WDCA division two premier Nirranda will have to cool its heels for another 12 months outside the top grade under a competition structure announced yesterday for the 2012-13 season.
WARRNAMBOOL and district cricket will revert to a three-tiered competition for season 2012-13.
The eight-member Warrnambool and District Cricket Association board this week cut division four as part of a competition restructure.
An unprecedented 15 teams, including two each from East Warrnambool and Russells Creek, will contest division three, which will most likely be a one-day grade.
There are 12 teams in division two and 10 in division one, both two-day grades.
Chairman Nick Frampton said the three-tier competition was out of necessity.
Frampton said too few teams nominated for division three, a two-day grade, and “logic dictates you combine it with the division four, the one-day comp”.
“Obviously everyone wants to play in the top two divisions, everyone wants to be in division one and have their second side in division two,” he said.
“Most sides, if not all, nominated to have a team in the one-day comp. That’s for people who can’t commit to every Saturday.
“I don’t think it’s anything particularly against division three, it’s just where it falls.”
Frampton said there was a possibility the board would split division three into two one-day grades.
“Like we do with the juniors. There is every chance you could divide that up into a couple of different groups,” he said.
“It’s certainly not something we’ve discussed in any detail. It’s something that could be looked at when we start looking at the draws.”
The board, which finally has a quorum, decided against any promotions or demotions, meaning division two premier Nirranda will remain in the second grade.
Frampton said there were clubs outside division one which wanted to play in the top grade, but had their applications knocked back.
But he would not specify which ones.
Nirranda president Glenn Dalton yesterday would not comment on the restructure, or if the Knights had asked for promotion.
“There were clubs who nominated to come up to division one who are not currently in division one,” Frampton said.
“In line with our constitution and bylaws, they didn’t satisfy those requirements.”
Among the requirements are a club must have an under 17 side and nominate a turf wicket oval to be its home ground, which Frampton said were “for the betterment of cricket”.
“We have some very black-and-white rules there that give us guidance on these things,” he said.
“When you can’t tick the boxes you just have to follow the rules.
“In the end the clubs have put those constitution and bylaws together — it’s their own rules.”