Cricket in New Ingrea
Cricket in New Ingrea | |
---|---|
A local cricket match | |
Governing body | NICB |
Registered players | 299,000 |
Clubs | 363 |
Characteristics | |
Contact | No |
Team members | 11 players per side (Substitutes permitted in some circumstances) |
Mixed gender | Yes, separate competitions |
Categorisation | Team sport, Bat-and-ball |
Equipment | Cricket ball, cricket bat, wicket (stumps, bails), various protective equipment |
Venue | Cricket field |
The game of cricket is the pre-eminent summer sport in New Ingrea. Cricket is presently the most played sport over the summer months, and is the second most popular overall. Locally, the sport is controlled by the New Ingrea Cricket Board.
History
Exactly when the first games of cricket were played in New Ingrea is difficult to discern.
International cricket
Domestic competitions
On a domestic level, each county has a cricket team which competes in two separate competitions over summer:
- A three-day first-class competition known as the National County Championship; and
- A one-day competition, known as the Millennium Electric Cup.
First class
The domestic first class competition is the National County Championship, with seven of the counties, the two halves of Albanyshire, and the three ridings of Centralia represented by a team, for a total of twelve teams. All first class matches in New Ingrea are played over four days. The Championship, which was established in time for the 1883/84 season, is played every summer from November to March. Attendances to Championship matches have never been as high as international games, with most games averaging around 5,000-6,000 spectators over the four days of play. In the media, the Championship enjoys widespread coverage, with all formats dedicating significant time/space to the game. On television, there is at least one game a week broadcast on the Galaxy pay television network, with Radio Television New Ingrea also showing a highlights package each week on free-to-air television.
The twelve first class teams and their primary home grounds are:
- Beaufortshire CCA (Fisher Park, Williamsdene)
- Deverauxshire CCA (Varley Oval, Swanbrook)
- East Albanyshire CCA (Glebe Park, Port Frederick)
- East Riding CCA (County Ground, Kingsbury)
- Fitzroyshire CCA (Fitzroy Oval, Corfe Harbour)
- Lunen Island CCA (Jubilee Oval, Lunenborough)
- Middle Riding CCA (Shepton Domain, Shepton)
- Vernonshire CCA (Riverside Oval, Langford)
- Waylandshire CCA (Recreation Ground, Port Averell)
- West Albanyshire CCA (County Ground, Pasquale)
- West Riding CCA (Lynch Oval, Philipstown)
- Westerland CCA (Arthur V Oval, Earnestvale)
Limited overs
New Ingrea's premier limited over cricket tournament is the Millennium Electric Cup. As with the first class Championship, each of the eight counties is represented by a team in the tournament, which is played at the start of the cricket season in early November. The format of the competition is somewhat unique as it involves teams batting two 25 over innings instead of the usual single innings format used by most national cricketing bodies. Unlike the first class form of the game, limited overs games tend to attract more spectators (averaging over 7,000-10,000 to most games) and enjoy prime-time coverage on free-to-air television.
Grade cricket
At the grade level, there are teams in every town and village, playing in competitions all through the summer. Most local competitions consist of four or five divisions or "grades", with the top flight first grade coming above the seconds, thirds, and so on.
Cricket grounds
There are numerous club grounds throughout New Ingrea. The following have been Test, First Class, and ODI cricket matches:
Grounds used for test matches.
Ground | Capacity | Location | Opened | First used | Opponent | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
County Ground | 4,000 | Kingsbury, CENT | map | 1960 | 1960/61 | Ingrea (vs. NICB Chairman's XI) |
Fisher Park | 28,600 | Williamsdene, BEAU | map | 1880 | 1938/39 | Vodeo |
Jubilee Oval | 26,000 | Lunenborough, ILUN | 1872 | tbd | tbd | |
Kingsbury Stadium | 48,500 | Kingsbury, CENT | map | 1868 | 1927/28 | Ingrea |
Lynch Oval | 19,500 | Philpstown, CENT | map | 1877 | 1936/37 | Deodeca (vs. West Riding CCC) |
Glebe Park Stadium | 16,000 | Port Frederick, ABNY | map | 1872 | 1927/28 | tbd |