The rapidly-growing popularity of cricket in Ireland is showing no signs of slowing down, with junior participation numbers more than doubling in the past year.
An amazing 24,654 youngsters are now playing the game in comparison to 11,955 in 2011, a rise of 105 per cent according to figures released this week by Cricket Ireland.
There was strong growth recorded throughout all categories in the survey undertaken for the International Cricket Council (ICC), with the overall participation figure for cricket standing at 40,414 – up from 25,170 in 2011 – an increase of over 60 per cent. There has also been a 29 per cent increase in the number of active coaches in Ireland, increasing from 910 to 1175.
The number of teams playing the sport increased from 895 to 1056.
The expansion in development work has been made possible thanks to additional funding and support received from ICC Europe and official Cricket Ireland sponsor RSA.
The RSA “Get into Cricket” initiative has proved incredibly popular at grass roots level throughout the country, and the programme has proven extremely effective at getting youngsters involved in the sport for the first time.
In Leinster, the development team has been instrumental in projects working with the disabled, while the Leprechaun Cup competition for primary schools has grown into one of the most successful youth competitions in Ireland, with over 53 schools taking part in 2012.
The performance of Cricket Ireland on the pitch and in the schools is being matched by increased commercial activity as well with Abbey Travel and Toyota being announced this year as official sponsors and suppliers to the sport, joining RSA, Johnston, Mooney and O’Brien and others.
This year, Pakistan and England will play matches in Ireland and the Women’s ICC Twenty20 World Cup Qualifier will take place in Ireland during July and August offering further opportunities for new players to see the sport at its best and for commercial partners to see what they might gain from an association.
See Cricket Ireland’s ‘Journey’ in this video produced by the Irish Sports Council.
Read more of our recent coverage and analysis of Irish Cricket here
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Cricket Numbers Double since 2011
