Cricket season impacted as goalposts remain in ACT grounds

After a summer in which games were washed out left, right and centre, the Western District president hoped the new season would bring a brighter outlook for cricket in the ACT.

So imagine his shock when the club turned up to Kaleen Oval to find football goalposts remained in the middle of the field.

It's a situation that's not uncommon across Canberra, with a number of fields affected by the delay in removing the posts. Out of 53 grounds, goalposts have been removed from 31, with a further 22 still to go.

While most clubs have been able to work around the posts to ensure games proceed, the layout at Kaleen forced Wests to cancel last week's third grade clash.

The goalposts were eventually removed on Wednesday, allowing matches to return to the venue and training to go ahead unimpeded.

While pleased the situation is resolved, Smith was frustrated it came after the season had already started.

"Weather permitting, we'll be back on there from this weekend," Smith said.

"It's an excellent result, it's a shame it couldn't have happened a couple of weeks earlier but it's a positive they're now out of the ground."

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Among the venues affected are Phillip Enclosed, forcing Weston Creek Molonglo to adjust boundaries for safety reasons.

The government points to the recent wet weather as the primary factor for the delay in removing goalposts.

Heavy machinery is required to be driven on to the fields to lift the posts out of the ground. Given how much water currently sits in the grass fields, the risk of vehicles being bogged is high.

The ACT government's Transport and City Services Directorate took advantage of the sunshine earlier in the week to remove some of the goalposts however they were unable to provide a firm timeline on when the work will be completed.

"The sports ground team are working to remove goalposts from grounds as soon as the surface is firm enough for the machinery required to remove them safely," a spokesperson said. "The process to remove the goalposts involves a six tonne crane moving on to the ground.

"The recent rainfall has meant we have areas where the soil profile is so saturated that the use of heavy equipment could be unsafe or result in damage to the sports ground surface which in turn could lead to extended closures."

While cricket clubs are responsible for maintaining the pitches at their respective home grounds, the ACT government largely manages the fields themselves.

The lack of venues has made relocating fixtures a challenging task.

The forecast rain is also likely to make matters worse in a city already feeling the pinch from a shortage of turf cricket grounds.

Cricket ACT has been working with the government to resolve any outstanding issues and the organisation is confident the early season hiccups will soon be ironed out.

"Our conversations with the government have been positive," General manager of competitions Matthew Phelps said. "We recognise the effort they are going to try and get these posts out.

"We're working diligently with the government to rectify the whole situation. Unfortunately we can't control the weather. The government has been committed to supporting the game.

"We're dealing with a once in a decade situation. Given the amount of rain we've had, we've got to be flexible and work with the government as best we can."

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