Question Of Good Wickets

Bay of Plenty Times, Volume LXXVII, Issue 14958, 22 April 1949, Page 5

Question Of Good Wickets

The question of good wickets always crops up in a discussion of this nature and I understand there is'a move afoot to lay a Port Albert wicket somewhere in Tauranga. That is the best piece of news I have heard for some time and I hope all cricketers and supporters will lend full support to the project, even if it means digging into their pockets. To play the game with any degree of confidence it is essential to have a first-class wicket. The putting down of this type of track would be of untold benefit to the game locally and of course we would be able to ask' for some of the Hawke Cup games to be played in Tauranga. At the beginning of the season cricketers were in the unfortunate position of not having the Domain to play on and had it not been for the generosity of Mr A. M. Nicholson and the college authorities there would have been no cricket much before . Christmas. An energetic group of boys under the supervision of Pat Keenan prepared good wickets on Nicholson Field and they were much appreciated. Cricketers are not concerned very much over the arguments taking place over the use of the Domain during the winter months, but they are entitled to expect the ground to be in reasonable order when they take over. That' has not been the case for some time. The "flogging" this ground gets in the wet weather has killed all the grass in the centre, and all one sees there in the summer is some paspalum and a remarkably thick crop of weeds. To give this ground sufficient time to recover from the winter mauling it will have to be vacated no later than the end of August. This will probably bring forth a howl of wrath from some people, but nevertheless it is a reasonable request. If the Domain is to be continually subjected to this harsh treatment, the paspalum and even the weeds will give up the ghost.