Leane’s keen on top spot Bill Leane will head up cricket in Papua New Guinea. 31748

By Casey Neill
KNOX cricket coach Bill Leane is following his life-long love of the sport to new heights.
The 46-year-old has taken the role of Cricket Papua New Guinea (PNG) CEO.
The International Cricket Council East Asia Pacific (ICC EAP) Development Program and Cricket PNG recently announced Leane’s selection ahead of applicants from around the world.
Leane said the challenge ahead was “super exciting” but daunting.
“It’s not the friendliest place to live or the safest,” he said.
He and partner Lisa Fraser had reservations about moving to PNG’s capital, Port Moresby.
“It’s going to be difficult,” he said.
Leane said PNG’s unemployment rate was 80 per cent and the country was struggling to combat AIDS and violence.
Despite this, PNG is ranked 23rd in the world cricket standings.
Leane’s goal is to not only boost this ranking but qualify for the next World Cup in 2011.
Leane said PNG had a lot of cricket potential but most of the national squad was selected from the 32,000 people in Port Moresby.
The country’s population is 5.2 million.
“We haven’t been developing in other parts of PNG,” Leane said. “How many players are around that we miss out on?”
Getting more people playing the game is Leane’s first priority.
He will place development officers into regional areas and hold more competitions to “build a bigger and better base” and form a truly national team.
“We want to position cricket as the number one sport,” he said. “It’s an opportunity for the nation to grow on the cricket landscape.”
Leane’s love of cricket was planted when he took up the sport “as a young lad”, but it took a break from the game to help him realise his passion.
Footy won out over the bat when Leane was 17. It was 10 years before he returned to the sport. “I just love it. I’ve always loved the game,” he said.
Coaching kids quickly became a passion for Leane. He has since devoted 20 years to the task. He has spent the last 10 years at Knox Gardens Cricket Club where he has taken on administration roles in addition to coaching. He also held a position with the Ferntree Gully and District Cricket Association.
Two years ago he abandoned a 25-year career in retail to follow his sporting dreams with the Australian Cricketers’ Association.
The role last year led him to manage a Twenty20 cricket match at Brisbane’s Gabba.
The game attracted a TV audience topping 1.4 million and 20,000 to the ground.
“The ICC took notice of my organisational skills,” he said.
The council – which oversees 124 cricketing nations – offered him a position. “The world now opens up for the future,” he said.
But Leane will keep a watchful eye over his former club. “It’s a big part of my life,” he said. “They are in fantastic shape. There’s some great young talent there. I’m sure they’ll keep going from strength to strength.”
He hopes to one day return to Australia.