With two successful seasons under its belt, Century Cricket Competitions Brisbane Senior Tournament (formerly the Brisbane Premier League), is excited to be expanding throughout the state for its third iteration, and first under the new rebrand reflecting the exciting, fast based 100-ball format.
2023 will see 10 Senior teams participate this year – in two pools of 5. Including the addition of two new teams, one regional and one inter-state. Century Cricket Competitions is delighted to welcome the Great Barrier Reef Rays (GBR Rays) and the Eastern Comets Adelaide All Stars. “Growth of the Brisbane competition was always on the Century Cricket roadmap, so it is very exciting for us to be expanding into regional Queensland. We’ve always had a focus on showcasing regional talent in the competition, and by including a regional team such at the Rays, we get to see more of this than ever before. The Century Cricket Adelaide edition in January this year was a resounding success and it is fantastic to see the All-Stars representing that region. With Queensland Cricket again providing access to their world-class facilities at Norths, Century Cricket Brisbane 23 promises to be a fantastic season kick-off to the summer of cricket.” says Chair of Century Cricket Group, Stuart Giles.
The Great Barrier Reef Rays hail from the country cricket stronghold of North QLD. Known as the best regional cricket ground in Australia, the Great Barrier Reef Arena is the official Reef Rays headquarters. The GBR Rays will initially participate only in the Seniors for 2023. Great Barrier Reef Arena General Manager Adrian Young stated “The Rays have strong aspirations to provide a pathway for regional cricketers from the North, the opportunity to compete against the best cricketers in QLD. With a quick turnaround, the support from our amazing sponsors who are aligned with our vision for cricket development, the Rays have come to life. We have high hopes and spirits even higher, and we’re eager to take our first steps towards making a mark in Century Cricket Competitions Brisbane. With determination, hard work, and unwavering community support, the boys from the Reef are ready to embark on an exciting journey towards becoming a fierce contender in the Competition, and are here to prove that talent from the north can compete with the best in Brisbane”.
Mr Young also went on to mention that while Country players are high on their list to include and retain in their team, they of course will be looking for talent further abroad, ensuring they are well rounded and competitive through all age groups come next year when the Juniors are included. In addition to the permanent team of the GBR Rays, the Competition is pleased to welcome the 10th team for this year’s Senior competition, the Eastern Comets Adelaide All Stars. The Comets All Stars, headed by successful Adelaide Franchisee Rocky Zappia, will be participating in this year Seniors competition only as an invitational side after being approached by Century Cricket Competitions Brisbane.
“The Comets are looking forward to heading up to Brisbane to compete in their Seniors Competition. We were lucky enough to have a couple of Brisbane players down in Adelaide over the Summer for tanya@centurycricket.group centurycricketgroup.com.au 0417 263 463 our inaugural Adelaide comp and they all performed really well, so there’ll definitely be a healthy rivalry there against these teams,” stated Rocky Zappia.
Nick Fitzpatrick, Queensland Executive Director said “We are looking forward to welcoming a second permanent Queensland based team to partake in the Brisbane Competition in the future, but are equally delighted to have Rocky and his All-Stars ensure we have a 10-team comp this year. Rocky was a model franchise operator across the opening season in Adelaide and had even travelled up to watch the Brisbane comp last year so he certainly already knows the ropes and I am sure the AllStars will be a team to watch.”