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EXCLUSIVE: Striving “to ensure all New South Welshmen – boys and girls, city and country are provided with an opportunity to reach their potential as cricketers and leaders in their communities”, Cricket NSW is planning to develop several metropolitan and regional ‘Cricket and Community Centres’ across the State. The plan for the facilities, contained in a submission to the NSW Government under the Rebuilding NSW initiative, envisages Cricket NSW working with local governments to develop a turnkey solution for a series of cricket and multisport users.

Working with a consortium of leading construction firms, Cricket NSW has been developing detailed designs for a series of innovative indoor sport and community facilities.

Cricket NSW Manager State Infrastructure and Government Relations Anthony Brooks explains, “we recognise the need for multipurpose indoor training facilities across NSW and our plan is to develop these facilities in partnership with councils, helping them create safe and inclusive facilities for sport and recreation.

“Our concept is to work with local government to develop multi-purpose sporting facilities which can serve cricket and the broader community."

Components of the Regional Centres of Excellence include a four lane indoor cricket training centre, a multipurpose court, amenities, kiosk, classroom or meeting room for 40 persons and administration facilities for up to seven staff.

Initially, Cricket NSW have identified 14 priority locations and has held preliminary discussions with other sporting bodies such as AFL NSW/ACT and Hockey NSW to ensure such a facility supports each code’s indoor training and administration requirements. It also sees the facilities providing for other sports including basketball, futsal, netball, badminton, volleyball and a range of community activities.

The turnkey facility solution envisaged by Cricket NSW presents an innovative and affordable alternative to traditional sporting infrastructure. Developed with SMC2 and Dynamic Sports Facilities, the flexible tensile roofed structure has higher ecological and sustainability credentials than many traditional sports halls, with the tensile structure offering improved temperature regulation and ventilation while also letting in natural light – thus reducing energy and lighting costs.

The tensile structure has been proven around the world and, according to Brooks “fulfils the sustainable and multipurpose demands of today’s society.

Cricket NSW is confident all levels of Government will support these cost effective facilities which guarantee access for people of all ages to be active regardless of the weather and regional development is a priority, Brooks explains "Cricket NSW is open to work with any local government authority that feels is may be able to contribute to its proposal and collaboratively work with.”

Cricket NSW is also being supported by Cricket Australia, who will shortly release a set of Community Cricket Facility Development Guidelines to provide the cricket community, government partners and industry stakeholders with a ‘one-stop-shop’ resource to inform and guide the planning, development, management and maintenance of community cricket facilities and infrastructure.

For more information contact Anthony Brooks on email: anthony.brooks@cricketnsw.com.au

Click here for more information on SMC2 tensile roofed structures in their entry in the Australasian Leisure Management Supplier Directory.

Indoor cricket images courtesy of South Australian Cricket Association.

15th November 2014 - INNOVATIVE SMC2 FABRIC STRUCTURES FOR MULTI SPORT USES

3rd October 2014 - MOVE TO CREATE CENTRE OF SPORTING EXCELLENCE IN NORTHERN NSW

7th July 2014 - CRICKET AUSTRALIA ADVANCES NATIONAL FACILITY GUIDELINES

​© Australasian Leisure Management. Not to be reproduced without permission.

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