Alice Springs to stage National Indigenous Cricket Championships

Two major Indigenous cricket competitions, supported by NT Major Events, will be hosted in Alice Springs this week with more than 350 participants taking part in the Imparja Cup and the National Indigenous Cricket Championships (NICC).

The Northern Territory Government provides significant investment to NT Cricket through facility upgrades and peak sporting body funding.

The Imparja Cup is the biggest Indigenous cricket competition in Australia with teams travelling from across the Territory to take part.

The NICC will follow the Imparja Cup from 22nd to 27th February and is an important showcase for Indigenous cricketers and provides an avenue to progress through the Australian Cricket pathways.

Around 140 players from Victoria, South Australia, Queensland, Tasmania, NSW and Western Australia will travel to Alice Springs for the competition.

The NICC provides a pathway for Indigenous cricketers to reach the elite levels of Australian representatives Scott Boland, D’Arcy Short and Ashleigh Gardiner, who have previously played in the competition.

NT Cricket Chief Executive Gavin Dovey shared “Cricket is a sport that has a rich history and connection with Indigenous Australians, and we’re delighted to be hosting these wonderful sporting events in what we consider to be Australia’s spiritual home of Indigenous cricket, Mparntwe (Alice Springs).

"It is events like the Imparja Cup and NICC that give young indigenous Australians the opportunity to showcase their talent and ultimately to try and follow in the footsteps of D’Arcy Short, Ashleigh Gardner, Scott Boland who have gone on to represent Australia at the highest levels of the sport.”

Image. Credit: Cricket NSW. Cricket NSW has announced the NSW Men’s and Women’s teams set to play at the National Indigenous Cricket Championships (NICC) from February 22-27 at Mparntwe (Alice Springs) with longstanding captain Wiradjuri woman Julie Muir at the helm of the women’s team and the men’s squad to be captained by Dunghutti man Brendan Smith.