In a letter to the editor in this week's Mercury former Mayor and long-term councillor Ray Fairweather enquired as to why Maitland does not have a side entered in the Newcastle cricket competition.
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A fair question. In fact, Maitland did once play in Newcastle but it turns out we haven't had a team in the Newcastle competition in quite some time, and the circumstances are fairly interesting.
Maitland first entered the competition in the 1942/43 season when, due to war conditions, all the matches were one-day fixtures.
Maitland was phenomenally successful in the following year - 1943/44 - coming close to a clean sweep of the competition, winning six of the seven trophies - club championship, first and third grade premierships and all three finals.
We only narrowly missed out on the second grade premiership, being beaten by Waratah by two points.
In 1947/48 district cricket was re-introduced and the Maitland Cricket Association was divided into seven districts with players obliged to play with the club in the district of their residence.
To bolster this local competition Maitland withdrew its entry in the Newcastle comp, and this has the remained the case.
So, we stopped playing in Newcastle because we didn't need to. Our local competition was just too strong. Whether this should be now revised is a whole other question.
In the same paper I read that this year's Maitland first grade cricket grand final was to be played at Lorn Park.
That doesn't sound right, I thought. Maybe Michael Hartshorn, the journalist who had written the piece, had had a seniors' moment?
I messaged him and asked.
There had been no mistake, he informed me. It turns out that it had just been generally decided that the facilities and pitch at Robins Oval were, basically, not up to scratch.
This amazed me.
In 2014 it was reported in this paper that, after canvassing the opinions of top grade captains and umpires, the Maitland Cricket Association had voted that Robins Oval was far and away the superior cricketing venue in the region.
What can possibly have happened in the meantime?
I went over and had a look. I have an interest in this. I grew up in Louth Park.
Throughout my youth there would hardly have been a day that I wasn't playing something at Maitland Park.
From Aussie Rules to baseball; water polo - all the athletics disciplines. If not competing you would probably have found me politely observing the netball.
I remember once heading over to Robins Oval to watch a representative Maitland side play Newcastle.
I was leaning on the fence when the Maitland captain said, "Hey Burkey, what are you doing? Flash home and get your creams and we'll bat 12".
Thus I found myself, shortly afterwards, as a 16-year-old, facing Graham Corling and Johnny Watkins - both Australian test bowlers. I got 26 runs.
Aside from my personal attachment it is my view that Maitland Park is an integral and important asset to our community.
As well as being visually spectacular it has an international standard hockey field, an aquatic centre (lately sporting a year-round heated pool), sufficient netball courts to host over two thousand competing ladies every winter's Saturday, a croquet court, lawn bowling greens and five turf cricket wickets.
It is now entirely encircled by a new walk, run or ride track.
Our Anzac memorial monument is there.
Picnic facilities, a huge children's playground... And anybody visiting Maitland, even those only passing through, cannot help but get a proper eyeballing of the park's stunning greenery, given its proximity to the bypass.
It's a vitally important location.
So, as I said, I went over to have a look, and I have to say I was a little disappointed.
Don't get me wrong, visually at least, everything looks more or less OK, just certain aspects seem a little bit ramshackle.
I think that, given the level of investment into such a varied and worthwhile group of facilities, the park should really be pristine.
And it's a little frustrating that it appears to me that it would take so little to accomplish this.
We really are just talking about a bit of house-keeping here. And maybe something needs to be done about the amenities at Robins Oval, keeping in mind that we are dealing with heritage stuff there.
But it's still relatively small stuff.
The day I looked the grass on Robins Oval was bordering on too long for football let alone cricket - despite the fact that the second grade grand final was about to resume on it. Why?
Is there perhaps a breakdown in communication somewhere along the line between maintenance crews and the user groups?
It must be this type of thing that has led to the decision for the grand final venue being relocated to Lorn, and it seems a shame to me.
Nothing against Lorn, but I believe the cricket grand final should be held at Robins Oval, our traditional showpiece cricket ground in the surroundings of the jewel that is Maitland Park.
I would ask, who needs to talk to who, and what moves are needed to be made to restore the oval to its former prestige?
Funnily enough, one of the reasons given for the move (false it turns out) was that Robins Oval would provide a home ground advantage to City United.
It was an unnecessary consideration.
The daunting unfamiliarity of Lorn bothered City not one jot with Kurri Weston copping a right trouncing. City's Trappel brothers, Josh and Matt, scored 348 runs between them.
And, speaking of the maintenance of facilities, I hear the Lorn Park lot will be up for some in the wake of the Trappels' onslaught - a window and a solar panel being smashed in the fray.
