FOR the first time in the Ovens Valley United Cricket Club's (OVUCC) short history, it will field a side in every single cricket grade for the upcoming Wangaratta and District Cricket Association (WDCA) 2021/22 season.
The senior squads will play in the A grade, A reserve, B grade, and for the first time, the C grade.
Two under 12s sides and a showing in the under 14s and under 16s competitions round out the Tigers' playing sides for the season.
OVUCC president Tony Cuskelly said the number of eager players ready to pull on the whites for the club was a definite positive.
"We've had a bit of a rush – we have a number of new players who have come to the area or are returning to cricket, some actually moved to the area as well, all wanting to play cricket," he said.
"We were looking at it last year more recently, but we basically didn't have enough numbers.
"Now we do, so it's all hands on deck for a fourth team.
"We were considering having two teams in the B grade, sort of splitting it up, but we looked at that and said 'no, we'll have a C grade.
"It's there for that reason."
The growth to a full complement of playing sides is something Cuskelly and the club have been working for since joining the WDCA in the 2015/16 season.
"We're sort of bucking a bit of a trend there," he said.
"With cricket in general, some clubs are struggling to put teams together.
"So instead of fighting in that sense, we've done a lot of work that's made the club a good place to be, an attractive place to be, and I think that's one of the reasons that people are coming.
"We're promoting ourselves well and we've got some good things happening.
"One of our driving motivators was to make it a cricket club that people wanted to be at – it wasn't just about playing the game of cricket on the Saturday, but making the club their place and their space, and a place to relax and enjoy.
"It's a real positive to be able to build and create."
A meeting of club presidents with the WDCA is right around the corner, with a proposed start to the season optimistically set for Saturday, October 9.
