THE majority of the Orange District Cricket Association’s first grade clubs are in favour of a move back to the Bathurst Orange Inter District Cricket competition for the 2012-13 season.
Should the proposal go to a vote, it’s believes defending premiers Centrals, Cavaliers, CYMS and Orange City would support a return to the BOIDC competition following the ODCA’s proposal to return to the format last played in 2006-07.
Kinross, though, are opposed to the move.
Master In Charge of cricket at Kinross Geoff Hull said the re-formation of the BOIDC would simply concentrate the player pool, moving talent from the smaller clubs to the already strong sides.
“Young emerging cricketers are less likely to be attracted to that form of the game,” Hull said.
“It’s the extended hours, it’ll increase pressure on families.”
The rest of the competition, however, was resolute in its belief the BOIDC was the way forward for both cities.
“Playing different teams, it brings a different dynamic to the competition,” Cavaliers skipper Riche Venner said.
“We had it before and I thought it worked. There’s more teams. You’re not playing the same guys week-in week-out and it produces better cricketers.”
Orange City captain Dave Boundy agreed with Venner.
He said a joint competition would strengthen Mitchell cricket as a whole.
“Definitely. When I first came to Orange I played (in the BOIDC) and you play over a larger area against some of the best cricketers going around,” Boundy said.
“It’s more open, more variety and you get to know a different bunch of blokes.”
He said an Orange cricket competition with the five clubs often didn’t work.
“Because we play each other so often, it can become stale,” he said.
CYMS skipper Dave Neil said Orange’s players should want to play elite cricket.
The BOIDC provides this.
“Every club in Orange is striving to play to the highest level possible and improve. That’s not always feasible in a five-club competition where everyone knows their opponents each week,” Neil said.
“Linking up with Bathurst means new teams, new players, new pitches, new conditions and new challenges. It can only benefit Orange’s cricket clubs and the city’s representative prospects.”
Centrals skipper Adam Shepherd said he personally wasn’t in favour of the move to a twin-city competition, but could see its merits.
“From a club perspective it might be the way forward. Standard wise and future wise,” Shepherd said.