Hinds to play at Queen Elizabeth park

The Central Districts Hinds women's cricket team seem certain to play two of their home matches at Queen Elizabeth Park oval in Masterton in the 2009-2010 season.
Confirmation of venues is still forthcoming but Times-Age inquiries indicate Central Districts administrators are looking "very favourably" on Masterton being allocated the two Hinds matches , which would each involve three days of play.....Twenty20 on Friday and one-day games on both Saturday and Sunday.
The news will be music to the ears of Wairarapa cricket officials who have long been pressing hard for major provincial matches to be played at the park oval ,one of the country's most picturesque grounds.
There is, of course, a strong Wairarapa connection to the Hinds for this coming season with Masterton's Doug Bracewell having been appointed to the coaching role.
He will be in charge of a side likely to include several of New Zealand's top women players,.including the formidable quintet of Aimee Watkins, Sara McGlashan, (sister of Black Cap Peter McGlashan).Rachel Candy, Abby Burrows and Rachel Priest, all of whom are current Black Ferns.
Bracewell is understandably "very excited" at the prospect of what will be the only two home games played by the Hinds in 2009-10 being staged at the park oval.
"It's huge for Wairarapa cricket, just the shot in the arm we need," he said. "It's a wonderful cricket ground and we'd be rapt to be playing there."..
Bracewell has already held one training camp for prospective Hinds players in recent weeks and he has organised another for Palmerston North tomorrow.
While it is early days yet Bracewell is optimistic a well-balanced and competitive side will be on hand once the inter-provincial season comes around. "The early signs are encouraging, no doubt about that," he said.
Meanwhile, two Wairarapa players, top order batsman Sam Curtis and all-rounder Seth Rance, have made the Central Stars pre-training squad , members which will attend camps in Napier from October 12 to 14 and October 20 to 22.
Curtis has just returned from a hugely successful stint in English minor league and says he is looking forward to a representative season which will see the Wairarapa senior men's team, which Curtis captains with Rance as his deputy, play three of their matches at home, almost certainly at the park oval.
Typcally, Curtis doesn't beat around the bush when asked whether Wairarapa can achieve their dream of a Hawke Cup challange, something they came precarilously close to last season.
"We expect to beat everyone we play,and there is no reason why we shouldn't", he
said.
Curtis is also in for a busy season in his job as Wairarapa's cricket development officer. The six-week Milo programme will again be the centre of early attention with 10 country schools from Tiraumea in the north and Pirinoa in the south being involved. Amazingly Wairarapa have the second highest number of Milo Kiwi participants in the whole of the country and Curtis is determined to further boost the numbers this time round
Other initiatives include a business house Twenty20 competition planned for February-March next year, a Cultures Cup one-day series which will feature players of Maori, Pacific Island and Indian ethnicity, secondary and primary school midweek competitions including a secondary schoolboys Super 8 series and a year seven and 8 s "Quikhit" competition specificially designed for girls.
Curtis also revealed yesterday that Central Districts development manager Nigel Brooks would be coming to Wairarapa on October 18 and November 10 for a series of sessions aimed at enhancing the knowledge of local coaches, from beginners through to those who have been involved at first XI level.