Cricket season held at CDN-NDG after public park vandalism

Vaanavil Sport Club President Nagarajah Raveen saw the damage as he arrived last Tuesday night.

“We usually go there pretty early and we were the first to see it. We really don’t know what happened,” he said.

“We think maybe someone drunk came and maybe cut some pieces off the field with a knife.”

Cricketers and associations say the damage comes as the sport grows in popularity in the city despite places where there is a shortage to play it.

Raveen said there are 10 cricket clubs that use the field regularly, playing competition competitions on weekends and recreational competitions during the week. On the other hand, there are a few junior teams that also use the space to practice sports and improve their skills.

“A lot of people from different communities come to play here,” he said. “It’s really important for people playing on the field because there aren’t a lot of fields in Montreal.”

Mehboob Rehman is the director of the Montreal Concordia Cricket Association and has helped install other professional cricket pitches in Montreal, including two replacement surfaces at Jarry Park this week.

Materials shipped from Europe

Rehman says rubber soles and artificial turf are usually sourced from Europe or the United States, and materials that are difficult to obtain during a pandemic due to supply shortages and logistical problems. The Van Horne Park field cost CDN-NDG $ 65,000 and was installed in 2019.

“We’ve been waiting for events like this to happen,” he said.

“They started to happen eventually, and it’s very sad to see them destroyed. Cricket was played in parking lots before these fields came.”

Rehman said he visited the field to investigate the damage, which only affected the peat, and spoke to city officials who are planning to repair it.

“[It] can be about $ 10,000 to $ 12,000 for a rug, “he said.” New carpet plus installation, so we look at at least $ 15,000 – $ 16,000. “

Snowdon District City Councilor Marvin Rotrand says the vandalism happened just at the start of the cricket season and the district is looking for all options to make the field work as quickly as possible.

“Summer is coming, we will remove the COVID restrictions,” he said. “People want to get there to play, and unfortunately it takes us a while to fix this.”

The Rotrandsays district is looking for an opportunity to buy a replacement coat from Quebec instead of waiting for international suppliers to supply the original materials.

He says he wants Montreal to look at more cricket pitches to meet the growing demand for the sport. Thepitch Van Horne Park has one of five public fields on the island.