GCA T20 competition fixture revealed for midweek competition

The fixture has been drawn and there are some massive games of cricket scheduled for round 1 of the new GCA T20 competition. See the full fixture here.

Noah Quick snared 3-20 as East Belmont downed South Barwon and clinched the GCA Club Championship. Picture: Wes Cusworth.

The GCA T20 competition has the chance to produce a ‘David and Goliath’ storyline when the knockout format begins, with hotly anticipated cross-divisional clashes drawn in Tuesday’s fixturing.

Teesdale is the only division 4 teams to have drawn a top-flight opponent in the competition, facing off against St Joseph’s in the first round.

Meanwhile North Geelong will host Grovedale in the only first-round game between two division 1 sides.

GCA president Rob Vines said the tournament was designed to “be like the FA Cup competition”.

“The knockout format is away from the normal divisions and something we haven’t really explored before,” he said.

“It’s something different, a good way to have games with teams in different divisions.

“It’s designed to have that FA Cup feel to it, with all divisions represented.”

The clubs in the lower divisions will host the head-to-head matches, meaning Bell Park will travel to Meredith, South Barwon to Murgheboluc and East Belmont to Modewarre.

Only five of the 16 games slated for the first round are within the same division, with the other 11 contests to be played across different grades.

Teesdale’s clash with St Joseph’s and Modewarre match against East Belmont will be the only two games in the first round where there is at least a two-division difference between the opponents.

East Belmont’s Hayden McMahon. Picture: Mark Wilson

Vines said the inter-division competition was designed to provide clubs a chance to play opponents that are typically in different grades.

“The whole purpose is to have it away from division structures,” he said.

“It gives a bit of a point of difference for the competition, because teams have only really been able to play the same handful of teams each season.

“There’s four weeks of games before finals, and it gives everyone a chance to keep progressing through.”

The competition will start on October 25 and games will be held on sporadic Tuesday evenings throughout the course of the season, with the grand final set to be played on Australia Day.

Originally published as GCA T20 competition fixture revealed for midweek competition