It's that time of the year again. The sun is shining, the scent of freshly mown grass wafts across the air and kids get
set to fill parks across Auckland as the Summer of Cricket kicks into full swing this Saturday.
At Barry Curtis Park in Manukau, tomorrow marks a special day for the region. The start of the 2019/20 season marks the
first time children and adults alike will turn out for Auckland's newest cricket club in Flat Bush.
Auckland Cricket's Community Development Manager Tony Naidu is proud of the work that has been done by Project
Development Manager Adrian Dale to get Flat Bush Cricket Club up and running.
"Starting a new club in a new high growth area is not an easy task and without the drive and support of Adrian, this
club would be years away from existing.
"Adrian first met with schools in February to drum up interest in a 4-week programme last Summer and to be here on the
verge of having Flat Bush Cricket
Club teams playing in Auckland Cricket competitions is beyond our wildest ambitions when we started this project in
January."
Tony has high hopes for the future of Flat Bush Cricket Club and can see the club going from strength to strength with
Swaran Garima as the club's first Chairman.
"Swaran, with the help of a great group of local volunteers, is now in a position to drive cricket forward in the area."
Auckland Cricket currently has 407 registered junior and youth teams raring to get the Summer of Cricket underway.
Tomorrow also sees a full senior schedule across grade cricket with more than 225 teams lining up across Auckland.
Club Cricket Manager Dean Bartlett cannot wait to see the players out in the middle enjoying themselves.
"This is the sophomore year of Age and Stage at the junior level, so we are excited to work with the clubs and
volunteers to deliver an evolution on what was started last season with the overall objective of creating a better
experience for the players."
"We wish the players and volunteers the very best for the opening day and the season ahead."