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Newsflash April 2008 –

In This Issue: 2008 EAP Umpires Panel Announced ► EAP Umpires take centre stage The ICC East Asia - Pacific (EAP) Development Program announced the ► Tonga appoints Development Officer appointment of the region’s leading umpires to the EAP Umpires Panel ► SP Super Series Twenty/20 won by Brian Bell (UP) and EAP Supplementary Umpires Panel (SUP) for 2008. ► Japan continues to grow on and off the field

► AND MUCH, MUCH MORE

2008 EAP Umpires Panel 2008 EAP Supplementary Umpires Panel Monash University & Oceania Foundation supports Pacific Geoff Clelland Vanuatu S.Gopalakrishnan cricket Clive Elly PNG Ioane Henry Cook Islands Shahul Hameed Indonesia Raka Ipi PNG Neil Harrison Japan Nigel Morrison Vanuatu

Grant Johnston Vanuatu Peter Poulos Samoa Anton McCloy Japan Walesi Soqoiwasa Fiji Lakani Oala PNG Chris Thurgate Japan

EAP UP and SUP members officiate in EAP regional tournaments and take a lead role in the development of umpires within their home Nuku’alofa, Kingdom of Tonga – The Tongan Cricket Association (TCA), Monash countries.

University, The ICC’s East-Asia Pacific office and the Oceania Foundation are pleased to The panels were established in 2006 and feed into the ICC’s Associate announce that Monash University will be and Affiliate International Umpires Panel. funding a Community Cricket Development Officer in the Pacific Island Kingdom for the Whilst no EAP tournaments are scheduled for 2008, EAP UP and SUP next two years. members will be considered for other tournaments including ICC World Cricket League events and domestic competitions in and New This exciting project to be funded by Monash Zealand. University, having been facilitated by the Oceania Foundation, will see national team Commenting on the announcement of the panels, ICC EAP Development Manager Matt Weisheit said: representative and one of the ICC’s emerging young players in the region, Salesi The panels recognise the importance of umpiring in the cricket Tu’Akoi, play a pivotal role in the “ development of the game at both school and development process, provide a pathway for leading EAP umpires and junior level. have raised the standard of umpiring at EAP regional tournaments over the past 2 years.”

Mr Tu’akoi will play a major role in The ICC would like to congratulate all selected umpires on their implementing the TCA’s ‘School “ appointment to these panels and look forward to assisting EAP countries Development Plan’ that will see cricket introduced into a number of primary and with their umpire development initiatives over the coming 12 months.” secondary schools within the country.

Commenting on the announcement of the Development Officer, Current TCA Development Officer Leigh Harink said: Just some of the EAP Umpires that have been This is a great result for the sport of cricket included on the Elite “ Panel and in Tonga. Salesi’s involvement will go a long Supplementary Panel. way towards helping us meet our junior development goals, as well as encouraging Tongan kids to exercise and participate in organised sport. ”

www.icc-eap-cricket.com News Flash – February 2008

Cricket Indonesia announce new Chairman

Cricke t Indonesia have announced a successor to long time Chairman Sachin Gopalan, with Dr. Abdullah Antaria being elected . In addition, Prakash Vijaykumar has also stepped down as Secretary, replaced in the interim by Alan Wilson.

Dr. An taria becomes the first Indonesian national as Chairman of . He is a medical doctor with many years service in the Ministry of Health. Dr. Antaria has spent four years with the Indonesian embassy in Canberra where his son Eki learnt to play cricket and played regularly in one of the local clubs. Eki now, at the age of 16, plays in the

Jakart a cricket league and is one of the most promising junior cricketers in the country. Dr. Antaria is committed to the develo pment of cricket in Indonesia and we look forward to seeing much progress in the near future.

The In ternational Cricket Council and the ICC EAP Office would like to extend our gratitude to both Sachin Gopolan and Prakas h Vijaykumar for their outstanding contribution to the development of cricket in Indonesia in their previous roles. We look fo rward to continue to work closely with Sachin and Prakash as they are now part of the newly formed Cricket Indone sia Advisory Board, along with James Arthur, Wilfred Shultz and Alan Wilson.

