Jump to content

Greater Northern Raiders

Add links
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Greater Northern Raiders
Founded2017
LeagueCricket Tasmania Premier League
Home groundYork Park
ColoursOrange/Black
Affiliation(s)Cricket Tasmania

The Greater Northern Raiders are a set of cricket teams representing the Northern Tasmania Cricket Association (NTCA) and Cricket North West (CNW) in the Cricket Tasmania Premier League (CTPL). The Raiders form the only teams in the CTPL from outside of the greater Hobart area and the only teams without a formal club structure supporting the teams.

History

[edit]

In 2017, as a result of a review into the performance of Tasmanian representative cricket (the “Hussey Review”) Cricket Tasmania endorsed the creation of a men’s team based in northern Tasmania to compete in the CTPL[1][2]. This initiative aimed to address concerns that northern cricketers lacked the opportunity to compete in the highest level of domestic competition and the pool of cricketers being considered for State representative honours was being limited [3]. Cricket Tasmania approached former State cricketer Richard Bennett to form a northern-based volunteer committee to develop and manage a men’s first grade team that competed in the 2018/19 CTPL season[4][5].

The first season of the men’s Raiders was difficult with the history of low investment in training and playing facilities in the north by the state body and facilities' owners, a large playing roster causing frequent team changes, significant travel commitments for players, a lack of Tasmanian Tiger (State) representative players in their ranks and limited support from some NTCA and CNW clubs who saw the Raiders as a threat rather than an opportunity combining to create difficulties for the team roster [6][7][8]. Despite these barriers, the Raiders achieved a number of important match wins [9] and the season was regarded as a success overall. As time progressed, a more focused playing squad began to form and the men’s team won the T20 CTPL competition in the 2021-22 season; just their third season of competition.

The Raiders management committee proposed the creation of a women’s first grade CTPL team which was accepted by Cricket Tasmania for the 2019/20 season [10][11][12][13]. The women's team performed strongly and won the Raiders' first championship [14]. In the same season, the Raiders entered a team in the CTPL Vacation Cup [15], a short form Hobart junior competition, and fell short of a grand final place, losing to the eventual Cup winners in their first season. The following season, the U18 Raiders dominated the Vacation Cup and won the Grand Final[16]. The Vacation Cup was cancelled in following seasons.

In 2023, Cricket Tasmania took over management of the GNR teams as a part of the State's high performance program [17][18] and maintains 1st Grade men's and women's teams in the CTPL plus a limited junior development program. The 2023-24 season saw the first 'home grown' Raider, Aidan O'Connor, to progress through the development program to the 1st Grade squad to receive a 'rookie' contract with Cricket Tasmania [19][20] and achieve national representative honours with the Australian Under 19 squad competing in the ICC Under 19 World Cup in South Africa [21][22].

The men's team was involved in a controversial decision by Cricket Tasmania in the 2023-24 season to reassess competition points after the last round match in March 2024 that resulted in bonus points for a win two months earlier being removed. This resulted in the Raiders being removed from a preliminary final only a few days before that match; thereby ending the team's season[23][24].

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "Raiders of a lost force". The Examiner. 2018-09-29. Retrieved 2024-09-18.
  2. ^ "Solid on the front foot: Cricket Tasmania embraces the North of the state". The Examiner. 2019-10-18. Retrieved 2024-09-24.
  3. ^ "Raiders secure main man". The Advocate. July 4, 2018.
  4. ^ "Greater Northern Raiders idea being embraced on Coast". The Advocate. 2018-09-17. Retrieved 2024-09-18.
  5. ^ "Raiders arrive, and they mean business". The Mercury. Retrieved 2024-09-18.
  6. ^ "Greater Northern Raiders building towards debut season". The Examiner. August 21, 2018.
  7. ^ www.themercury.com.au/sport/cricket/greater-northern-raiders-must-be-a-flagship-program-and-have-working-relationship-with-clubs
  8. ^ McGuane, Jarryd (June 2, 2020). "Reducing travel for Raiders is crucial". Blue Mountains Gazette.
  9. ^ "Raiders find something to sing about with eagerly-awaited first win". The Examiner. December 16, 2023.
  10. ^ "Raiders set to guide every Norton-Smith". The Examiner. August 16, 2019.
  11. ^ Cole, Brad (August 9, 2019). "Stewart joins Raiders as co-coach". The Advocate.
  12. ^ "Home-bred Raiders miss on top signings". The Examiner. September 29, 2019.
  13. ^ Cricket, Team Female (2019-08-17). "New team added to Tasmania Premier League's female competition". Female Cricket. Retrieved 2024-09-12.
  14. ^ "Raiders women claim maiden silverware". The Advocate. December 4, 2022.
  15. ^ "Raiders give birth to teens in new competition". The Examiner. January 6, 2020.
  16. ^ "Raiders win first title with under-18 triumph". The Advocate. January 20, 2021.
  17. ^ "Cricket Tasmania announce new Greater Northern Raiders' leadership structure | Cricket Tasmania". 18 August 2023.
  18. ^ "Greater Northern Raiders' new-look leadership group". The Mercury. 2023.
  19. ^ "Tigers sign 17-year-old Tasmanian rookie | Cricket Tasmania". www.crickettas.com.au. 2023-08-09. Retrieved 2024-09-12.
  20. ^ "O'Connor set to step up for Raiders". The Mercury. 2024. Retrieved 2024-09-10.
  21. ^ "Australia Celebrates U19 Men's World Cup Victory | cricket.com.au". www.cricket.com.au. 2024-02-11. Retrieved 2024-09-12.
  22. ^ icc. "TEAM - Australia Under-19". www.icc-cricket.com. Retrieved 2024-09-12.
  23. ^ "CTPL: Administrative error forces finals shake up". The Mercury. 2024.
  24. ^ "North Hobart goes back-to-back in season finals". 2024-03-13. Retrieved 2024-09-10.
[edit]
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Greater_Northern_Raiders&oldid=1258830314"