There is a call to arms being heralded throughout the Bay of Plenty Cricket region for former club cricket players to return to the game in a new Over 35 Twenty 20 league to be played on Sunday afternoons.

Cricket Manager at Bay of Plenty Cricket Mark Webb says the new over 35 years-of-age T20 league is being established to get former competitive club players back into cricket.

File pic.

'Many players drift away from the game on retirement from club cricket and it is hoped the new Sunday league will see formers players re-establish links with Bay of Plenty clubs.”

The Sunday T20 league would be club based, with Bay of Plenty cricket communication with the regions clubs receiving many positive responses.

'While several Western Bay of Plenty cricket clubs have indicated that they will field sides in the Over 35 league, we are keen to get teams from throughout the region involved.”

Twenty 20 cricket is the ideal vehicle for the new Sunday league, as games are usually completed in three hours, which should work well for many of the former players who now have young families as their main priority on the weekends.

Twenty 20 cricket has taken the world by storm since being introduced in England and Wales in 2003.

Cricket authorities in England were looking to boost the games popularity with the younger generation, in the face of dwindling crowds.

The new version of the game delivered instant action, with boundaries under siege throughout both innings and attracted thousands of new (and younger) spectators back to watch T20 County Cricket.

Since then T20 has exploded around the world with every major cricket nations having a T20 league.

Some of the biggest T20 crowds in New Zealand will fill the confines of the BOP Cricket Oval at Blake Park in Mount Maunganui, when the HRV Cup hits town for two matches in early January 2013.

It is hoped that the return of former players will have a flow on effect with clubs.

Many former players have picked up a vast range of transferable skills since retirement from the game, which would be ideally suited to administration duties in the regions clubs.