In their first game of the season, the Northern Māori team played the NZ Croatia team over the weekend.
The Northern Māori team is currently the only Māori team in the country due to the lack of numbers, but cricket co-ordinator Graham Stewart wants to change that.
Stewart says, “Māori cricket team is setting up pathways for Māori guys not learning the games, I’ve found we lose Māori cricketism, from 13 to 17, junior development teams Māori dominate, my whole basis is getting them involved in cricket and keep them in the game.”
The format of cricket has changed and Graham says it will appeal to a wider audience.
“We have T20, the way we're bodied, they’ll suit us to a tee, I don’t know why we dominate softball but not cricket, because we have so many Māori faces pro players earning a really good lifestyle.”
There's interest in Wellington to set up a Māori team there.
For the Northern Māori team, they're looking at touring Vanuatu and Papua New Guinea.