Hong Kong: 1999-2000 season review

The Hong Kong Cricket Association Development Officer, Ravi Nagdev, reviews a busy season which was notable for important breakthroughs at the junior level:

"The Hong Kong 1999/2000 season concluded on 7th May following the traditional format of staging the Saturday and Sunday League knockout Cup and Plate competitions after the completion of the league programme. A long season that began on 12th September 1999, was fortunate to have minimal disruptions from the vagaries of the Hong Kong weather.

Saturday League With the withdrawal of last year's champions Merchants, the championship was as open as it had been for some years. As their withdrawal from the league was late, no other team replaced Merchants and the championship was contested by 16 teams.

The early running was made by Nomads, Saracens, Hong Kong University(HKU) and Kai Tak and, as the season progressed, it became apparent that the championship would go to one of these teams. Kai Tak and HKU pushed the others all the way during the long season but, in the final run-in to the league championship, it all hinged on the showdown between Nomads and Saracens at the Hong Kong Cricket Club (HKCC) on the season's penultimate round of fixtures. It couldn't have been planned better at the start of the season. Nomads ran out winners and lifted the championship leaving Saracens as runners-up with Kai Tak and HKU a creditable 3rd and 4th respectively.

Saturday Cup Saturday League champions Nomads were surprisingly early casualties in the Cup competition. One of its sister HKCC clubs, Gap Ramblers, shrugged off a disappointing league season and made it to the final, beating Kai Tak (earlier conquerors of Saracens) en route. In the final they met independent side St Georges at the HKCC and ran out comfortable winners on the day for their first ever trophy.

Saturday Plate The early departure of both Nomads and Saracens from the Cup meant that they would compete in the Plate competition. Not surprisingly they made it comfortably through to the final, but the long season proved a little too long and Saracens were required to concede the final after they were unable to field a side due to player unavailability.

Sunday League Defending champions Pakistan Association had lost their leading strike bowler to rivals Little Sai Wan (LSW), and Kowloon Cricket Club (KCC) side Templars also had the potential to make a challenge for the title. The battle for the championship promised to be a tight one, and so it proved. The inclusion of batting and bowling bonus point changes added increased interest in every match and the competition as a whole.

In their head to head games, Pakistan Association, Templars and LSW each had one win each. Significantly though, the LSW losses at the hands of Pakistan Association and Templars, (the latter when the title had already been won) were its only reversals. The fact that Templars lost five games in total tells the story of what may have been had they managed to be more consistent against weaker sides. LSW clinched the title by 22 points ahead of runners-up Templars, and Pakistan Association who were third.

Sunday Cup The Sunday Cup could not commence until the final positions in the league had been decided, as the bottom three teams would be required to play in a qualifying round. HKCC side Scorpions, third from bottom, duly qualified and then, showing a complete reversal of their league form, went all the way to the final where they met the Pakistan Association at the KCC. Pakistan Association had put out LSW, earlier winners over Templars, and proved to be too strong for Scorpions. Retaining the Cup went someway to easing their disappointment at losing the League crown.

Sunday Plate Just as Scorpions in the Cup, league strugglers KCC Colts showed better form in the knockout competition than the league, and made it through to the final defeating Optimists in a tight semi-final. Friends XI underlined the improvement they have made this season by beating LSW to reach the final, and used their experience over a young Colts side to lift the trophy.

Interest in next season is already very strong with a number of new teams wishing to join the Saturday League. This is very encouraging, but the ability to accommodate these teams will depend very much on the availability of grounds for next season. Fortunately the HKCA has been able secure a new cricket ground which hopefully will be ready to stage matches before the end of next season and may make it possible to increase the number of teams participating in the Saturday League.

Junior Cricket HKCA/LCSD Primary School Playground League 16 teams representing 13 schools in Hong Kong took part in the inaugural Playground League. The finals coincided with the final of the Under 13 Tuanku Ja'afar tournament at the KCC, and were watched by a good crowd. The trophies and medals were presented by ICC Ambassador Allan Border, who was visiting Hong Kong as part of the ICC Cricket Week. The Playground League Cup was won by Quarry Bay School, whilst the Plate was won by the Hang Hau Central Shing Hang Fong Memorial School team. The competition was a great success and it is fully expected that next season's competition will boast 24 schools.

HKCA Junior Leagues
Under 11
The inaugural season of the Under 11 League saw 6 teams compete with HKCC winning in an unbeaten season.

Under 13
HKCC Black Rain came from behind in the 7 team league to take the trophy from LSW C.C. in an exciting final.

Under 15
Sandy Bay with a very strong side defeated Saracens in the eight team league to take the championship.

Under19
Saracens defeated LSW C.C. in the final of the 6 team league.

Participation in the HKCA Junior Leagues has been excellent and has seen the introduction of young players into a league environment. Interest is very high and the number of teams for next season is expected to increase, although still limited by available grounds. All Junior Leagues currently use an 8-a-side format and, with the exception of the Under 11 League, a hard ball is used."