As the spotlight swings to Adelaide for the start of Australian cricket’s "supposed new era, local administrators, rather than basking in the attention, are being grilled by parliament about problems that reflect the game’s wider malaise," according to Andrew Faulkner of THE AUSTRALIAN. A state parliament inquiry into aspects of South Australian cricket has heard that "junior sides are forfeiting games and teams are fielding players 'not up to the standard,' while the state's administration is at war with two of its grassroots clubs." Cricket Australia’s boasts about "Australia’s favourite sport" sound "hollow" for clubs struggling to find enough youngsters to fill a side on Saturdays. It raises the question of whether local clubs "are receiving the support they need." The South Australian Cricket Association is "at loggerheads" with Port Adelaide and West Torrens over its push to merge the 120-year-old clubs. The parliamentary select committee is "investigating SACA’s reasons for, and deliberations over, the merger" (THE AUSTRALIAN, 11/22).
