What does club cricket mean to you?

Club cricket is more than just cricket for me.
It’s my closest mates and a community that is very welcoming and provides an opportunity to build something individually and collectively.
Some of my best/fondest memories have come through club cricket and my best mates are blokes that I have played with and against for years now.

Lifelong friendships

Club cricket is about a sense of belonging. Yet there is an irony in this belonging because many of the people we play with and against come from different walks of life and have different attitudes, philosophies and motivations.

Yet, the club and the cricket can, at their finest and most powerful, help us unite and shape vital community values including respect, understanding, tolerance, and empathy.

Club cricket is a place of learning that stretches far beyond the boundary.

It is unique among sports because we can spend as much time off the field during a game as we do on the field.
It's these times that so often provide the gold nuggets, such as the building of friendships and the growth of understanding about people and places.

I also find it fascinating that club cricket is, as expected, a nursery for youngsters learning about the game, yet at the same time it can be somewhat of a shelter for older players who find a purpose and comfort in familiar surrounds. (It can be so hard to let go!)

Above all, club cricket represents a micro community amidst bigger communities. If we lose our respect for club cricket, we are damaging cricket at large.