The Vanuatu Cricket Association is pleased to announce its newest domestic competition, the ‘SPL Challenge’ in partnership with Societe Pastorale De La Loumpate Limited (SPL). The competition will kick off on Saturday June 12 at the Vanuatu Cricket Grounds and will continue until Saturday July 3rd.
The SPL Challenge will replace the planned men’s 50 over competition and will be played in the T20 format by the men and T10 format by the women. The aim of the SPL Challenge is to encourage competitive cricket across men and women’s cricket in Vanuatu starting with club cricket in Port Vila.
The decision to have the SPL Challenge and postpone the 50 over men’s competition to August was made to accommodate the changes for the Cricket World Cup Challenge League which has been postponed to November - December of this year 2021 and cater for more women’s cricket competitions in Vanuatu.
The men’s T20 challenge will be played in two divisions with the top four (4) teams from the T20 club championship competing in division 1 and the remaining three teams in division 2. The teams competing in division 1 are; Splashe Mele Bulls, Paama Sharks, Mighty Saints and Power House Panthers; and the teams competing in division 2 are; Ifira Black Birds, Tafea Sandalwood and North Efate Bush Pigs.
Four teams will be competing in the women’s T10 challenge namely, Splashe Mele Bulls, Ifira Black Birds, Mighty Saints and a combine VCA team known as the Rebels, made up of players from Paama Sharks, Power House Panthers, Tafea Sandalwood and North Efate Bush Pigs.
Societe Pastorale De La Loumpate Limited have jumped on board with the VCA since the High Performance T10 league and have been major supporters of VCA club competitions since, with the most recent being the T20 club championship.
Melissa Fare, VCA’s Marketing and sponsorship manager, expressed that the VCA are ecstatic and grateful to have this partnership with them which has contributed to the success of club cricket this year.
“We are extremely grateful for their support because it has allowed us to facilitate our competitions and also celebrate the talent and skills of our cricketers as well as boost the profile of women’s cricket in our communities.
“SPL’s Director, Walter Furet, is passionate about giving back and making a difference in our communities through sport which is evident through his support of our competitions and other sporting teams in the country. So, we are very thankful and appreciative to have this partnership with him and for his support again for the SPL Challenge,” said Fare.
The SPL Challenge will commence on Saturday June 12 with two women’s T10 matches at 11:00am at the Vanuatu Cricket Grounds (VCG) which will see the Mighty Saints take on Ifira Black Birds and Splashe Mele Bulls against the Rebels. Two men’s division 1 matches will follow at 1:00pm at the VCG will see Splashe Mele Bulls face off against their rivals, Paama Sharks and Power House Panthers will play against Mighty Saints and the only men’s division 2 match will be played at Independence Park at 1:00pm between Ifira Black Birds and North Efate Bush Pigs.
All fixtures for the SPL Challenge can be found on CricHQ via the links below:
Men’s division 1 fixtures: https://www.crichq.com/competitions/14261/draws/51794/rounds
Men’s division 2 fixtures: https://www.crichq.com/competitions/14261/draws/51795/rounds
Women’s T10 challenge: https://www.crichq.com/competitions/14261/draws/51796/rounds
