Councillor Smith yesterday addressed the issue raised by parents and cricketers alike and played down the risk.

Cricket matches will continue, and the mayor said playground users were in no greater danger than other people in the vicinity.

In an RSL-Whitney Cup match on the weekend, four balls left the willow and landed in a recently-completed children’s playground in Victoria Park.

Cr Smith commented on the perceived dangers in his weekly mayoral column.

“The issue is the playground’s close proximity to No. 3 Oval, with some parents stating that this is a danger to their children with the risk of a cricket ball hitting them during weekend matches,” he said.

“Let me say that the new playground is located where the previous (pre-1998) playground existed for many years - people may remember the pipe-framed rocket that was part of the playground equipment at that time.”

The mayor urged individual responsibility.

“Park users need to be aware of each other’s activities and the inherent risks associated with the different activities that take place in these places,” he said.

“It would seem that the risk is minimal and would apply equally to spectators, passers-by, skaters, casual park users and folks at the Men’s Shed.

“As was reported in yesterday’s Daily Liberal, similar concerns had been voiced when the Western Plains Cultural Centre (WPCC) was built.

“Three years later, this hasn’t been an issue.”

The Dubbo and District Cricket Association’s (DDCA) vice-president Warren Saunders acknowledged the effects of a cricket ball hit could be serious.

“The proximity of the big new park to the cricket field was brought up at the DDCA meeting last week and it got conveyed to Dubbo City Council,” he said.

“It’s not that big a hit really.

“On the game-day checklist the captains have got to identify any dangers and that’s definitely one.

“If a ball does go into the park and does hit a kid it’s not going to be very pretty.”

Like the mayor, Mr Saunders thought there was only “so much that could be done in terms of duty of care”.

faye.wheeler

@ruralpress.com