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UPDATE: COVID-19 submission

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DUBLIN – Cricket Ireland confirmed today that a submission has been made to both Sport Ireland and Sport NI regarding a return-to-training for cricket across Ireland and Northern Ireland in Phase 2 / Step 2 of the respective government roadmaps to reopening.
The first phase of the proposed plan is to seek a return-to-training scenario – at both club and elite level. The submission outlines how players, coaches, volunteers and clubs might mitigate the risk of spreading coronavirus during a gradual build-up of activity over the coming months.

At all points, the decision-making has been driven by public health and science requirements, and the submission has been developed in collaboration with health and sports authorities, Provincial Unions, as well as in liaison with other sports in Ireland, other cricket boards and using draft ICC guidelines.

Warren Deutrom, Chief Executive of Cricket Ireland, sees continued collaboration and unity as the key to the process going forward:

“The crisis has really brought the cricket community together – indeed the wider sports community as a whole. While there is an obvious eagerness within the cricket community for a return to activity, we need to continue to move forward collectively and at all times appreciating our first priority must be for the health and safety of the cricket family and the wider community.”
“The Provincial Unions have been great partners in this process, and fellow Irish sports and ICC members have played instrumental roles in shaping our protocols. So while this is a submission from the sports governing body, it is in reality a collective document for the sport across all levels of the game in Ireland.”
“We shall work closely with both agencies and will be on hand to respond to any queries or concerns so that we can begin the process of starting our season safely as soon as possible.”

Cricket Ireland will provide updates to the cricket community as soon as possible, with the detail of the plan released once government approval has been received.