Tony Munro

The East Asia-Pacific Trophy, the regional tournament for the ICC's development zone of that name, starts today in Apia, Samoa. The format has been tweaked with the addition of a Twenty20 event, in which all eight times will take part, while the 50-over competition has been split into two divisions.

The Twenty20 event kicks off the tournament, with the teams divided into two groups - Group A comprising Papua New Guinea (PNG), Japan, the Cook Islands and Tonga, while Fiji, Vanuatu, Samoa and Indonesia will contest Group B.

The First Division will feature just the three teams already playing in the World Cricket League - PNG, Fiji and Japan. Both PNG and Japan are without key players, giving Fiji its best chance to win the regional title for the first time.

The Second Division will involve the Cook Islands, Indonesia, Samoa, Tonga and Vanuatu. The winner of this event will play in Division Eight of the WCL in 2010.

The draw:

Thursday, September 17 - (all Twenty20) - Cook Islands v Tonga, Vanuatu v Indonesia, Fiji v Vanuatu, Japan v Tonga, PNG v Tonga, PNG v Japan, Samoa v Indonesia, Fiji v Samoa;

Friday, September 18 - (all Twenty20) - AM - Vanuatu v Samoa, PNG v Tonga, Japan v Cook Islands, Fiji v Indonesia; PM - Finals.

Saturday, September 19 (50 overs) - PNG v Fiji, Samoa v Tonga, Cook Islands v Indonesia; byes - Vanuatu, Japan.

Sunday, September 20 - rest day.

Monday, September 21 (50 overs) - Vanuatu v Indonesia, Japan v Fiji, Samoa v Cook Islands; byes - PNG, Tonga.

Tuesday, September 22 (50 overs) - Samoa v Vanuatu, Tonga v Cook Islands, PNG v Japan; byes - Fiji, Indonesia.

Wednesday, September 23 (50 overs) - Fiji v Japan, Indonesia v Samoa, Tonga v Vanuatu; byes - Cook Islands, PNG.

Thursday, September 24 (50 overs) - Indonesia v Tonga, PNG v Japan, Cook Islands v Vanuatu; byes - Fiji, Samoa.

Friday, September 25 - Finals - 1st v 2nd, 3rd v 4th, PNG v Fiji, 5th v Japan.

The dates given are for the day the matches are played in Samoa.

Tony Munro

These are exciting times for cricket in Samoa. The sport is booming - the number of teams competing in primary and secondary schools have trebled, the under-15 team just did well at the regional titles in Jakarta and 14 teams just played in the national village championships.

And starting tomorrow, Samoa take on seven national teams from the Near East and the Pacific on home turf for the East Asia-Pacific (EAP) Trophy.

For the first time, Twenty20, the format most resembling Kilikiti - the traditional Pacific Islands version of the game - has been included in the regional championships, alongside the usual 50-over format.

It's the format the Samoans have been tipped to excel in - their star batsman, Ben Mailata, was raised on Kilikiti and the transferable skills such as hitting hard and long perfectly suit this mode.

According to Matt Walter, a Samoa International Cricket Association official, the team has kept the big picture in sight - winning the Second Division of the 50-over event at the EAP Trophy against Tonga, the Cook Islands, Indonesia and Vanuatu, and with it a place in the ICC World Cricket League Division 8.

Papua New Guinea, Fiji and Japan will face off in the First Division of the 50-over event. Following which, all eight teams will be thrown in together for the Twenty20 bash, in two groups of four.

Samoa will field some familiar faces - the experienced Geoff Clarke, former New Zealand Test and ODI player Murphy Su'a and allrounder Sipialano Tua. Officials also hope the young seamers Fa'asao Mulivai (aged 24), Tiafala Alatasi and Totoa Sauniatu (21), as well as the batting duo of Mailata and Pritchard Pritchard, will step up.

Like their rugby union and league national team brethren, the side, also includes some New Zealand-based players, whom Walter is quick to point out are not 'ring-ins'. "These boys have been travelling to Samoa for years to help cricket and compete in local tournaments," Walter said. "As far as everyone is concerned this is not a squad - this is a family and everyone is happy to see these boys come across and help out here."

Samoa plays its first matches in the Twenty20 event on Friday, taking on Indonesia in the morning and Fiji in the afternoon. Vanuatu is the other team in the group.

Next week's ICC annual get-together promises to have more than its fair share of politicking, posturing and controversy. But, unless there is a major about-turn, it should also be a watershed for the Associates and Affiliates.

