Cricket in Majorca
Dear Sir,
Cricket in Majorca cannot survive under the present rules of engagement. For cricket to survive on the island several factors must be put into the mix and others must be dismissed.
Mallorca Cricket Club does not have the financial wherewithal to organise and run a new complex for the benefit of cricket on the island.
Cohesion with the local council is critical, whether it be with the council of Calvia or indeed another municipality. Funding for a project such as a cricket club cannot be expected to come from any local council. They have more than enough problems paying for the existing sports facilities and their maintenance before spending out on a project which would involve a capital investment in the region of 350,000 €, with very little ‘payback’ in the form of revenue.
The council of Calvia have once again said they would support the cricket club with the provision of a suitable site but the payment for a pavilion and refreshment facilities are out of their budget - and this does not include the expense of having a decent all year round playing surface, something essential if touring teams are to come to the Island during our ‘winter’ months.
Whilst the present Club has done a tremendous job over the last 25 years of bringing tourism down to the island during the off season, the time has come to use this goodwill, along with the clubs many connections, and to pass these valuable assets to a professional body. This body may then invest into a cricket project promoting a sporting venue that can be enjoyed by the local community both with the playing, and the social side of cricket.
Local business and the tourism industry should be the prime targets for providing their knowledge, experience, and capital. For this capital to be forthcoming, no business is going to provide the capital and then stand back. They must be given the ‘rights’ to manage their investment and make a profit from it. This may come from leasing the pitch and facilities out for games of cricket, or other sports, and to the running of a bar and restaurant or any other activity. Local hotel chains should be actively engaged on a corporate level with a commitment for extending the normal tourist ‘season’ where any visiting teams are obliged to reciprocate the faith and inversion of capital into a cricket project by supporting the hotel chain by using its accommodation. Mallorca Cricket Club should be left to use its expertise in the arrangement of a full fixture list and help arrange training facilities for the professional teams wishing to visit for outdoor winter sessions.
Perhaps it might be an idea that the Cricket Club spend some its limited resources on an accurate independent assessment of the viability of a cricket club on the island, with reference to the exact number of people and the nights stayed in the hotel environment over the last 25 years and the influence it has had on the restaurant and the bar trade. Interested businesses for a cricket project could use this information as a basis for their ‘number crunching’ and assessment of the potential market for the future, hopefully to provide a solid base for playing cricket on the island for years to come.
Yours sincerely,
Paul Heaton
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