Horsham Cricket Association players will wait to see if it will be another week before they can bowl the first overs of the 2022-23 season as wet weekend forecasts continue. 

If play does not go ahead it will be the third weekend in a row the start of the new season has been delayed, after round two of scheduled play was abandoned at the weekend with wet ovals and pitches unsafe for players. 

Horsham Rural City Council maintenance and turf team leader Darrell Gunn said turf pitches and ovals were still ‘quite behind’ regular cricket-ready levels for the time of year. 

“We just need some sunny days, everything is still saturated,” he said. 

“Even the ovals with non-turf, ‘hard’ pitches would be unsafe for bowlers running into bowl. It is a bit hard to tell when grounds will be ready for play, but we hope to get everything up and ready as quick as we can.”

Mr Gunn said his team’s focus for the upcoming cricket season was now solely on Horsham City Oval and its turf wicket. 

“Homers Cricket Club has said it will look after Sunnyside Oval. Normally we would get that ready for cricket before the first round. The same goes for Dudley Cornell Park, Horsham Colts Cricket Club said it would take over maintenance there,” he said. 

“We have been doing some mowing at the hard-pitch ovals recently and they are all waterlogged. At City Oval, we have put the grow mats on the wicket to encourage cooch growth and to try and drag it through the top dressing – but ultimately we just want a bit of heat.”
– Michael Scalzo

Junior cricket profile:

 Tom Sostheim, 16,

Horsham Saints Cricket Club

Grade: 16.5 and B Grade

• Why do you play cricket? Because of my mates. I enjoy just playing with them and having a laugh. 

• What is your favourite or funniest cricket memory? Winning the 2021-22 B grade premiership.

• Who is your favourite cricket player? Usman Khawaja. I enjoy the way he goes about his cricket and how he overcomes setbacks.

• Who is the toughest or best player you have played against? It would have to be either Logan Miller or Connor Weidemann.

• Do you think you could beat members of your family at cricket? Yes definitely, they wouldn’t stand a chance.

The entire October 26, 2022 edition of The Weekly Advertiser is available online. READ IT HERE!

The entire October 26, 2022 edition of AgLife is available online. READ IT HERE!