In 2009, income from the ICC's six-year media deal with ESPN-Star, worth over US$1 billion, kicks in, and while the game's big boys will still keep the lion's share, the rest will see substantial increases in their incomes.

Although the ICC draws considerable flak on many fronts, it is quietly committed to promoting the game in as many countries as possible, and it does that by means of a myriad of competitions and initiatives. Most do not warrant much media attention, but they are there and they work.

Until now, the gripe of the smaller countries, and especially those bubbling just underneath the top flight, has been about the inequality of the way in which the game is financed. That was never more apparent than when it came to earnings from last year's World Cup.

Ireland got a flat fee of US$125,000 a year for four years for taking part, and on top of that they received another $50,000 for reaching the Super Eights. However, because of the extra costs involved in their progression, not least because their players are not professional cricketers and their absences from their full-time jobs had to be underwritten, Ireland's success actually left the board out of pocket.

Zimbabwe, on the other hand, turned up, tied with Ireland and never threatened to progress after being thumped by Pakistan and West Indies. For those three matches, Zimbabwe Cricket received US$11 million, their share of the pot as a Full Member.

The top six Associates receive no more than US$500,000 a year - some substantially less - to fund their entire operations. Out of that they have to pay all their cricketing and administration costs. Only those with a low cost of living, such as Kenya, can hope to maintain a professional squad on that kind of money.

The gulf between the haves and have-nots is further widened by the limited sums Associates can earn from sponsorship and media contracts. Zimbabwe can exploit home series against, say, India to carve out lucrative TV deals worth millions, and on the back of that, attract shirt- and other corporate sponsorship. As highlighted by Scotland's failure to secure any TV deal for their forthcoming ODI against England, the Associates struggle to get such income streams.

The new deals will provide a substantial increase for Associates, especially for the countries who are pressing for space at the top table. Until now the share has been roughly equal, rewarding Netherlands and Kenya on par with Thailand and Fiji. The new system will see more demarcation between the top Associates and the rest.

The leading ten could earn as much as US$1.5 million a year from 2009. There will then be an onus on them to professionalise their administrations, but several of them are already well down that route. They will also be more accountable - the ICC does not want a repeat of the mess that came following a spike in Kenya's funding earlier in the decade.

The second-string Associates will also get more - around US$160,000 as a base figure - but then again the demands on them are less. Even Affiliates will receive US$15,000, with the opportunity for more should they make a good enough case. There will also be more cash in the pot for participating and hosting competitions.

There have never been more opportunities for development outside the Full Member countries, but there remain some nagging worries.

The main one is how to bridge the gap between semi and full-blown professionalism. Almost all the Associates rely on dedicated amateurs, both on and off the field. As the number of ICC competitions has increased - and they have to be welcomed - the pressure has begun to tell. Scotland and Ireland particularly have already found players cannot meet all their commitments, and even the increased income will not allow them to employ a full-time squad.

"So much of putting players on full-time retainers depends on how many fixtures we can command," Warren Deutrom, Cricket Ireland's chief executive, said. "At the moment, all we can promise the squad in 2009 is a World Cup qualifying campaign, eight FP Trophy matches, an England game, and probably some Intercontinental Cup matches. Of course, we hope to have more, but can't be sure at the moment.

"Our top players are already plying their trade in county cricket, while others have full-time jobs which they may not wish to give up. The actual number of players that the coach will want to put on a full-time contract, or else the number that even want to have one, may not be that many."

The other quandary is how to get them fixtures. Kenya, widely regarded as the leading Associate, have found it almost impossible to get Full Member countries to visit or host them. As a result they invariably play other Associates. Good for the win-loss ratio, not so clever in providing the kind of experience that no amount of money can buy.

These issues will need to be addressed, but for now the future has never looked so promising beyond the Test world.

Every few months Australian Navy ships dock in the Apia Harbour for a few days rest from sea. This time they headed to the Garden Cricket Ovals in Faleata to challenge a team of Samoans in a Twenty20.

The game wasn't too close - the home side’s batting attack proved far too good for the Australians, surpassing the target of 64 runs in the 9th over.

This is the first time the Samoa International Cricket Association (SICA) has hosted a cricket match against the Australian Navy. After the success both on and off the field, SICA look forward to hosting many more of these friendly matches in the future.

