New club Spring Creek Strikers reaping rewards of hard work

His son Toby is only 16 months old and he's already talking about how important it is Toby has the option to play for his local club.

As he said he wants the youngster to have the opportunities he had coming through as a colt.

"Without what we've done, joining these three towns (Mailors Flat, Woolsthorpe and Winslow) together, we wouldn't have any sport for this community and the next generation of kids coming up," he said.

"That's the reason why we've pulled something together and it's working. With the support of all the kids and the young families coming out of the woodwork - it's excellent for the future of the club," he said.

Former Grassmere Cricket Association clubs Woolsthorpe and Mailors Flat merged to become the Spring Creek Strikers earlier this year after the GCA folded.

The Strikers joined the Warrnambool and District Cricket Association in June and will field division three and division four teams.

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The club also has under 13s, under 11s and a Master Blasters program for primary school-aged kids.

Senior player and club secretary Simon Poynton explained the Strikers were thriving in all age groups.

"We've got our Master Blasters (for boys and girls) which is grassroots cricket and we've got 20-odd kids coming up from school at Woolsthorpe, plus other kids coming in from other school communities," he said.

"So that's a fantastic start for the future of our club."

It's come on the back of hard work.

As Poynton said "cricket season didn't stop" for the Strikers this year.

"When you start a new club, it's quite a process. To see it today where we've got a new uniform and people in roles, people with a smile on their face - it's very rewarding," he said.

The secretary said the Strikers also had put plenty of work into gaining admission into the WDCA.

The association is big on new clubs having a strong junior program so they're sustainable.

Poynton noted the club was also open to ideas about creating junior participation opportunities with other clubs.

"Some clubs might have three or four kids of a certain age but not enough for a team so it's about working together within your community for the better of sport and kids playing," he said.

"So you might have an affiliated team for the season which is made up of three clubs so at least the kids are playing."

President Damian Jones spoke of the great numbers at senior level.

"Historically, Woolsthorpe and Mailors Flat separately have struggled for numbers week-in, week-out but since the amalgamation we've actually got that many players that it gives people, especially coming out of COVID, an opportunity to take a weekend off without stressing about letting the team down," he said.

He added there would be focus on giving younger players as many opportunities as possible.

Jones said the Strikers would fill their senior teams with ease and had considered asking the WDCA if they could enter a third team.

"But we decided lets just hold back, get through the first year first and reassess this time next year," he said.

He noted the club had wanted to field one of its teams in a higher division.

"We were hoping to play a little bit higher but this is where we got put basically (in divisions three and four)," he said.

"We can have two teams running out every week so that's the main thing, that's two teams playing for Spring Creek - it's fantastic."

Another big step for the new club has been the recent arrival of its black and green uniform.

"We eventually took the black from Woolsthorpe cricket club and the green from Mailors Flat so it's a bit of a nod to both clubs' history as well," Jones said.

"We're very mindful about making sure that history doesn't get lost."

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