CRICKET - Serious approach taken to `slap and giggle' cricket

It might still be regarded as a bit of slap and giggle, but Twenty/20 cricket is set to clobber club cricketers into action this year.
Northland cricket officials, keen to try and spark new life into a fading club scene, have decided to begin the season with two weekends of Twenty/20 cricket, starting tomorrow, before their traditional one-day championship series kicks-off.
There are also plans to revive inter-district Dargaville Shield fixtures and a push to arm every club with professional player-coaches to try and boost the standard.
But it is the sudden arrival of the shortened version of the abbreviated game that has suddenly injected some early interest into the club scene, a development that has even pleased Whangarei cricket administrator Bruce Scott.
After some initial concerns, Scott said clubs were suddenly aiming to make Northland cricket history by being the first team to win a Northland Twenty/20 title and enticing players young and old to take part.
"The concept is that it may attract some old players back and some new players in," Scott said.
"The intention originally was to try and get clubs to mix their premier and reserve grades teams to give players a chance to play alongside each other and hopefully strengthen the bond within a club, but since then some teams have taken a very serious approach to the competition."
"From what I can see so far there are a couple of teams that have put their best team together for the Twenty/20."
So far four professional players have been signed up for a season in Northland, with Northland Cricket operations manager Gary Bell hoping to snare two more.
Each club will be allocated a professional who will also run junior coaching and schools co-ordinating to their playing duties.
All but one of the Twenty/20 games will be played on artificial wickets at Kensington Park tomorrow.