By Nick Creely
One of the Dandenong District Cricket Association’s most powerful and revered clubs is exploring its options next season, with Buckley Ridges’ future in the association seriously clouded.
In a Wednesday night email after a tribunal hearing involving the abandoned Turf 1 clash between the club and Springvale South a few weeks ago, the Bucks informed the association that it wants this season to be its last, with the committee and members both informally agreeing to exploring a move.
“The committee and members have decided that this will be our last season in the DDCA,” an email from Bucks secretary Chris Rattle read.
“We will be moving to another competition at the end of the season. Thanks for all your help over the years.”
The email has been sparked by the DDCA’s decision to dock three points from the club and be fined $60 after failing to put down covers in their Round 5 clash against the Bloods.
The club is now in the process of appealing this decision to the Victorian Metropolitan Cricket Union, and Cricket Victoria if necessary, and firmly believe they did everything in its power to get a game going, right up until match day.
The Bucks believe they have “followed the covers policy to the letter”, and that the sentence is too severe, lacks procedural fairness and has a conflict of interest for panel members who are relevant to the hearing.
One of the main elements of the appeal is the one-hour window in which the DDCA directed for covers to be placed down and the commencement of rain, which fell on a working day.
The club also pointed to the fact that they did not have a curator available for the week, with the groundsman injured.
Buckley Ridges president Sonny De Silva told Star News Group that this was not an isolated incident for the club, believing that it was an “injustice” and not made impartially.
“We feel that decisions (made by the DDCA) have been made outside of policy,” he said.
“So we’ve sent through an email to the DDCA, it’s disappointing.”
The club is expected to call an extraordinary general meeting if its decides to proceed with a move out of the association, in which it has an illustrious history and standing within the region.
In the past decade, the Bucks have won three Turf 1 flags, and also snagged eight of the 12 DDCA Twenty20 titles. It’s one of the most historic clubs in the Dandenong region.
De Silva said its unsure where the club intends to play at this stage, but floated associations such as Victorian Sub-District Cricket and Cricket Southern Bayside as options.
“We’re in discussion, we’re not sure at this stage, but we want it to be our last season in the DDCA,” he said.
“Ultimately, the members will be making the decisions, but that’s what we’re after as a club.
“We understand that there is history there, but when it gets to a stage where decisions don’t make sense, you have no choice.”
Star News Group contacted DDCA president Michael Hawking, who said it would be a great shame for the association to lose one of its power clubs.
“It would be very sad to lose a mainstay of the competition, and a club that has been extremely well run, “he said.
“They’ve been a power side of the comp for so long. It would be sad.”
