New cricket partnership in the Pacific

The Australian Government is partnering with Cricket Australia to grow the game in the Pacific.

The Australia-Pacific Cricket Linkages Program, funded under PacificAus Sports, will facilitate access to elite competitions for Pacific athletes, support pathway programs and offer opportunities to strengthen ties between First Nations Australians and the Pacific family.

This program will be delivered in partnership with the Vanuatu Cricket Association and Cricket Papua New Guinea and allow Pacific cricketers to access Australia’s high-performance coaching, training and development pathways to take their performances to the next level.

Papua New Guinea’s national women’s and men’s squads will also compete in elite Australian competitions under the program, including the Top End T20 and the Australian Country Cricket Championships.

Australia’s national men’s and women’s Indigenous cricket teams will also tour Vanuatu under the program to promote First Nations cultural engagement with our region.

This support reinforces the Australian Government’s ongoing commitment to elite sports in the Pacific under PacificAus Sports, including recent investments in strengthening the capacity of women administrators in rugby union through Oceania Rugby, and working with the AFL to develop Aussie Rules pathways in Nauru, Fiji and Papua New Guinea.

See Cricket Australia announcement for quotes from Minister Conroy, Cricket Australia, Cricket Papua New Guinea, Vanuatu Cricket Association and Papua New Guinea Women’s Team Head Coach.