Big season ahead for Dundrum

10 April 2024

DUNDRUM Cricket Club is set to begin the new cricket season with high expectations.

After a mixed 2023 season, the club is looking to take massive strides forward.

Dundrum Cricket Club is a small village club but is continuing to make massive strides in NCU cricket. Over the last number of years the club has been improving their facilities with the introduction of a new electronic scoreboard, new double bay net facilities, refurbishment of the club pavilion and the installation of new drainage.

One of the smallest clubs in the NCU with some of the best facilities, Dundrum is aiming to transfer this success onto the pitch.

The men’s first team endured a difficult last season with relegation from Section 1.

Club stalwart Gavin McNerlin has taken over the captaincy and is aiming for a successful season this year.

McNerlin is aiming for an immediate return to Section 1 while also progressing far in the cup competitions.

However, one of his main aims is to promote and develop junior participation within the team.

Young players James Wright, Andrew Campbell and Rhodri Phillips will be aiming to make an impact in the team this season.

McNerlin will be able to call upon experienced players Terry Hutley, Stuart Campbell and Scott Symington.

The club welcomes back Stian Swanepoel as their overseas player for the season.

Stian had a good season in 2023 and will be aiming to have another successful outing.

Stian will again be heavily involved in coaching the club’s juniors and is looking to develop all of their players.

“This is my third season in Dundrum and I am very excited to get started again,” said Stian.

“The club and local community has welcomed me in and made me to feel at home every year.

“The club has exciting plans and I am happy that I can be involved to help them achieve them,” he continued.

“On a personal level, I want to help develop the skills of the juniors within the club and help them reach the levels I know they can achieve.”

He added: “For the first team, I hope to get them back into Section 1 where they belong. This is a talented club with a lot of potential.”

The first team begin their season on Saturday, April 27, away to Saintfield.

Meanwhile, the men’s second team had another successful season last year as they secured their third straight promotion and will be playing in Junior 4 this season.

Lee Connor, who captained all three promotions, has stepped down to focus on his own performances.

The team will be looking to consolidate in a difficult league. The club is aiming to introduce new juniors into the team with Matthew Douglas, Caleb Armstrong, James McAuley and Matthew McAuley looking to continue their development.

Experienced players Davy Glover, Ian Wright and Gordy Lowey will look to continue their good form with bat and ball.

The seconds begin their season away to Instonians thirds on Saturday, May 4.

As for the men’s third team, they will continue to introduce junior players into senior cricket to develop their skills.

Keba Butler takes over the captaincy, aiming to move Dundrum up the leagues while developing the junior players.

Keba has stated that he wants to “create an enjoyable team environment allowing everyone to participate in cricket”.

The thirds begin their season away to Saintfield on Saturday, May 11.

In other club news, Dundrum first entered a women’s team back in the 2022 season and since then the team has moved from strength to strength.

This season they aim to enter a second women’s team.

The team had a successful 2023 season, finishing third in the league while losing a close semi-final in the Challenge Plate.

The women’s first team is aiming to go one better this season with either a league or cup victory.

Jen Shilliday will once again captain the team, stating that it is “business as usual” as they look to continue introducing new people to cricket while achieving good results on the pitch.

The team has several talented young players. Jocelyn Wright, Niamh Lowry and Rachel Hodge have been training with the NCU development teams, while Jocelyn made her debut for the Ireland U-15 team last season.

The women’s seconds will be playing in the development league this season as they look to introduce new players and develop the younger players within the club.

The firsts begin their season at home to North Down on Monday, April 22.

The seconds begin their season at home to Instonians seconds on Monday, May 13.

Meanwhile, last season was a difficult and disappointing season for the club’s junior section as weather hindered training and matches.

Ian Wright has taken on the role as the club’s director of junior cricket.

He aims to make the club’s focus on junior cricket this season, aiming to develop players’ skills across all the teams within the club.

Working with the club’s new senior director of cricket, Richie Shilliday, the two will combine to cricket a pathway for juniors into the senior teams.

The club will be entering teams at U-17, U-15 and U-13 levels while also having U-11 and minis (ages 7-9) training nights.

Overall, it promises to be an exciting challenge for Dundrum Cricket Club.

There is plenty of challenges ahead but the club plans to meet these head on and continue to grow the club.

Club chairman Dave Crudgington is also eager to get the season rolling.

“With all the bad weather over the winter everyone is excited to get started,” he said.

“The club has been making good progress both on and off the field in recent years.

“Last season badly affected our junior cricket players but we plan to put extra work into this season to make sure they have an enjoyable and beneficial season,” he continued.

“We have a lot of talented young players and it is important we give them the best possible opportunity.

“It would be nice to win some silverware this season but as long as everyone tries their best and enjoys the season that is the main thing.”

He added: “At Dundrum we pride ourselves on creating a fun and relaxed environment for everyone to enjoy”.

Tweets by @TheDownRecorder