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Now i know your joking william id a great game lol i know your face but am not sure if it was banbridge rangers or annagh you were following but at the minute im down to referee one of the them again this week ill not say which at the moment haha

Kyle.
Some of the teams in the lower jnr leagues quite often have girls on their teams. Ask Colin Stewart from Laurelvale III, I'm sure he was out to girlies bowling a couple of times in 2014.
There is a girl who plays for your club, I think her name is Sarah maybe spelled differently, Surah? She could easily play in any section 2 senior team.

You'd be perfectly entitled to ask yourself what has a poem concerning six chickens got to do with cricket?

Well, before turning over the page have a think about this!

You wouldn't put second rate fuel into your BMW or Merc before setting off to a cricket match and you definitely would be expecting a top quality tea during the interval!

So always insist on free-range eggs, better for your health, better for your game & as you'll see, much better for the chickens too...

Six Leghorns Hens

That summer's day had been bright and pleasantly clement
so deciding to reclaim a small plot of overgrown land,
adjoining an old wooden shed where none did frequent
I rolled up my sleeves, then took sickle and spade in hand

Like an ox pullinga plough, I toiled all through the day
uprooting dense thicket, shifting boulders and rocks,
cleared up the loose debris and without further delay
erected a sturdy stockade, to ward off any curious fox

Finally on completion, a sanctuary fit for habitation
off to a poultry farm to purchase a few laying hens
and on arrival, I was led to a scene of mass retardation,
thousands of hapless hens, enclosed within tiny wire pens

Dumbfounded and dismayed, I could only but wonder
was this the only existence these poor creatures knew?
On noting my demeanour of someone just torn asunder
came a trite remark, " sure it's what they're used too"!

Whilst stood there perplexed, perturbed and mouth agape
six frightened near featherless hens were extracted from a cage,
then placed inside a hessian cloth sack to prevent any escape
so accepting my wares, I paid the proprietor and left in a rage!

On arrival home with my newly acquired additions
gently one at a time, I removed each from the sack
but oblivious of release from servitude's cruel attritions,
six cowering chickens crouched motionless as if under attack!

It took several days of gentle persuasion and loving care
before six traumatised leghorns, realised this was no dream,
for intensive institutionalisation is every chicken's worst nightmare
as slowly but surely they began to roam, scratch, peck and preen

Now we all have a bucket list of things to do before we die
and I too have my ambitions but this I solemnly affirm,
when I'm called home, I'll meet my maker a contented guy
for I'm proud to have given six leghorn hens, the chance to look for a worm!

Other than those clubs already with ladies sides and Saintfield and Donaghcloney, is anyone aware of any other clubs that fielded females in their Saturday adult sides or older youth sides in 2014?

I attended a junior football match this morning and observed a local cricketer refereeing. In the afternoon I happened to check recent posts on Ulster Cricketer Forum and lo and behold there is a post from the same referee. Based on his performance in the middle this morning I hope he doesn't take up the umpiring. Only joking Jason.

To Peter, Paul and "Mary"
When you criticize someone for voicing an opinion you devalue your reply when you make personal accusations. Life would be dull if everyone agreed with everyone and the value of a forum and website is give everyone a platform to express their views. I get plenty of private emails from good cricket people with strong views but they won't go public because they risk personal abuse. We all need to respect each other's opinion so give Andy Kennedy, Ivan McCombe and others some credit for always putting their name to their views. Cricket needs diversity or it will stagnate, but surely we can express opinions without getting personal?

Could "Paul" & "Peter's mate" have another read at my recent posting about Muckamore and then tell me where there is any reference to CI? We have an expression up round here "throw a stone at a pack of dogs and its the one that gets hit that yelps". Do I detect some over-sensitivity perhaps? And don't mistake expressing an opinion as "bias". I had an interesting conversation with "Mr. Angry" on Sunday at Jordanstown when Graham & I sorted out everything, in our opinions, that is wrong with cricket! Congratulations to 'aghey for their youth development - saw a promising example on Sunday.

I'm not sure who "Muckamore player " is but he certainly has nailed the ambition at Moylena. When I heard we were talking to Ryan Haire I never believed we would get him to the club. Last year was tough with one win ( in a meaningless game at Eaton Park ) but the effort throughout the season could never be questioned and Neil Gill's commitment and leadership in holding it all together deserves the highest praise. As a club we promote cricket at all levels and one of our greatest strengths is that the guys on the 1sts are as interested in how the 5ths got on as the guys on the 5ths are about the 1sts. To see those who play at the higher level encouraging those who play more social cricket just epitomises what our club is about. We always look to learn from others and if others can learn from us then cricket in Ireland will continue to grow. We are constantly running fund raising events , knocking on businesses doors asking for help.

Re Andy Kennedy

So yet again your jealousy of CI comes out with yet another dig at that team from East Belfast. If you don't like the club then maybe you should reconsider officiating any CI games this year. Then again with the team your home club have assembled (all for youth development off course)you might decide to watch more.

Re Andy Kennedy @ biased Buckna.
Hardly surprising that you use a post about Muckamore to put the boot into clubs or one club in East Belfast. You are obsessed!! I fail to see what the difference is. Remember as an umpire you should be impartial.

Muckamore player would you not be better making your second pitch playable as it is disgrace instead of building changing rooms

I will be the first to admit that there is a a lot of what I said is down to jealousy. I acted in haste as to what I said , and having been given the facts, I will retract the statement. Your ambition is to be commended and good luck with it.

Excellent appointment-Neil Russell as P.R. to N.C.U.
No finer man, an enthusiast and a lover of the great game of cricket.
Best wishes Neil.

Re Peter,

Buying Section 1?? Wise up you jealous clown!!!

We have signed Jay Hunter from Templepatrick and he hopes to play the rest of his days at Muckamore. Ryan Haire has signed as not only a player but as a Youth Devolopment Officer, a role that we needed filled to continue to improve and grow our youth and to work with the elite youngsters and no better man to fill the post. And we have signed a quality pro in Avadhoot Dandekar, he will be going into schools all over the Antrim Borough along with the usual junior nights and matches. We also have ex Irish International Uel Graham coaching the 1st Xl this coming season and although we got relegated from P/L last season, everyone at the club can see the benefit of having Uel and the improvement he has made to a lot of our players and especially the youngers guys, Uel put in a lot of hours coaching doing one to ones and has been continuing to do so over the winter.

We are a forward thinking pro active club that is on the way up, we spent £10,000 on our ground last season and that included a new £5000 roller, we are also putting an extension onto the clubhouse for all the groundsmans machinery aswell as 2 new changing rooms on the 2nd pitch. We have an extremely hard working committee aswell as sub committees ie, youth, fundraising, cricket. We want to be up there with the best in the NCU and get back into the P/L and consolidate and push on.

We have had a lot of feedback about our signings, most of the knowledgable cricketers and cricket followers out there have commended us and know that we are a club that is doing the right things and have a huge desire to become one of the best in the NCU and Ireland, apologies for being ambitious.

Jealousy is an awful thing!!!!

what an absolutely ludicrous posting by this guy "Peter". Just to point out that Muckamore fielded those teams LAST season so what is this nonsensical 9000 teams? Perhaps you would tell us how many sides your club - if you have one - put out in the 2014 season? As for "buying up the country" I think Peter is getting his geography mixed up. Muckamore is in mid-Antrim, not east Belfast! As an ordinary member of Muckamore I can only surmise that the committee had decided - a decision that I fully support - to appoint a development officer who has a proven record as a terrific player who will "develop" (see that word crops up again "Peter") and build on the progess made. So what is the point you are trying to make "Peter" or whoever you are?