Wanganui

The Wanganui Cricket Camp is run to a similar format to the Hastings Camp. It is run by the Wanganui Junior Cricket Board. The venue is Wanganui Collegiate High School which is an excellent venue for such camps.

Parental involvement
JCUH expects that each child will be transported and supported by a parent or caregiver. If it is absolutely impossible for a child’s parents to accompany them then they must find other attending adults who will take responsibility for their child.

Philosophy of the games
Consistent with JCUH’s approach to all club games coaches and managers are encouraged to give all children the opportunity for skill development by exposing them to challenging cricket. While teams should try and win games this should not be done at the expense of inclusiveness. Each child’s parents have paid the same amount of money and will have expectations about the amount of cricket their child experiences.

The Competition
Four competitions are played from U11 to U14. This is run as a round-robin draw with no overall winner. Strong or weak teams are advised to tell the cricket organizer in advance so the draw can be more balanced. Many Regional Representative attend these camps so the competition can be very strong. The camp is growing in popularity with 10 teams attending the U12 competition in 2004. Teams come from regions (“Rep” teams) or large clubs from Auckland to Wellington.

Usually one 40 over game is played on the first afternoon followed by 2x30over games on the next two days and finally by a 30 over game on the last morning. There should be an hour break between games for lunch. It is important to keep the game going with 15 overs per hour and if the over rate is too slow you may be forced to play to time rather than overs. Drinks are supplied during the game by the organizer.

Grounds
All games are played either on the school’s “playing fields”, Wanganui High School next door, or if necessary on nearby Victoria park. The grass pitches are in excellent condition. There are about the same number of artificial and grass pitches. Depending on the draw games could be played on artificial or grass. The map of the ground numbers is on the side of a small green hut near the main entrance to the “playing fields” off Grey St. There are Portaloos at the grounds and all pitches are within 5min walking distance from the dorms.

Rules
Rules are very much like the rules for Saturday cricket. The LBW rule was more lenient in 2004 but they may vary slightly from year to year. The rules are published in a booklet which is given to each player when they arrive.

Dates
Depending on the age grade dates range from Jan 6th to 21st. There is a day gap between each grade. The dates are published in the Junior Cricket Handbook.

Website
Wanganui Cricket has a website with some information about the upcoming camp. Visit it at http://www.juniorcricket.org.nz.

Wanganui Collegiate School
Located 2¼ hours from Upper Hutt this old and prestigious school is set in beautiful grounds with excellent facilities. The school is equipped with a large outdoor pool and excellent dining room. Some “houses” also contain pool tables. For more details visit the school’s website on http://www.collegiate.school.nz/. The school is managed quite separately from the cricket competition and respective issues are therefore handled by different people. Entrance to the school can be gained via either Grey or Liverpool streets. Click on the following Wises Map link.

Click on this link for a map of the school layout.
click on this link for a map of the whole school plus grounds.

Wanganui Collegiate Amenities

6 all-weather practice nets
6 tennis courts
25m pool
Gymnasium
Games room and TV

Wanganui Collegiate Accommodation
Each team has its own dormitory with 2 beds per ‘room’. The team manager also sleeps in the same dormitory. Each dorm is in a “house”. Shower and toilet blocks are located in the house. There is no need to bring any sheets, pillow cases or sleeping bags.

Food
Food is served in the school dining room. All food is part of the cricket fee. A limited number of tickets are handed out per team to allow for the coach or manager/helpers to dine with the team. Dinners are served between 6 – 6.30pm. Lunches were 1hr long between games. Players are not expected to do any dining room duties.

Accommodation for parents
Wanganui has a variety of motels near the school. The closest is the Wanganui Collegiate Hotel and Motor Inn at 122 Liverpool St.

What to take (All gear and clothing to be clearly named)

Two changes of cricket clothing including:
White collared tee shirt
Long white cricket trousers (shorts are optional for U 10’s & 11’s)
White floppy sun hat
Strong shoes and two pairs of white socks
Water bottle
Cricket gear (tell your coach what you need him to provide)
Sunscreen
Sun glasses
Three changes of clothing including warm jersey and sweatshirt
Comfortable shoes/sandals/jandals
Swimming togs/towel, and swim bag for wet gear
Pillow case and pyjamas
Toilet gear,
Soap, flannel, toothbrush/paste, brush and comb, towel
Any required medication (with instructions)
A small amount of pocket money for snack food
Lunch for the first day

What not to take

Valuables e.g. walkmans, game boys etc
No expensive designer clothing
No chewing gum
No water bombs