Cricket Leinster is delighted to unveil it has reached an agreement to continue its working relationship within Dublin City Sport & Wellbeing Partnership for a further period.

The partnership created in 2014 has played a significant and powerful role in reaching out to local people in Dublin City to help them gain access to cricket.Cricket Leinster has been proud to work with other Dublin City Sport & Wellbeing Partnership’s generic Sport Officers plus their other co-funded Development Officers in the sports of boxing, soccer, rugby and rowing to enable a greater sharing of knowledge and skills to first increase, but vitally to retain sporting participation in the region.

Speaking following the announcement, Programme and Services Manager Antonia Martin outlined the importance Cricket Leinster was playing to the programme stating:

“Dublin City Sport & Wellbeing Partnership is delighted to partner with Cricket Leinster to implement integrated cricket development programmes across Dublin City. Our experience to date has proved that we can achieve more by working together – our own Sports Officers providing the local community knowledge and the ‘Cricket in the Community’ Development Officer (currently Fintan McAllister) providing the expertise of the game. The Partnership between our two organizations has enabled both children and adults, in non-traditional cricket playing backgrounds in Dublin City to “have a go” and experience the game first hand. Sustainability of cricket within communities is a key priority for both ourselves and Cricket Leinster and we continuously work together to achieve this.”

Fintan McAllister, the former Ireland international, and now head of Cricket Leinster Development Coaching within the Dublin City area added, “It is a great boost to Leinster cricket to see the continuation of the link with the Sport & Wellbeing Partnership. I hope that this news will encourage even more to join the exciting activities being rolled out in the coming months”

Brian O’Rourke, the Leinster Cricket Development Manager welcomed the continuation of the partnership noting “the support of DCS&WP plays a vital role in our Union’s youth development programmes which continue to set a very high standard.I am personally delighted as CDM to have the Sport & Wellbeing Partnership’s full and public support behind our ambitious goals for developing cricket in Leinster over the next few years. Cricket has made a big impact over the past four years with close working relationships being established with the 18 sports officers employed by the Sport & Wellbeing Partnership throughout the city”

For further information on the opportunities within the Dublin City area, or to learn more about cricket in Leinster visit www.cricketleinster.ie, follow on twitter @cricketleinster or, contact local Development Officer fintan.mcallister@cricketleinster.ie.

Photo: Sporting bodies currently in partnership with Dublin City Council at a recent get-together at Dublin’s Mansion House on Dawson Street.