Rothbury Wilkinson Ewen Chatfield Draw Released for 2017-18

Rothbury Wilkinson Ewen Chatfield Draw Released for 2017-18

With many clubs around the region already engaged in pre-season training, Cricket Wellington are pleased to announce the draw for the 2017-18 Rothbury Wilkinson Ewen Chatfield Premier one-day competition.

This season’s competition is structured the same as in previous seasons, with a full round of one-day matches before the competition splits into the top 6 Pearce Cup and the bottom 6 Hazlett Trophy competitions for the two-day rounds.

The Wellington U19 side will take a break from club competition in 2017-18 with their national tournament scheduled earlier in the season due to the U19 World Cup taking place throughout New Zealand in January.

Cricket Wellington CEO, Cam Mitchell, acknowledged the significance of this particular competition in acknowledging our past and inspiring the future:

“The Rothbury Wilkinson Ewen Chatfield Trophy is named for one of the stalwarts of cricket in our region, someone who has achieved at all levels and still maintains the passion to play club cricket. It’s a fitting name to have on the trophy and an inspiration to players at all levels.”

The competition begins on the 14th of October with a full round of matches and will conclude with the final on Sunday the 28th of January.

Reigning Ewen Chatfield Trophy, Pearce Cup, and National Club Champions, Eastern Suburbs, will begin their season at home to Wellington Collegians while beaten-finalists, Karori, will travel to Alex Moore to take on Johnsonville.

The match between Karori and Johnsonville will reignite a strong rivalry that has built through some very close results in recent years. Last season’s 10-run Karori victory, after Johnsonville appeared to be cruising to victory, stands out among those and will give the western suburbs’ side plenty of inspiration for the first round match-up.

Cricket Wellington’s Competitions’ Administrator, Nick Hogan, is excited about the draw being released and what it means in terms of setting up the season ahead:

“Releasing the draw is always an important step in preparing for the season. The draw represents another tough, competitive season of cricket for all the premier sides with teams already training hard.”

Cricket Wellington’s Rivalry Round initiative has been pushed back to December the 16th with exciting match ups between local clubs.

“Through moving Rivalry Round to a later date it’s hoped that clubs can reignite some competitive battles in the sunshine with plenty of local bragging rights on offer,” Hogan commented.

The match-ups in the rivalry round include a rematch of both major finals last season with Karori hosting Eastern Suburbs. Other games include Johnsonville travelling to Onslow, Wellington Collegians hosting University, Naenae playing host to Taita, Upper Hutt traversing the Haywards to North City, and Petone and Hutt District facing off.

CEO Cam Mitchell is effusive when talking about the importance of club cricket, acknowledging the hard-work and dedication that goes into the club season:

“There is nothing quite like the passion that comes with club cricket – whether from players, administrators, or fans. Cricket Wellington want to support this passion and ensure it thrives so we’re committed to working with clubs to ensure the 2017-18 season delivers for all involved.”

The last four seasons have seen Eastern Suburbs win the title three times with Onslow the only team to break their run, winning in 2014-15. Overall, Eastern Suburbs have won the Ewen Chatfield Trophy 6 times while Karori and Naenae have been crowned champions on 2 occasions. Onslow, Hutt District, North City, and Upper Hutt all have won the trophy once.

Now that the draw has been released, teams can start plotting their path to history in 2017-18.

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