BALLYSPALLEN AND CREEVEDONNELL HAVE THEIR SAY ON LIFE AFTER THE PLAY-OFF

Last month we opened a discussion on the fact that quite a few North West clubs have been struggling in the past few seasons and looked at ways that they may be helped to survive with a keen eye on the incoming Club Licensing Scheme.

The suggestion put forward was that the Union might go back to a 10-team Championship and to be honest the fall-out from that was very mixed. There were some in favour of the idea but quite a few who weren’t and one of the suggestions I received was that this issue would carry more weight if it came from the clubs involved.

At the end of last month, Creevedonnell played Ballyspallen for the right to compete in next year’s Championship. When the original article was written these were two of the clubs in mind, so with one heading out of the Championship and into Qualifying 1 and one going the other way, I asked both clubs for their take on the struggles they faced.

John Kennedy at Ballyspallen confirmed that he was delighted that the club would be heading into senior cricket but that he genuinely felt for Creevedonnell.

“We’ve said all along that win, lose or draw in the play-off, Ballyspallen Cricket Club supported the idea of a 10-team Championship. We’ve worked really hard on and off the field for the past four or five years and only managed to get our chance in a one-off match. Had we lost that, there were no guarantees that we wouldn’t have lost key players to senior cricket which probably would have meant taking three steps back and having to start it all over again."

“I think people outside of the clubs involved might not be aware of the single biggest problem but here’s an example of the difficulties that ourselves and Sion Mills experienced this year. In our league season we lost a total of six league matches in 2015. One of those defeats came on a Saturday; the other 5 were on a Sunday or midweek when our opponents’ first XI had no game."

“What I'm trying to say is first XI’s like Creevedonnell, Sion and now Limavady of course could easily become disillusioned as they will not be playing genuine, out-and-out second XI’s every week. The people making the decisions need to understand that it's not a level playing field and it can become so easy for clubs to become totally frustrated."

“Losing key players was a major fear for us because without a genuine prospect of senior cricket there are clubs in the top 16 more than happy to offer what we couldn’t, which in turn could put some clubs’ very existence in danger. It's so important that teams in this division are not forgotten about and the best way to retain clubs is a 10- team championship with a fair and consistent route into this league for other first XI’s."

Up at Creevedonnell, Brian Dougherty admitted that it had been an awful year for the club and that tough times lay ahead.

“Obviously the club are disappointed that we have lost our senior status after 38 years (5 of which were spent in the top flight). It must be said from the outset that despite widespread perception the club isn’t solely dependent on my input. The irony is that structurally we are probably in a more strengthened position that at any time in our recent 60- year history."

“Of course we all wish for more volunteers and committee help but truth be told we have as hard a working committee as any in the North West. We have made great strides in terms of investing in our ground and facilities in recent years and are set to install an electronic scoreboard, new sight screens and are about to purchase new roll-on covers, as well as upgrade our fencing. This is on the back of renovations to our pavilions and the installation of a new all-weather wicket in the past 2 years."

“Financially we have also always cut our cloth accordingly and we are one of few clubs in good shape in that regard. We have hard workers who fund-raise and loyal sponsors and have been more successful than most in drawing down grant monies. We have never been in debt and would never have any intention of being so. We have often said that had we been located close to or in an urban area, that we have the enthusiasm and skills within the committee to be as successful as any-one. In hindsight it is remarkable that we have survived as long as we have, given that we are literally based on the side of a hill!”

Quite simply, our problem is lack of playing personnel. Given our geographical location and with virtually no housing catchment and our well documented battle with the elements, we have always found it difficult to attract new members. However I have never seen it as bad as this."

“I also know that this is a huge problem across cricketing and indeed all sporting circles. For years now it hasn’t been a case of new players coming through, rather that the same players are simply shuffling around other clubs. This in turn has created animosity between clubs and promoted a culture of self-interest. Lack of players is the single biggest fundamental issue that the NW and Cricket Ireland face. I have strong feelings on how this could be addressed but that is for another day."

“There is a strong argument that you find your level and should be forced to play in the league you end up in at the end of the season. However these aren’t usual times. Speaking to other clubs during this season and listening to feed-back at the last executive meeting it is clear that these are worrying times for cricket across the Union. It has been frightening the number of times that clubs right across the Union have scrapped games this season at youth and adult level or fielded 8-10 players in games."

"Creevedonnell are loathe to seek special dispensation nor are we seeking it, but retaining our senior status is crucial to the survival of a club like our own. It has been our major attraction over the years. It is a nonsense that second XIs play in the same league as first XI’s. We had experience of this a few years ago in the old Senior 2 and I agree with others that you become severely disadvantaged when your opponents first XIs aren’t playing."

"They aren’t necessarily better teams all- round; they just have options to pull in when the going gets tough. During that experiment Senior 2 simply became clogged up and progress for first XI’s became impossible. That is the danger for clubs who drop out of senior cricket. No profile, no sponsorship, no attraction- disillusionment for existing players. Ballyspallen aside, recent history has shown that those who have dropped out have gone into freefall. So be it, might be the call, but I would be making exactly the same argument even if it wasn’t our club in peril”.

To be fair, the Union has been very proactive in ensuring that everything possible will be done to protect the clubs who are struggling. David Bradley in his new role as Administrator has been in touch with a number of clubs and both Brian Allen and Colin Manson have also been very active in setting up meetings for the close season.

Whether the 10-team suggestion is put before the first General Meeting in October remains to be seen and indeed whether it would be welcomed by members is another issue. One thing is for sure though and that is that the situation surely can’t be allowed to drift along much longer. It looks fairly certain that a busy winter lies ahead for office bearers.