The Connacht Cricket Union (CCU) has warned that apathy from the people and clubs involved in the sport in the region, never mind the general public, is a major threat to the existence of the sport in the West of Ireland.

The CCU has recently launched its first-ever strategic plan in an effort to not only secure the future of the sport, but to attract more people to the game, and it took its first step in that regard this week when it held its first representative game since the 1890s with a match against a Munster XI Select.

That historic game, held at the cricket grounds at Lydican (between Oranmore and Claregalway), was decided by the Duckworth-Lewis-Stern method after rain affected the planned 50-vers game, and it was the home side that was celebrating, claiming a seven-run win under the DLS method.

Galway is the proud home of the first-ever formally founded cricket club in Ireland, which was in Ballinasloe in 1825; and at present there are nine clubs under the umbrella of the Connacht Cricket Union, six of which actively take part in competition.

The CCU was formed in Roscommon in October 2010 and is one of the five provincial governing bodies overseeing cricket in Ireland, alongside Cricket Leinster, Munster Cricket Union, Northern Cricket Union, and North West Cricket Union, collectively forming Cricket Ireland (formerly the Irish Cricket Union).

It revitalised itself in March 2021 with a new Constitution and Governance structure and was formally recognised as an Associate Member of Cricket Ireland, and last year launched a consultation process to plan for the future of the sport.

The sub-committee tasked with drawing up the plan didn’t pull any punches in its warnings as to the obstacles facing the sport, and there are the usual suspects, such as a lack of facilities and a lack of funding.

However, the Strategic Plan also highlighted “persistent apathy from clubs and their members”, “limited buy-in from clubs and their members for volunteering, officiating, and coaching”, and “lack of commitment and accountability from members who take on roles within club committees” as three of the nine main threats to the sport.

The consultation process was held to gather insights from the board members, affiliated club committees, and club members within the union. Board members and club committees were provided with a survey to be submitted via email to the chairperson of the board, while club members were invited to complete an anonymous online survey.

The surveys were conducted between September 2023 and February 2024 to capture the perspectives of CCU-affiliated clubs and their members, and it also highlighted a lack of suitable sports facilities for cricket in Connacht which in turn has led to a decline in interest; insufficient financial resources to develop facilities and the sport; and a lack of knowledge or awareness of cricket due to being a minority sport.

All of those can be addressed, though the final threat listed in the report – ‘adverse weather conditions in the West of Ireland impacting fixtures and training’ – cannot be fixed by even the most ardent fan of the sport.

There were also plenty of positives highlighted, such as the fact that there are also very supportive clubs within the union; the existence of a diverse community with experience from other sports organizations and business sectors; and the chance to develop the sport, such as collaborating with schools to promote the sport.

As of this year, the CCU has nine registered clubs: County Galway, Kilconnell, University of Galway, Shamrock CC, Merlin Cricket Club, as well as Roscommon Town and Ballaghaderreen; and Ballyhaunis and Mayo.

“The CCU aims to expand its offerings to include under-age and women’s league structures, integrating these into the existing competition framework,” the plan states.

“Achieving this expansion will necessitate the establishment of improved support structures and the development of additional cricket-friendly facilities throughout Connacht. These efforts are crucial to accommodating a more diverse and inclusive range of participants and ensuring the sustainable growth of cricket in the region.”

■ For more information on cricket in Galway, and in Connacht, contact CCU chairperson, John Smith, on 087 2522309, or check out the Connacht Cricket Union page on Facebook.

Pictured: The Connacht Cricket XI that played the province’s first-ever interprovincial; since the 1890s when they took on a Munster League XI in Lydican, Oranmore, on Wednesday. Back row, from left: Kevin O’Brien (manager), Swaroop Burra, Nikhil Bhardwaj, Sufyan Mohammad, Khizar Mehmood, Asad Abbas, Jayesh Juneja, and president of Cricket Ireland, Stella Downes. Front: Thomas Mahon, Abdul Shafique, Shariq Nasim, Osama Syed, Mohammad Abbas, and Iliff Sumit. Photo: Joe O’Shaughnessy