YOUTH PATHWAY HUBS IDENTIFIED FOR 2023 SEASON

• 18 Hubs to be established across the country to facilitate youth pathway competitions
• Hub entities to take responsibility for all operational aspects of U11, U13, U15 and U17 Hub Competitions
• The number of Hubs is expected to increase from 2024 as player numbers grow

USA Cricket and Development Committee are pleased to announce the following list of Hubs, established for this year’s rollout of age-group youth competitions.

Hub-based competition is designed to be the first level of age-group representative cricket. The hope is that it will add further context and meaning to local hard-ball youth cricket by providing a clear framework for advancement along the pathway, and helping foster and encourage growth in numbers and quality of competition. In many instances, Hub and local cricket may operate in parallel, but they are to remain distinctly separate competitions. Whilst Hub-based competition sits above local youth cricket on the player pathway (see image below), it should in no way replace or diminish local youth cricket.

Hub entities are being established to help facilitate and operate these age-group competitions. USA Cricket is empowering these entities to take full responsibility for the operation of Hub-level competition, including scheduling, selections, and financial management. Part of the Hub entity’s purpose is to foster cooperation and unity across all academies/clubs/organizations in their catchment area, with the make-up of the Hub body to include representatives from all local youth cricket stakeholders. Although in some instances a ‘lead organization’ will be appointed, this is merely for logistical purposes, with the collective still very much taking overall operational and decision-making responsibility for the Hub.

Hubs effectively break the USA Cricket Zones into smaller more manageable chunks, predominantly based on geographic considerations. The aim is to lessen the amount of inter-zonal travel and other logistical challenges which we acknowledge can place a tremendous burden on parents, players, and administrators alike, whilst still ensuring Hub players are getting a good standard of competition. As participation continues to grow across the country, we hope to expand the number of hubs in 2024 and beyond.

The Hub Competitions are broken into four age-groups, with U11 competition remaining at Hub Level, U13 competition finishing at the Zonal Championship stage, and U15 and U17 both culminating in National Championship tournaments in the latter half of the year. Hub activities will be concluded by early July at the latest to ensure selectors can pick teams in time for Zonal Championships. Over the coming weeks, Hub Entities will be working hard on team and player registration details, with some competitions set to start almost immediately.

Further details on all these events will be published in due course.

Chair of the USA Cricket Development Committee, Venu Pisike, said, “A huge amount of work has been done since we announced a desire to partner with local organizations in the rolling out of these pathway competitions. The response from the community has been very encouraging, and the robust conversations reveal just how much passion there is out there for youth cricket. A huge amount of thanks must also go to the Youth Steering Committee for their guidance, the Volunteer Youth Coordinators for their tireless efforts to bring their communities to the table, and the Development Committee for their vision. We’re really excited to build on the start we made last year with the U13 and U15 competitions and look forward to an exciting year of cricket.”

USA Cricket Development Manager, Jamie Lloyd, added, “We know that passionate individuals and groups across the country have kept youth cricket alive, and in many cases thriving for many years in the United States. We’re thrilled to partner with these local organizations, and to offer our guidance as we empower and equip them to take responsibility for a nation-wide pathway of youth cricket competitions in 2023 and beyond. Establishing a clearer pathway from local to representative cricket is essential to ensure growth in both numbers and quality across all aspects of the sport. The opportunity to advance along the pathway should now be clearer for all stakeholders, with opportunities to be involved for players, coaches, match officials and administrators alike.”

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ABOUT USA CRICKET
USA Cricket is the National Federation for cricket in the United States as recognized by the International Cricket Council. USA Cricket’s mission is to govern, regulate, develop and promote all forms of cricket at all levels in the United States, and to enable U.S. cricketers to achieve sustained competitive excellence and successfully compete in national and international competition. Through a diverse Board of Directors that has representation from most cricket stakeholder groups, USA Cricket will lead the sport to new heights by creating and administering value added programs to grow and develop the sport.