Manitoba Cricket Association President happy to see the sport growing in Portage

The Manitoba Cricket Association and Portage Cricket Club went head-to-head last night at Rotary Republic of Manitobah Park. 

This has become an annual event as they want to see the game grow in Portage. President of the Manitoba Cricket Association Garvin Budhoo says they're looking to build interest in cricket before Portage gets its own field.

"One of the reasons for us to come out here and play a game with the Portage players is so the community can see there is an interest in cricket. This will spark interest, especially when Portage gets their own field and can have their own team in the Manitoba Cricket League."

Budhoo notes the Portage Cricket Club will have an official field installed in the local area in the near future.

"The folks in Portage are very keen on building the grounds. They said they're 100 per cent behind this, and we are in full support of them," Budhoo continues. "They have a field in Southport that they are working on. We'll assist them to get the plans to build the pitch, the dimensions, and how the cricket field should be. They'll maintain the facility itself."

This is the third consecutive year the Manitoba Cricket Association has come to Portage, and Budhoo says the crowd has grown every year. He says the plan is to have a Portage team in the Manitoba Cricket League by the start of next season.

Budhoo also gives credit to Portage Community Revitalization Corporation's Cultural Connector, Megan Romphf, for spearheading this initiative.

"It's good to see that there are people outside of the cricket community that want to support this. It's a great thing to see that everyone is coming together to support this. We're really proud of it. Part of the Manitoba Cricket Association's mandate is to promote the game outside of Winnipeg. We have a number of teams in Brandon, we have a team in Winkler, and now we're adding Portage."