CRICKET IRELAND HAS received provisional approval for club cricket to move towards a cross-border restart of activity in Ireland and Northern Ireland.

Limited cricket training will resume provided two key requirements are fulfilled: (1): the Irish government and its Northern Irish counterpart confirm that their respective jurisdiction is moving into Phase 2 (ROI)/Step 2 (NI), and (2): cricket clubs undertake pre-opening protocol compliance measures and undertake training in the matter.

Phase 2 is scheduled to begin in the Republic next Monday while no firm dates have been confirmed for the equivalent stage of Northern Ireland’s reopening roadmap, further consideration to which is being given this week.

Following what they described as “extensive research and consultation”, Cricket Ireland made its submission to Irish Government and the Northern Irish Executive on 22 May seeking approval to restart cricket activity.

Sport Ireland have approved return-to-training protocols to be implemented by clubs in the Republic, while Sport NI have said the same protocols can be communicated to clubs in the North ahead of their implementation.

All of which means that cricket’s provincial unions and clubs can progress their Covid-19 safety preparation work in anticipation of Phase 2 and Step 2 beginning on either side of the border.

Education and resources (guides and checklists for restarting activity, risk-assessment advice, booking forms and contact tracing procedures, support for safety signage, advice regarding training practices that comply with social distancing and health protocols, and accredited online education for dedicated Covid-19 club safety officers and provincial union staff) will be delivered to clubs from next week. This is a prerequisite for the resumption of actual training.

Warren Deutrom, CEO of Cricket Ireland, said: “We are delighted that the hard work and collegiate approach taken to develop the protocols was met positively by sports and health authorities. My thanks to Cricket Ireland staff who led the development, research and consultation process, and to the provincial unions who have supported our detailed and deliberate approach.”

“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.”

With this in mind, it’s important that we remind our club and grassroots family that the 20km radius rule still applies to club cricketers, and that the ability to restart training depends upon being able to comply with the protocols. We fully understand that it won’t feel like normal, and there will be more work than usual to implement and properly monitor hygiene protocols and social distancing, but we are sure everyone recognises their role in controlling the spread of the virus and protecting the vulnerable in our community.

“We will, through the provincial unions, help guide and educate clubs on what is required to comply with the safety protocols. We have approved the provision of signage and online education to commence immediately. We anticipate some clubs will take longer than others in being able to restart activity, so we’ll be putting further recommendations to the Cricket Ireland Board later this month to support clubs in implementing these protocols.

There will undoubtedly be some details still to resolve during implementation, but we will provide advice on issues as they arise. 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 [Republic of Ireland] 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.”