Cricket in Norway
Hi friends in this article let us discuss in general about the development of cricket in Norway.In spite of not having a great success in cricket it has a healthy and growing position in a nation of only 4.5 million people. Cricket in Norway first organised by Asian immigrants that includes Indians, Pakistan and Sri Lankans in the 1960s.
During that time there were 24 clubs and included three divisions.and at present when it comes to the number of clubs there are 33 adult clubs playing in the Norwegian Cricket Federation competitions.
At present the players all currently descend from the countries of the Indian subcontinent, i.e.India, Pakistan or Sri Lanka and more than 90% of players domestically are of Asian descent,but they all are Norway citizens at present.
The reason why crickt is popular in Norway is that of the wider television coverage telecasted by the Asian TV channels and this has encouraged youngsters to take up the sport .But the main problem is that most of the players are from Asian origin and they need more ethnic Norwegians to participate in cricket
When it comes to the development of cricket in Norway , the under 15 and under 19 evening leagues has helped for the development among the youngsters and it also encourages cricket to be added to the sports programme in several schools.
Another major problem is that they have to develop the interest and also to educate the authorities so as to provide quality cricket grounds needed for safe cricket.So the national association took steps to solve this problem and they took control of ground maintenance and and they did this by using two part time groundsmen.This was a great success and the improvement has been dramatic and cricketers began to show interest in the game and also know about the game.
There was a huge development in June 2000, when Norway gained entry to the ICC and the ICC Europe as Affiliate members and cricket was confirmed as a recognised sport in Norway in May 2007 and as a result of this the Norwegian Cricket Federation was supported by the Norwegian Sports Council and Government departments.
When it comes to international level Norway had a successful campaign in International Cricket as they won the the first tournament entered in July 2000.After that two European Championships was conducted in Austria and Scotland.
In may, 2008 the Norway team travelled to Jersey to take part in a Division Five tournament.Norway beat Vanuatu in Group A, and this was their only win as they lost 4 other games and missed the semi finals berth.At last Norway finished ninth overall after their win over Bahamas and Japan in the positional playoff matches.
As only top teams qualified for Division Four tournament in Tanzania later in the year for the 2011 world cup qualification journey,Norway missed out on the chance and it became worse as they were relegated to the World Cricket League Division 6, from division 5.
Their bad time continued in 2009, because in August 2009, they participated in Division Six of the World Cricket League in Singapore and Norway managed to win only one of five group matches and as a result of this they finished sixth overall and relegated further to Division Seven of the World Cricket League
At present there are 6 cricket grounds in Norway and in 2009 season there are 33 clubs playing in this season.In this cup, the clubs play in four divisions and this includes the clubs being promoted and also relegated at the end of every season.
The major cup also includes The Norwegian Masters Cup , where all the clubs participate in this tournament and it is a knockout competition.This is a great opportunity for smaller clubs at the lower league to play against the best teams and have a great exposure.Usually at the early rounds they play a 30 overs game and at the final they play a regular 50 over game.
Lots of cricket are played in Norway and most encouraging things is that more clubs are on the waiting list. More grounds are to be established at Stavanger, Kristiansand, Bergen and Trondheim.Apart from this steps aare also taken to build a ground suitable for National Teams games and funds for a sports pavilion and club house have already been allocated
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