STRATEGY - Ecb - England and Wales Cricket Board

2012 NATIONAL CLUB STRATEGYNATIONAL CLUB STRATEGY 201201Thecurrentstateof clubcricketCricket’s appeal placesit at the heart of manylocal communities,large and small.Cricket clubs act asinvaluable placesfor people to playcompetitive cricket,enjoy their leisure timeand congregate withfriends and family.A cricket club is defined as abody which:— Is formed by its own members,governed by an agreed constitutionand/or rules, and is initially fundedby its members (this refers toboth a limited company and anunincorporated association)— Has a dedicated bank account— Includes at least one junior or seniorteam, which plays fixtures withinthe “Spirit of Cricket”, in accordancewith the Laws of the Game— Is set up to encourage all membersof the local community to playcricket and interact socially witheach other.The network of cricket clubs acrossEngland and Wales covers a rangeof categories including: single-teamclubs, senior clubs and clubs witha junior section and/or those clubsworking with specific groups in thecommunity. The ECB recognises theimportance of each of these clubsand the role they play in cricket.Clubs become affiliated to the ECBthrough their respective CountyCricket Boards (CCBs). Each club iseither directly affiliated to its relevantCCB or to its relevant league, which inturn will be affiliated to the local CCB.Affiliation acts as the entry pointinto the cricket family. It is theprocess that pulls much of thefabric of the club game together.Therefore, it is the ECB’s aim thatall cricket clubs across Englandand Wales become a part of thiscricket family and are appropriatelyequipped to ensure the game canbe sustained and continue to grow.89