- South Dartmoor back to winning ways in cups
- Tom Allin tournament raised more than £5,000 for air ambulance
- Taverners kit bag delivered to Sri Lankan youngsters
- Devon trying to contact the class of 56
- Paceman Tshepo running in Virgin London Marathon
- Five Devon women in Western Storm squad for Kia Super League
- Registration night for all ages at Topsham on Monday
- Lots pouring in for auction at Allin Memorial tournament
- Thames Valley Gentlemen Cricket Club
- Bradninch add Argentinian flavour to Devon League
- Ipplepen youth registration night on Friday
- Final call for Groundsmans first seminar this year
- Devon League official tackling London Marathon for charity
- Bovey on familiar territory in Aaron Printers Cup
- Brockman Cup - Cup Kings lie in wait for holders
- Shepherd Trust helps Kingsbridge build for sustainable future
- DCL - Umpire Appointments 2016 (May 7th - July 2nd)
- Long standing records beaten
- North Devon see off Paignton chase
Devon Cricket League Umpires Pre-Season Meeting
The meeting provided an opportunity for the following key points to be mentioned:
The 'West' Area held an 'Evening with Stuart Munday' on 4th March at the Woodland Fort, Crownhill in Plymouth. Stuart, who as Chairman of the Devon Cricket League is also a long-serving member of Tavistock C.C., talked about his past, present and future commitments with Devon Cricket. It was a fascinating glimpse into someone's passion for the game and how the needs of everyone associated with Devon Cricket are linked together through various organisations. Stuart also explained his involvement in the merging of the Devon Youth Cricket Foundation and the David Shepherd Cricket Foundation into The David Shepherd Cricket Trust to support the growth of the local game. Finishing off with a light-hearted quiz, everyone present thanked Stuart for taking the time to talk and wished him succes with all his plans.
Future meetings in the 'West' are planned for 2014. The next is on April 1st. Contact paul.dawe@btinternet.com for further details or click here to find out more.
Local DACO Branches have started 2014 with various social events, meetings and courses.
In the 'East' there was an 'Introduction to Umpiring' course held at Ottery St Mary on 22nd January attended by prospective umpires.
In the 'West' there was "An evening with Peter Lever" - report here
In the 'South' there was an evening on the latest MCC Law Changes as well as the Devon Cricket League Rule & Regulation changes for the coming season - report here
New Year's Message from the DACO Chairman
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Welcome to 2014 – I wish each and every one of you all the best for a successful and happy year in all your various endeavours.
2014 will be as busy and challenging as previous years and the long, dark winter provides plenty of opportunities for you to revise and refresh your knowledge of the MCC Laws of Cricket and the Spirit of Cricket and, for scorers, perhaps adding computer or linear scoring to your lexicon of skills. You might attend local area “refresher” sessions, you might attend a DACO umpiring or scoring course. I hope that DACO will provide better support to our newly qualified umpires this year by good mentoring during their initial forays onto the field. Observations will continue to assist individual umpires to improve their performance.
How you perform is key: Could you have done better? What might you have done differently? What will you try to do in future games? How many of you support indoor-leagues or plan to attend pre-season nets or will support early season youth cricket matches to get “your eye in” so you are ready for the main event? Players practice and are assisted by coaches, so too could you. So please be bold. Do not sit at home and hope that by browsing the wee blue book you will magically be a better official – umpire or scorer – You will not but DACO might be able to help!
It should be a given that umpires know the MCC Laws and the Playing Conditions for a specific match. Watching the great game as an umpire at either bowler’s end or striker’s end is a privilege and the payment for that privilege is to make decisions from time to time: Was it a fair delivery? Was it Out/Not Out? Was it a Bye/Leg Bye? Was it Run Out? Was I in the best position to make the decision? Where my eyes level and my head stationary at the moment I needed to see and decide? How do I earn respect? How can I do better? Who can help me?
Similarly for scorers: Recording what has transpired, communicating clearly with the umpires, understanding the playing conditions so you can interpret umpire signals better can all be enhanced by better knowledge and understanding – perhaps a “scorers’ workshop” might help you focus and be better prepared for the season: If the demand is there – Do Not Be Shy – such a workshop can be easily arranged. And, DACO needs more scorer members and Devon Cricket Clubs need more scorers so I would like to see 2014 being the year of “Soaring Scorer Numbers”.
Some of you may feel that such considerations and activities are not for you – are you sure? For umpires the Umpire Level 2C course is an excellent way to review how you perform, how you can enjoy being an umpire more and how you can improve the game for the players – It is their game after all. You would be surprised how much you know, yet how much you do not know and how much you can improve by working with other like-minded people during 2 days of fun supported by knowledgeable and helpful tutors: Think about it – details on this website.
2013 saw the introduction of Win/Lose cricket to the Devon Cricket League (DCL). It continues this year. To ensure all umpires (panel umpires and any others that stand in the DCL) understand the playing rules, DACO will host an evening at the Exeter Court Hotel to explain the detail (Thursday 17th April 2014, starting at 7.00pm). It will also be when panel umpires receive their DCL Handbooks and other paperwork for the season.
Cricket is a game for the players. It is the role of the captains to ensure that the game is played in accordance with the Laws and the Spirit of Cricket. Officials are there to facilitate the game for the players – good officials enable the players to 'do their thing'. I would like all DACO umpires and scorers to be the best that they can be. Please do what you can to help and to make 2014 a great season.
Gavin Lane January 2014
You can obtain the Latest MCC ‘Laws of Cricket’ Book at a reduced price. The MCC (Lord's) website on the Laws of Cricket has a great deal of information. Click Here to see the 2013 Law Changes explained