To enter complete the online entry form which you can find here .
The deadline for entry will be Finnish time 23:59 December 19, 2017, so ensure your club representatives are aware that the entry period is open.
Before you enter, make sure your club meets all the Cricket Finland requirements.
Please note that entry into any FCA-sanctioned competition is not guaranteed and all entries will be vetted against the aforementioned entry requirements before being finally confirmed. All clubs will be notified in due course of the status of their applications.
We have some exciting competitions for you this summer. Here is a roundup:
ELITE T20 LEAGUE
This is an exciting new introduction to the Cricket Finland structure for 2018 and is a selection based competition for the best players in Finland, with a view to providing a more competitive level of cricket for these players to help them improve their skills as well as be a breeding ground for future Finnish international players. The league will be structured as follows;
• Three (3) teams comprising 15 player squads, to be selected by the national selection panel.
• All matches played at KNCG with white balls and coloured clothing.
• Will run over 3 weekends during summer (approx once per month)
• Each weekend will consist of a 3 way mini-tournament with each team playing each other once on the day.
• Points will accrue across the 3 weekends of play with the winner being the team scoring the most points through the series.
• Division 1 SM40 and T20 matches will be scheduled so as not to clash directly with Elite League matches as far as possible.
• Players selected to play in this league will be required to contribute towards the costs.
This league will become our showcase league for marketing purposes and we hope it will produce some great cricket. It will provide us a great opportunity to build a pathway for players, coaches and umpires towards higher levels of the game here in Finland. All games will be streamed live.
SM40
Three (3) divisions, all playing 40 overs with the following Division specific variations;
Division 1
• 6 Teams playing home and away
• Minimum ground requirements will be introduced for the playing of Division 1 matches, therefore any team wishing to register a home venue for such matches shall be required to prove that their proposed ground meets these requirements.
• As of now all matches will be played either at Kerava National Cricket Ground (KNCG) or Kupittaa (Turku), unless other suitable grounds are identified at least 3 months prior to 2018 season starting, therefore one (1) match against a team will be played at Kerava, while the other will be played at Kupittaa, with home status being assigned by draw.
• Travel cost equalisation formula will apply to all teams travelling to play, as has been the case in the previous few seasons.
• FCA will provide a suitable good quality mat for Kupittaa, which will also be available for other FCA use as is necessary.
The reason for limiting matches to KNCG and Kupittaa is in line with our desire to improve the quality of top level cricket in Finland. At present these are the only 2 grounds that meet the proposed ground requirements relating to size, quality of field, etc and will allow us to focus on developing the infrastructure at both of these grounds to ensure cricket can be played to the highest standard here in Finland. The ground standards will be formalised over coming months and be circulated to all clubs to assist them in their own discussions with the
relevant municipalities if they wish to find their own home grounds for Division 1 matches.
Divisions 2 & 3
• 10 Teams each (Dependent on entries, each of Div 2 and Div 3 will comprise half of total teams entered in these divisions, with rankings based on finishing places in 2017 SM40 Div 2, 3 & 4).
• One (1) round, meaning 9 matches per team if 10 teams are entered in each division.
• More flexible ground requirements than Division 1.
In all divisions matches shall be played using red balls in cricket whites.
At the completion of the 2018 season, two teams from Division 3 will be removed with the aim of the SM40 league being restricted to a 6 + 8 + 8 divisional structure by 2020. Therefore the bottom 2 teams in Division 3 will be unable to enter the 2019 season and the bottom 2 teams from Division 2 will be automatically relegated to Division 3. The top team from Division 3 will be promoted to Division 2.
An increase in T20 cricket is proposed in subsequent seasons to make up for the loss of SM40 matches for affected teams. From now on any new team will have to start in the T20 competition.
T20
• Assuming that entries will be similar to the 2017 season then there will be 2 Divisions of 11 and 12 teams respectively (if more than 26 teams enter then there will be 3 equal divisions).
• Rankings will be based on 2017 season
• Entry will be open to clubs from outside our current playing catchment
• All matches to be played with pink balls and in coloured clothing.
This will be our entry pathway to cricket in Finland, with all new clubs in future being required to start in the bottom division of T20 and work their way up, if they are deemed good enough both on and off the field, then an application for entry to the SM40 divisions will be considered, but not necessarily approved. This is in keeping with the increasing focus on T20 cricket by the ICC globally and in Europe.
ALTERNATIVE FORMATS
In line with the ICC's drive to use short format versions of the game as an entry point for players in non-cricketing nations, we are also looking to formalise the inclusion of tennis ball cricket and other short formats into our overall
programme. We will advise full details once we have finalised these, but please get in touch with LSC if you are interested to be a part of these events.
Don't miss out. Sign up now.