Durham Cricket Association of Cricket Officials (ACO) are delighted to have seen a positive uptake of the online ECB ACO Umpires Stage 1 course across Durham, as the county records one of the highest course competition rates in the country.
An outstanding 41% of people from Durham have completed the course at Umpire Stage 1 level, with 123 signing up to take part in the online course, first made available back in the spring.
Out of the 123 people who have registered for the course 50 people have completed the Stage 1 course criteria.
The Stage 1 course is the first official stage of the umpire’s pathway, which looks at the basic laws of the game, how to apply these to a match situation and prepare umpires to stand in junior cricket matches at basic recreational level.
Harry Stephenson, Durham Cricket ACO Chairman, said: “As an ACO we are delighted to see such a positive uptake to the Umpires online Stage 1 course. To have close to half of those who signed up complete the qualifications is very pleasing to see.
“Looking at other counties we are up there with having one of the highest completion rates across all of the United Kingdom, which shows there is an interest here in our region.
“Now it is about these guys hopefully starting their pathway with us and begin to move forward through the stages to standing on the field in seasons to come.”
A reminder, ECB ACO are offering a number of online courses which include Introduction to both umpiring and scoring along with the Stage 1 Umpires course.
Further courses are being developed and we will share any further course information as we get it.
You can still sign up to the free online scoring and umpiring courses via the links below.