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THE Bendigo District Cricket Association has removed the restrictions that prevented Melbourne-based players from lining up in the competition across the first three rounds.
"That ruling has been revoked given it (the COVID situation in Victoria) now seems to be tracking okay," BDCA president Travis Harling said on Thursday.
"But if it flares up again, we may have to bring it back in. Hopefully, we don't, but it's the fact of the situation where you only have to look at what has happened in South Australia recently in terms of COVID numbers. If something similar happened in Melbourne then it's a ruling we'd have to reconsider."
The removal of the ruling clears the way for players such as Sandhurst wicket-keeper Will Gadsden to resume for the Dragons.
The Dragons had sought an exemption to have Melbourne-based Gadsden play for the Dragons last week given the "regional-metro ring of steel" had been removed by the state government, but the BDCA held firm on its stance.
"At the end of the day, we want people playing cricket given we haven't been able to do anything for so long, but we've also got a duty of care for public health and we felt we were making the right decision for the wider community," Harling said.
Meanwhile, the BDCA's new competition targeted at girls in grades 5 and 6 at primary school hit off on Wednesday night.
The four-week competition has attracted eight inaugural teams - Bendigo, Bendigo United, Eaglehawk, Kangaroo Flat, White Hills, Strathfieldsaye, Strathdale-Maristians, Maiden Gully.
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