The equipment drive during the Boxing Day Test in Melbourne has been hailed as a success, but more kit is called for.

Members of the Australian public were called upon to donate unused kit to help developing countries in East-Asia Pacific and some parts of Australia. Since the test we have continued to have equipment donated from local cricket clubs and schools, including donations from New South Wales and Western Australia. More than 600 items of equipment were donated in total.

The growth of cricket within the EAP regional countries – including Japan, Cook Islands and Samoa - has reached enormous proportions in recent years. Over 35,000 people now play cricket there, compared with around 15,000 in the year 2002. This has created large increases in the demand for cricket equipment, with which the ICC EAP office and the respective regional countries cannot keep up. The equipment donated will go a long way in making sure everyone gets the chance to play cricket.

“We welcome any donations of equipment at any time,” said a spokesman for the project.

The number of people actively participating in cricket outside the Test-playing countries increased 17% in 2007, according to the ICC.

The research, carried out by the ICC's development program, was collated from 33 Associate and 58 Affiliate members. It showed that there were 338,051 male and female players in those countries in 2007, an increase of 49,158 on the previous year. Since 2002, when there were 144,047 participants, there has been a 135% rise.

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Japan, Cook Islands and Samoa recorded strong wins in the opening round of the ICC EAP Cricket Trophy in Auckland.

Japan dismissed Vanuatu for 142 inside 35 overs. Vanuatu lost both openers early leaving Andrew Mansale (79 off 97) to rescue the innings, but he found little support. Mansale's 3 for 9 then gave them a glimmer, but Tetsuo Fuji (27 not out) and Munir Ahmed (26 not out) took Japan home in the 40th over to complete a five-wicket win.

Cook Islands bowled strongly and took regular wickets against Indonesia, dismissing them for 148 in the 44th over. Chris Brown (3 for 25 off 8 overs) and Mou Maururai (3 for 29 off 8.5 overs) were the stand-out bowlers. Joseph Joe took them home, with an unbeaten 44, although he was dropped early on.

Samoa won the battle of the Pacific rivals, beating Tonga by 89 runs. Opening bowler Mafi Langi (3 for 38 off 10 overs) claimed early wickets for Tonga, however Uala Kaisala (54 off 88) led the recovery where Samoa reached 191. Tonga started their run chase cautiously and were unable to build momentum, losing regular wickets. Winston Marriner took the honours with 3 for 33 off 5 overs to wrap up the innings with Tonga all out for 102 in the 32nd over.

The ICC East Asia–Pacific (EAP) Development Program has announced its squads for the Centre of Excellence in Brisbane in November.

Twelve young players have been selected for the EAP Emerging Players Program, and 16 for the squad camp which will bring together the region’s best players ahead of the Australian country cricket championship in Mackay, Queensland this January. This means players from Cook Islands, Fiji, Japan, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Tonga and Vanuatu.

Both squads will experience a week of intensive coaching, training and skill development under the tutelage of Australia’s leading coaches. Each squad will play Twenty20 and 50-over one-day matches against local opposition in Brisbane.

Emerging players squad

Colin Amini (PNG), Arua Dikana (PNG), Willie Gavera (PNG), Masaomi Kobayashi (Japan), Trevor Langa (Vanuatu), Jacob Mado (PNG), Simpson Obed (Vanuatu), Pritchard Pritchard (Samoa), Sekove Ravoka (Fiji), Salesi Tu’Akoi (Tonga), Tony Ura (PNG), Vani Vagi Morea (PNG)

Squad camp

Chris Amini (PNG), Hitolo Areni (PNG), Kapena Arua (PNG), Inoa Baeau (PNG), Jamie Brazier (PNG), Tatsuro Chino (Japan), Mahuru Dai (PNG), Rarua Dikana (PNG), Dunu Eliaba (Cook Islands), Mahuta Kivung (PNG), Andrew Mansale (Vanuatu), Ipi Morea (PNG), Loa Nou (PNG), John Ovia (PNG), Josefa Rika (Fiji), Assad Vala (PNG)

SportingPulse has an enjoyable round-up of the ongoing Pacific Games in Fiji, and of cricket in the region - specifically Samoa.

As the cricket venue for the 2007 South Pacific Games the Faleata Complex provides the idyllic backdrop for national teams

Yesterday's epic battle between traditional cricket rivals Samoa and the Kingdom of Tonga exemplified the spirit of cricket and the competitiveness of athlete's representing their country with pride and distinction.