Junior Girls
Christchurch is proud to provide a very strong Junior Girls competition.
We have nearly 300 girls playing in Girls only junior teams, alongside many more girls in mixed and other formats.
The CJCA are committed to continuing to grow the number of girls playing cricket in Christchurch.
Girls Grades
The CJCA and Christchurch Metro Cricket Association (CMCA) along with club representatives, have developed a new pathway for all female only grades, through to Premier Cricket.
Girls can of course play in mixed, or girls only teams. This new pathway recognises the broad range of age and ability for each grade. Age and Stage considers the experience and range of abilities typical of a club’s girls only team. There are subtle differences between the grades to offer a suitable format for all abilities.
Confident younger skilled players may play ahead of their age whereas less experienced older players may also benefit from play in grade younger than their current school year.
Dispensations to play down must be registered with the CJCA prior to playing but players (and their guardians) playing up must accept the responsibility for any risk factors that arise from this.
Pathway through Junior, Youth and Women’s cricket
| Team Numbers | Ball | Equipment | Pitch Length | Grace Period | Game Length | Age Group | |
| Division FIVE
(new) |
8 | Club Weight Incrediball | Plastic or wooden bats / Gloves optional | 14m
Outfield Wickets |
Pairs format | 16 overs
Pairs bat 4 overs |
Years 3/4/5 |
| Division FOUR
(Super 8s) |
8 | Match Weight Incrediball | Wooden bats
Minimum: Front pad, gloves and Helmet |
16m
Generally Artificials |
Pairs format | 20 Overs
Pairs bat 5 overs |
Years 5/6/7 |
| Division THREE
(Intermediate) |
9 | 142g Hardball | Wooden bats
Minimum: Pads, gloves and Helmet |
18m
Generally Artificials |
6 Ball Grace Period | 20 Overs | Years 7/8/9 |
| Division TWO
(new) |
9 | 142g Hardball | Wooden bats
Minimum: Pads, gloves and Helmet |
18m
Generally Artificials |
3 Ball Grace Period | 25 Overs | Years 8/9/10 |
| Division ONE | 9 | 142g Hardball | 20m
Full Length |
30 Overs | Open age (Year 9+) | ||
| Social 8s | 8 | 142g Hardball | 20m
Full Length |
20 Overs | Open age (Year 9+) | ||
| Premiers | 11 | 20m
Full Length |
Multiple formats | Open age (Year 9+) |
Girls Festivals
The CJCA runs a Spring Festival in November/December and a Summer Festival in February/March each season, as well as the CJCA Girls Invitational played over the January school break.
Nominations will open and be advertised in September.
We strongly encourage all girls to play in these extra opportunities even if this is your first year of cricket. It is great fun; the girls get to meet and play with other girls from different teams and the games are generally close because we select even teams to participate.
If you have friends that play another sport on a Saturday and would like to play in the festival then encourage them to nominate themselves, it is also a great opportunity for girls that play in our school competitions to play extra cricket. Although the main emphasis is on raising the level of cricket and additional playing opportunities, further inter-districts playing opportunities are also organised from these festivals.
CJCA’s primary objective for these festivals is to provide all players with opportunities to further develop their skills in cricket. It is hoped that skills developed at these festivals will provide players with added confidence to regularly compete at a high standard in their respective age groups and so increase their levels of enjoyment and commitment.
Further playing opportunities
We strongly suggest that you play in these festivals in order to prepare to play in additional Festivals; such as CJCA Primary Girls Invitational Festival played in January each year.
Questions? Please free to contact our Grade manager on [email protected]