nile

I do think winning an amateur league would be worthwhile.

I also think it is a good idea for "right not obligation" interaction between leagues. Once an amateur club is confident that its facilities are excellent, the "player producing youth system" is working and that the club is financially sound they may well want to take the next step into the semi professional world.

Hi Bruce
I think your amateur league idea will have plenty of support mainly due to the fact that winning an amateur league comes across as positive and worthwhile. On the other hand banning pros in section 1 seems negative and unprogressive and banning pros never gets voted in at AGMs. . Though they amount to the same thing really!

The interesting element would be the interface between premier league and amateur league. I would suggest that the winner of the amateur league would have the RIGHT but not the OBLIGATION to enter the premier league.

As long as the system encourages "player producing" clubs over "player recruitment" clubs.

it would good to see a poll on who would be in favour of an all amateur league i am guessing 80 percent of all ncu clubs would sign up if given the chance the premier league structure is wrong for the majority of people playing and ultimately unsustainable with a boom and bust ethos we are halfway through the season just when your club pros are deciding there next move better spent on ground facilities or a new roller come next april they are guaranteed to be there benefactors come and go therefore you would find over the course of a few years that the so called elite would be begging to be let into the amateur set up and not the other way round