B rian Bell victors in SP Super Series Twenty/20

Brian B ell were crowned the kings of the SP Super Series Twenty-20 after a courageous two wicket win and five balls to spare victory over Telikom Titans at the Amini Park on Sunday April 27. Wicket keeper and man of the match Ipi Morea led by exa mple when the 25 year old from Hanuabada made a handy 32 runs (not out) along with fast medium pacer Paul Tianna s valuable 8 runs. Needing 12 runs in the last two overs under rainy conditions Morea stood up to the occasion and ’ bravel y fought Titan’s unmerciful bowlers.

Earlier Titans won the toss and elected to bat with opener Jeremiah Nigani top scoring with 84 runs and looked very dange rous from the onset blasting as many boundaries as possible including a couple of classic sixes. Brian Bell all rounde r Joel Tom broke the ice when the 19 year old cleaned bowled Nigani giving a glimmer of hope to his side to chase the tar get.

In repl y Brian Bell got off to a blistering start with PNG U19 world cup opening batsman Tanti Heni leaving no stones unturn ed with a brilliant 34 runs which included two massive sixes. When Heni was starting to get the proceedings going Titans veteran Jimmy Maha who was brought into the attack at the sixth over got him out with his tricky spin bowling. Peter

Moide’s 35 runs was the other major contributor to their win but unfortunately the Taroa batsman was stumped sending a worryin g signal to the Brian Bell camp. Greg Baeau (5/28) nearly wrapped up the entire match when he got Arina Lahari and Jo el Tom out for duck but missed the opportunity for a hat trick on Paul Tianna when Moses Joseph dropped his catch at long off. But with the rain making it difficult for the bowl to find its line Ipi Morea and Paul Tianna made use of it to hit as many balls as they could to get them the twenty-20 title.

rd th In the 3 and 4 playoff Tony Ura (50) and Frank Doura (32) laid the foundation for their first ever SP Super Series twenty- 20 win Trukai Invincible. Ura just faced 29 balls to make his half century while Doura needed only 18 runs to make his presen ce felt.

The In vincibles had no answer to Steamships Hardware’s clever thinking batting compared to their fielding earlier on which was la ter described by captain Chris Amini as needing more practice on this week. Steamships Hardware middle order William Harry (16 not out) and Daniel Alu (4 not out) rescued their side with a five wicket and four overs to spare.

The be st bowler of the series was won by Brian Bell all rounder Joel Tom while Telikom Titans star Assad Vala won the best batsman of the series.

www.icc-eap-cricket.com News Flash – February 2008

Padding up in the paddies puts samurai swagger into genteel old

game

FUJI, Shizuoka -- Beneath the shadow of Mount Fuji and with a bullet train

roaring by in the distance, the man striding forcefully out into the field of battle is clad in garb that strongly resembles the armor of his samurai ancestors of old.

Behind the iron face grill on his helmet, he wears a look of steady resolve backed up by protective padding and the blade of willow he wields to both defend and attack.

But Tatsuro Chino is not going to war. The battle he's waging at the Fuji Cricket

Ground is one on behalf of the Japan national cricket team, which is warming up for its debut assault on the World Cricket League Division 5 tournament to be held in the English Channel island of Jersey from May 23 to 31.

Chino, 24, Japan's vice captain, wicket-keeper and opening batsman, only converted to cricket at 18 after a friend introduced him to the game. Japanese Vice-

Captain "I like cricket because you can bat a long time. And each time you get someone Tatsuro Chino out it has much greater value than in baseball. I love the feeling of having the in action. whole team celebrate after taking a wicket," Chino says.

Miyaji typically opens the bowling for Japan, but that's not the only way the 29- year-old son of a Japanese father and Scottish mother bends his back on behalf of the game in this country. He's also the CEO of the Japan Cricket Association (JCA), an NPO entrusted with the task of promoting the world's second-most popular participation sport in a land where, for the majority, Cricket is the name of a fashion label.

Despite the iconic surroundings of the playing headquarters at the foot of the country's most sacred peak and bullet trains hurtling past at regular intervals, Fuji Cricket Ground is also symbolic of the state of the game's status in Japan. Its two pitches are among no more than a handful found throughout the entire country. And they're located about 150 kilometers from the center of Tokyo, making a trip there a costly effort in terms of both time and money, an even greater drain considering the core of the game here revolves around university student players.

