As the shadows draw longer and the last games of the 2015-16 season are played out on grounds throughout the country, New Zealand Cricket thought it a fitting time to pause and celebrate the efforts of the people recognised this year for their contribution to the community game.
People such as Christchurch man Peter Burke, who won this season’s Sir Jack Newman Award for long-service to cricket, having offered selfless service to the junior game in the region for the past 22 years – as a coach and committee member at the Burnside West Christchurch University Cricket Club, and later as a Christchurch selection convenor and the President of Christchurch Junior Cricket.
Peter’s sterling service includes initiating Christchurch’s popular Friday night junior cricket, which became a huge success in the metropolitan area and in 2012-13 produced its first BLACKCAP in the form of batsman, Tom Latham. Peter also helped lead the introduction of a 15 overs-a-side, modified version of cricket played on Monday nights.
Made a Life Member of his club in 2012, Peter was heavily involved in initiatives such introducing coloured clothing for junior teams, implementing Have-A-Go cricket, and transitioning Christchurch junior cricket from turf pitches to artificial pitches.
Our Volunteer of the Year Award celebrated the contribution of Aucklander Bryan Haggitt, whose contribution to the Parnell Cricket Club, both as a player and a administrator, stretches back 60 years to when he first joined in 1954 as a twelve year-old.
Since then, Bryan has filled just about every responsibility in his club, including the offices of Treasurer, Secretary, President and – since 2011, Life Member. He remains the manager of the Parnell Premier Men’s side, a role he started in 2008-09; he is the collator of all club playing results and statistics, the publisher of the annual report and producer of the club newsletter.
One of Bryan’s most valuable contributions has been to organise and lead Parnell’s Adaptive Cricket Day in conjunction with St Kentigern Boys School over the past five seasons - an initiative that introduces and develops cricket skills for special needs children across Auckland.
Our New Zealand Post Outstanding Contribution to Cricket Award winner was Mark Benefield, an Ellerslie Cricket Club member for two decades; a committee member for ten years including five years as President, and Junior Club Chairman for three.
Deserving of particular recognition are Mark’s contributions as Nursery Grade Co-Ordinator over the past 18 years, a role that sees him with bat and ball in hand, coaching and encouraging 5 to 7 year old boys and girls at the club throughout the summer. Mark was inducted as a Life Member in 2009.
Mark’s greatest satisfaction has been seeing Ellerslie Nursery Cricket players progressing through the grades to play senior and representative cricket with the 'Spirit of Cricket' and the Club motto: 'By Skill, By Valour', entrenched in their values.
Southland identity Sam Ward was celebrated as our New Zealand Post Community Cricket Development Officer of the Year after leading a new soft ball-based school cricket initiative (Kiwi8's, played midweek) which, since its inception two seasons ago, has grown to 24 teams.
Not only were these school-based teams able to come in and play cricket on the outfield of Invercargill’s Queens Park, they were also linked back to the New Zealand Cricket Junior Programme, giving the participants giveaways associated with the programme.
Together with this as a retention tool, Sam has begun a six-week Volts Accelerator winter training programme, aimed at retention and skill development for children of secondary school and intermediate age. The programme has now grown to 40 participants.
Winter also brings with it Southland Cricket's Indoor cricket league, of which Sam is the key organiser. The Indoor Cricket League is held on weeknights in the Southland Cricket indoor facility with the most recent league having 16 teams comprising social, adult, and secondary schools players.
Cornwall Cricket Club has the aim of delivering to its members an outstanding all round cricket experience, and for its effort in this area was named our Club of the Year.
The winner of a range of 2015-16 premier men’s, women’s and junior club competitions, Cornwall also won the National Club Championships, produced a number of Auckland and New Zealand representatives and its initiatives include developing a professional management team to oversee all club activity; investing significantly in player development through the appointment of full-time and part-time staff, transitioning to couch grass pitches in the name of sustainability and environmental responsibility, developing its indoor practice facility for the use of the wider community, and introducing a $5,000 scholarship for school-leaving players.
Cricket Wellington carried out a review of Girls and Women’s Cricket which led to a comprehensive improvement of opportunities and experiences for girls and women within the sport, and winning pour award for Best Female Initiative.
The success of the girls Quikhit tournaments (50 teams and 400 players experiencing a tournament style format) helped Cricket Wellington gain, through KiwiSport, funding for an additional part-time employee to concentrate fully on female cricket in Upper Hutt, working in conjunction with Cricket Wellington’s full time Female Development Officer. The additional part-time employee enabled Cricket Wellington to schedule four tournaments for 2015/16, resulting in further growth with the medium term goal of these players transferring into local clubs.
Rachin Ravindra had an impressive Secondary School Boys’ First XI Cup finals tournament in which he played as an all-rounder in the winning Hutt International Boys’ School side. At the conclusion he was named Secondary School Boys’ First XI Cup Player of the Tournament. Rachin’s highest score of the tournament was 76, and he also had best bowling figures of 2/24.
