Cricket Ireland announce guidelines for the resumption of club cricket

For starters, the governments must formally notify that their jurisdiction is moving to phase 2, and two, all cricket clubs must undertake the 'pre-opening protocol compliance measures.' This means the provinces and clubs can actively start their preparation to create roadmaps for the resumption of cricket activity.

Taking a safety-first approach, CI have insisted that before clubs begin actual cricket training activity they must be educated and made aware of the protocols put in place. Both education and resources will be delivered to each club starting next week only after which training may commence.

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The information packets provided by CI will include detailed guidelines and checklists for preparing the club to restart activity, information about training practices that comply with social distancing, booking forms, risk assessment, signage and other necessary support material.

"The approval to restart cricket activity at club level is strictly dependent upon the Irish Government confirming a move to Phase 2 and the Northern Ireland Executive confirming a move to Step 2 of their roadmaps to reopening, respectively," the CI statement said.

While thanking the CI staff for their efforts, Warren Deutrom, CI Chief Executive Officer, reiterated the importance of following public health guidelines and maintaining social distancing through this period.

“Our priority from the outset was to take a safety-first approach - to ensure the health of players, coaches, volunteers and families. We have appreciated the enthusiasm of cricket players to get outdoors once more to start training and fitness work, particularly with the recent beautiful weather, but we have ensured that – as a sport – following public health directives has been our main responsibility,” Deutrom said.

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Players will only be allowed to train in a club that lies within a radius of 20kms from their residence. Hygiene will constantly be monitored with only a limited number of players allowed to train at a time.

While acknowledging the difficulty of the situation for healthcare workers, players, staff and club volunteers, Deutrom said the board would continue to help clubs implement the protocols. He also said that issues would be resolved as and when they arise since not every circumstance/ event can be foretold.

"If we work together on meeting these protocols, then we can begin to look towards an eventual resumption of competitive matches later in the roadmap – a scenario that seemed very distant to many just a few weeks ago.”

“That all said, the spirit of the Government’s roadmap has been about looking forward cautiously but also positively, so that’s what we shall do. So, while it’s not quite ‘back to normal’, it is a positive step for all involved in our sport. We just hope the weather holds now that we’re back,” he concluded.