SAME WINE IN A DIFFERENT BOTTLE?

Editorial By K.C.S. Rao

This is the question on everybody’s lips when you walk around Woodley Park these days.  May not be said in so many words but in summary this has been the question widely debated.  SCCA elected its 2011 Executive in December 2010 and now we are end of March 2011.  Full three months have elapsed and no tangible progress could be seen.  The new Executive had a promising start but, unfortunately, that’s where it appears to have ended.   The writer is reminded of a saying ‘Promises are meant to be kept and not be implemented’.  How true this statement is when it comes to SCCA’s new executive.  May be it is wrong to say new executive, because the President and one of its vice-Presidents are not new.  They were in the Executive last term.   Two out of Five are from the past year.  That makes the above heading more appropriate!  Not only have they not made tangible progress but they seem to make the past executive look more efficient!

Major issues that needed immediate attention were the nets and the pitch (wickets) on which the league games were to be played.

When you walk around Woodley Park, now-a-days, everyone is questioning about the condition of the two nets.  SCCA Executive, though elected in December 2010 for the term beginning  January 1, 2011, has not done any improvement to the nets except partially filling up the pot hole near the bowlers’ run up area.  The direction of the mat on eastern side of the net was switched in that the batting area no longer shows the wear and tear.  Though the change is cosmetic in nature, it appears to be a welcome change for the die-hard cricketers who are keen on having a practice session.

The net per se is in a deplorable condition in that there is no safe place for anyone to stand and witness the practice session without the ball coming out of the nets and hitting you.  ESPN-2 staff (camera crew and the journalists) was at Woodley recently to cover USA cricket with emphasis on Woodley.   The pictures that were taken by them, particularly the two nets present a sad picture of SCCA’s administration.   Cameraman was afraid to take pictures from behind the nets for the ball could come through the torn net and damage his camera.

It is understood that the Board in its January meeting had approved a budget for fixing the nets with a deadline to complete the assignment by end-February.  It is end-March now and the league season as scheduled is to start in a couple of weeks (Hopefully!).  Nothing has been done to improve the nets or the mat.  So far no grounds man has been hired to maintain the wickets. It is anybody’s guess as to how the league will be played in a couple of weeks.

Assuming a grounds man is hired, at this late stage, what can he do within such a short time between now and the start of the league?

It is reliably learnt that putting concrete all the way (including the bowlers’ run up area) is being considered as an option.  It appears that this requires permission from the City’s Recreation & Parks Department.  Apparently this process takes time.  Under the circumstances, it would have been wiser to maintain the existing facilities by fixing whatever needs to be fixed and work on the long term project (Obtaining City’s permit, laying concrete, etc.) for the future.   It is also reliably learnt that the City, as an alternative to laying concrete, offered to maintain the existing net practice area.  This seems to be a better and viable solution, in that City, with their resources could bring in dirt periodically (may be once a month), put it in the run up area and roll it. SCCA, while working on the laying of concrete, as a long term project, should take up on City’s offer to immediately solve the problem of net practice.

This new committee ventured on the project of the top two divisions of SCCA playing their games in colored uniform.  They should have done more research into it than jumping the gun.  Our contacts in Central Zone of USACA league just informed me that they had tried this and dropped it as most of their 12^th man (substitute) fielding were not in approved colors (mostly used whites).  This became an eye-sore to both the organizers and the audience resulting in their dispensing with this experiment once and for all.

In SCCA’s own backyard, Southern California Winter Cricket League is doing a wonderful job.  It is growing in strength year by year.  Organizer of the Winter League survives only on sponsors.  It is high time SCCA learns some pointers from other successful organizations to be independent in resources and the administration.  So far, this executive is at least showing symptoms of working as a team. It is hoped that they bring in necessary and useful improvements in its administration of cricket in this part of the world!