New evening league plan in Shropshire

A new midweek evening league is being planned in Shropshire for 2025 to serve clubs in the East of county.

It will aim to complement the existing Shrewsbury & District Evening League which has been running for many years serving the central and western areas of Shropshire.

The idea for the new league was approved by Cricket Shropshire’s Directors at their September meeting after Lead Officer Steve Reese presented the case to give clubs in the east of the county the chance to play midweek cricket.

A similar idea was mooted just before the Covid pandemic in 2020 which put discussions on hold, but the plan has now been re-kindled.

Steve said: “We are hoping the creation of this League will result in less of a logistical challenge for those clubs on the Eastern side of the county who want to play midweek cricket.

“I was secretary of the Shrewsbury Evening League for five years from 2008 and the introduction of this new offer would give complete coverage of the county and its eastern borders.” 

Cricket Shropshire is also in the preparation phase for their next strategic development period 2025 – 2028, with the drawing up of their County Partnership Agreement (CPA) with the ECB. 

This is the binding contract with Cricket Shropshire and the governing body. In doing so, both organisations needing to consider what recreational cricket will look like in 2030.

The shorter formats becoming more popular appear to be one of the trends for the game, with leisure time even more precious to individuals, certainly post COVID.

Steve added: “We hope with this initiative we will be able to attract some of those players who have left the traditional formats but still have an affinity with the game, getting siblings playing alongside parents, whilst also increasing female participation. 

“We would also welcome entries from those social groups and workplaces who could play as a ‘hybrid’ of a few club players similar to Shrewsbury-based Grasshoppers side and similar teams from former years” 

“We have discussed format internally but will probably utilise the network for consultation, whether it is a traditional T20 or move to HUNDRED, T16 or even 12 8-ball overs.

“We are currently scoping out a set of rules. Player registration will be required, but the rules we aim to be not overbearing, with standard governance in place to keep everyone safeguarded. 

“If we can get a competition kicked off with 6 teams in 2025, that will be a great start.

“The plan is to follow up this initial communication with an expression of interest and short survey for those who would be interested in joining.”

For more information, email info@cricketshropshire.co.uk

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