The NZCT Hooked on Cricket programme recently got underway in South Auckland and Porirua before moving onto Waitara/New Plymouth, Rotorua, Linwood/Aranui (Christchurch) and South/ North Dunedin.
The New Zealand Cricket Players (NZCPA) initiative is now into its sixth year with the programme taking the game and its players directly to the communities where cricket is not played
“We take skills sessions at each school, usually with about 30 kids participating, and then hold a tournament between the eight schools in each region. It's about introducing to the game that we love,” Kerry Walmsley from the NZCPA told the Kapi-Mana news.
"It's a chance for our members to play a bigger part in cricket than just scoring runs for their province. We want them to understand they have a responsibility to the public; it's what is expected of professional sportspeople today. And they really get into it, they're loving being out there with the kids."
It has proven to have a positive effect on the communities with schools going onto create cricket specific programmes.
Children who are new to cricket get the chance to play modified games and get tips from the top professional players in the country during the Hooked on Cricket skills sessions.
Tournament days then follow with 48 schools involved in local knock-out competitions where their team will be captained by a local provincial player.
In addition to the cricket programme some of the children are offered scholarships to help develop their skills.
