Otago Cricket Association has announced the appointment of former representative cricketer David Hunter as its new Chief Executive, to succeed Mike Coggan.
Hunter will take over the role at the start of November, and brings over 15 years’ executive leadership experience, including 13 years as Principal of Taieri College, leading a large staff of more than 120 people.
Hunter also has extensive governance experience across New Zealand Sport, including being the former Chair and a Life Member of School Sport New Zealand, and current board roles with the Otago Secondary Schools’ Sports Association and Dunedin Secondary Schools’ Partnership.
He represented Otago, South Canterbury, Bay of Plenty (the latter two teams in the Hawke Cup) and New Zealand Universities during his own cricket career, complemented by representative rugby and coaching and player development experience across high-performance and community sport.
Born in Mosgiel, as a pace bowler he took 43 wickets in 16 first-class matches for Otago between 1989 and 1991, as well as playing four one-dayers in the blue and gold kit.
The organisation is celebrating its 150th jubilee this year, and Hunter said he was honoured to be appointed Chief Executive of an organisation with such a proud history and significant role in southern sport.
“Otago Cricket has a strong reputation, passionate people and a deep connection to its communities across Otago and Southland.
“I’m looking forward to getting out and meeting as many people as possible, listening carefully and learning what is most important to them.
“Otago Cricket has some fantastic foundations to build from. I want to ensure our high-performance programmes are set up for success while also strengthening participation, player pathways and retention across the region.
“It's important that we continue creating opportunities for everyone to enjoy and succeed in cricket, with equal emphasis on both the women's and men's game.”