Cricket, the Melanesians' passion and traditional sport "par excellence", has been able to maintain its prestige over the years and is today a sporting discipline in its own right.The ease and suppleness with which the players run and manipulate their bat is to be admired and a match is always accompanied by joy and laughter.
The players are cheered on by groups of supporters who clap their hands or beat on boxes or drums with boisterous rhythm.
A historic of cricket
This team sport, invented, developed and played by the English, was imported by protestant missionaries. It is a sport which in New Caledonia is played mostly by women, particularly on the Mainland where almost every tribe has a team. Today, the traditional cricket has gradually moved away from its origins to become specifically local.
The game now has nothing comparable with that played in its country of origin. International cricket matches are however organised each year with teams from the Pacific region.
The aim and conduct of the game
For the spectator, the game involves two teams comprised of 13 players and 4 substitutes, with each team attempting to defend a wicket of three stumps planted into the ground.
The dimensions of a traditional cricket ground are 100 metres in length by 65 metres in width.
The purpose of a game of cricket for both teams is :
- To score the most runs possible.
- To eliminate as quickly as possible the batsman defending the wicket.
The equipment for the game
The players in defence use a bat to hit the ball with. The dimensions of this bat must be 1,10 metres in length with a width of between 7 and 10 centimetres.
The only thing required for playing traditional cricket is the ball or « boule » made of rubber and made locally according to the reglementary standards which impose a diameter of 7 centimetres.
The target which the bowler seeks to topple is the wicket. The latter is comprised of three stumps planted in the ground and surmounted by two short pieces of wood (bales).
The stumps are sufficiently close together to prevent the ball from travelling between them. The wicket is defended by « the batsman ».
The officials
There are two umpires (paea), two scorers and a "match referee".
The scorers, There are 2 of these, who record the scores and manage the scoresheet.
The umpires « paea », there are also two of these who must belong to a club to be able umpire a match. During the match the umpires make all the necessary decisions. They are chosen for their indepth knowledge of the rules of the game. They direct the match with absolute respect for the rules of the game and their decisions are final.
They ensure that the reglementary dimensions of the bats are respected and that the players are correctly dressed, as well as checking the licences and identities of the players. They also conduct the toss (a coin or short straw) to determine which team will choose to bat or bowl first. They then give the signal to start the game. Finally they write down the results of the match on the match sheet.
The men are dressed in white (trousers, shirt or jumper) and the women wear the traditional mission dress which must be of a different colour from that of the other team.
The match referee is the official representative of the French Cricket Federation. He oversees the match's progress. His authority extends to all sporting problems and to general discipline except on the pitch during the match.
He ensures that match times are respected. At the end of the match, he sends the match sheet to the French Cricket Federation.
The players
The dress code for a female cricket player must be a mission dress in the club colours which must stop 7 cms above the knees, a pair of sports shoes, and a pair of stockings or socks in the club colours.
To maintain the popular charm of cricket, young female players are advised to choose the same coloured printed material or the same colour of designs which are the closest to the club colours.
For men the standard dress is a jumper in the club colours, a pair of shorts and a pair of sports shoes.
Watches, rings and bracelets are strictly forbidden for reasons of security.
Players wishing to participate in an offical match must have a licence valid for the current year.
The captain of each team fills in the match sheet with the identity of the players.
The bowlers, called « bola » are chosen for their ability to bowl and their good knowledge of the rules of the game. Their job is to eliminate the opposing batsmen.
The match
A traditional cricket match is played between two teams comprised only of men or women, in four innings of two times at batting and two times at bowling (these are known as "tapées" and "services") played alternatively after "the toss" with the winning team choosing whether they bowl or bat.
The length of the match cannot be fixed : it depends on the time it takes for the 13 players who are in the « tapée » which can be interrupted by numerous stops to the game due to substituting players, lost balls.
We can say that a match can last :
- More than 4 hours between 2 teams of the same standard
- 2 hours approximately if the teams have a different technical level.
To enable them to better follow the game, a scoreboard is set up facing the spectators. It highlights the score achieved by the batsman and the points total.
Cricket in figures
In 2004, New Caledonia had 142 cricket teams within 84 clubs.
There were 80 women's teams, 38 men's teams and 24 youth teams (from 14 to 18 years)
There are 3,227 licensed players including 493 youths, 973 men and 1,761 women.
Bibliography
| « La Nouvelle-Calédonie aujourd’hui » | Editions du Jaguar (Arlette EYRAUD) |
|---|---|
| Règles du cricket | (Ligue de cricket) |
| « Nouvelle-Calédonie » | Editions du Pacifique (M. HOSKEN, B. HERMANN, B. SAUDEAU) |
| « Nouvelle-Calédonie » | Editions Hachette Calédonie |
| « Règlements de jeu du cricket traditionnel » | Fédération Régionale de Cricket |