Nonetheless, Japanese cricket is making inroads. Miyaji estimates there are about 2,000 senior and junior cricket players in competitions that include JCA CEO Naoki Miyaji expatriate-centered and university leagues. JCA has branches in Kanto, Kansai, Hokkaido and Shikoku. Nationwide, almost 6,000 boys and girls have been comes in to taught about the sport. bowl.

Uenomiya High School in Osaka has recently become the first school in the country to make cricket an option in its extra-curricular program. As most Japanese players don't start playing the game until they reach tertiary education level, Miyaji is confident the JCA will be able to tap into the solid university base and reach deeper into the education system to introduce the game to younger players as is happening in places such as Uenomiya, a powerhouse in Japanese school sports.

"We've got big plans and a very bright future," Miyaji says. "We've just got to keep working at it."

Copyright (c) 2 008 THE MAINICHI NEWSPAPERS. All Rights Reserv ed. Used with permission. www.icc-eap-cricket.com News Flash – February 2008

Auckland Cricket Association proud of their partner

The to urnament was contested by the national teams of Cook Islands, Indone sia, Japan, Samoa, Tonga and Vanuatu and was won by the favour ites, Japan. By finishing in second place, Vanuatu qualified to play in

the ICC World Cricket League Division 5 for the first time in their history. At the recent Auckland Cricket Association Presentation Night, Onehunga Cricke t Association (OCA) were presented with a shirt worn by the Vanuatu Nation al Cricket Team during the 2007 ICC East Asia-Pacific Cricket Trophy. The ICC EAP Cricket Trophy was hosted by the OCA at Waikaraka Park in Decem ber 2007. Marty Tomkins (left) from Onehunga Cricket Association accepts a Vanuatu play ing shirt from the 2007 EAP Cricket Trophy from Auckland Cricket Association CEO Andrew Ea de (right).

Samoa International Cricket Associat ion’s (SICA) Senior Men’s Competition This year S ICA has changed its senior men’s competition from 30 overs to a 40 over game. The alteration was made to encourage players to bat out their allocated o vers, experiencing lengthier matches week by week. A new bonus points system has also been set up, where teams can claim points for more than just a win or loss. Points are awarded to teams for wickets taken and runs scored. Bonus points can also be awarded by dismissing teams under 15 overs, faci ng their allocated 40 overs and passing a teams total with only 3 wickets down. The new bonus point’s scheme was introduced as an incentive to award te ams for high scores and quality bowling.

10 points are up for grabs each week:

Win – 6 Loss – 2 Possible Bonus Points – 4 Wash Out / Forfeit - 10 Coming in to round eight of the local competition, all six teams are in with a chance as finals are just around the corner. SICA welc omed two new teams into the competition this season; Hope and the Anglican Scouts, both of the teams are affiliated with local churches in Samoa. Al though the newbie’s started off a little shaky, the two bottom sides knocked off the two top undefeated sides in an incredible upset during round five of the senior men’s competition. This certainly got the cricket community talking and has since sparked a few more unexpected upsets. Seven wee ks into the competition and the Tornados have not left the top spot all season. Even after two losses, the Tornados have managed to secure their lead, claiming more bonus points than any other team in the competition. The Tornados are the only team to have faced out their full 40 overs, scoring ov er 200 runs on two separate occasions, and booting their bonus total.

Top run sc orer for the competition so far had been lead by Phantoms captain and also Samoa’s national captain; Geoff Clarke. After seven weeks Clarke has an ave rage of 38.7 runs. The Phantoms are currently sitting a close fourth on the ladder. Leading w icket taker for the competition to this point is Tornados opening bowler Lautala Fuimaono. Finishing with bags of seven wickets and eight wickets, F uimaono has made it hard for anyone to come close to his running tally of 28 wickets. With three rounds to go until the finals, every game will count for all six teams competing for the remainder of the season. The ladde r after seven rounds:

LADDER - ROUND 7

TEAM W L D POINTS BONUS TOTAL %

Tornados 4 2 1 34 23.88 57.88 1.68 Sunshine 4 2 1 34 18.3 52.3 1.99 Phantoms 3 3 1 30 20.18 50.69 1.11

Wanderers 3 3 1 30 20.69 50.18 0.76 Hope 2 4 1 24 17.5 41.5 0.3 Scouts 2 4 1 22 8.37 30.37 1.14

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