OUR COMMUNITY CRICKET PROGRAMMES ARE OFFERING MORE OPPORTUNITIES AND EXPERIENCES THAN EVER BEFORE.
AN INCLUSIVE SPIRIT
The community cricket programmes of the Gloucestershire Cricket Foundation offer fun and inclusive activity for people of all ages and abilities across Gloucestershire, South Gloucestershire, and the City of Bristol, whilst aiming to improve lives through the Power of Cricket.
We are taking every effort to make cricket more accessible and inclusive, which is seeing increasing numbers of people getting involved with the game in our delivery region than ever before, especially through our work Supporting Communities with Cricket, which Walking Cricket is a part of.
WHY PLAY WALKING CRICKET
Walking Cricket is an adapted format of the game designed for people aged 50 and over, which offers a softer playing experience. Played indoors with softballs and fibre glass bats, Walking Cricket combines the rules of indoor cricket, where players can score and be caught off the walls, and pairs cricket, which means players remain at the crease for a certain number of deliveries or overs, but if out, their opposition gain 5 runs for each wicket. As it says in the name, players walk between the stumps to build up the score, walk to field the ball, and walk-in to bowl.
Both women and men get involved with Walking Cricket for different reasons. However, everyone who takes part in Walking Cricket throughout our delivery region has said the camaraderie, new friendships formed, and being valued as part of a team, has seen improvements in their mental wellbeing and is the main reason they keep coming back. This in turn has seen confidence levels grow in individuals, with many asking for coaching sessions and competitive playing opportunities. Here the Gloucestershire Cricket Foundation listened and delivered.
BECOMING A SQUAD
The MCC Foundation recently organised an 8-aside National Walking Cricket Tournament which was played at the Indoor Cricket Centre and Lord’s Cricket Ground. Nine players from Cheltenham and six players from Bristol, aged between 55 – 87, journeyed to London, braving the traffic or public transport, to represent Gloucestershire. One player took advantage of the beautiful spring weather the day offered by walking from Victoria coach station to Lord’s, and upon arrival, delighted other players from Gloucestershire with the sights they saw walking through Belgravia and Hyde Park.
This was the first-time players from Bristol and Cheltenham met and were curious how they were going to play as a team. However, the two groups were brought together once they were handed their team shirts, unifying them as one squad through the yellow and black of Gloucestershire. This would not have been possible if it wasn’t for our sponsor of the Gloucestershire Walking Cricket Squad, Guardian Professional Group Limited, who generously purchased the shirts.
Nigel Hill, CEO of Guardian Professional Group Limited, said:
“We are delighted to support this wonderful initiative. Walking Cricket is clearly benefiting our community, bringing the world’s best sport to even more people. Congratulations to the event organisers, the team at Gloucestershire Cricket Foundation and, most of all, the players who took part.”
EVERYONE CONTRIBUTED
After a few cups of tea, coffee, and some pastries laid on by the hospitality team at Lord’s, the tournament was underway. Gloucestershire found themselves up against Walking Cricketers from Derbyshire, Durham, Kent, Worcestershire, and the MCC.
Each team played five games and for each fixture, eight players representing Gloucestershire strode proudly onto the playing surface in their yellow and black tops to face their opposition. Games were played in the usual spirit of Walking Cricket; friendly, well mannered, with everyone taking turns to bat and bowl, but the presence of official umpires reminded players they were taking part in a tournament. This saw Captains being nominated for each game, tactics being planned, field placements being strategically allocated, and communication walking between the stumps being more audible than usual.
All fifteen Gloucestershire squad members contributed in some way when representing the county, making it hard to mention them all in this report. Highlights included a low diving catch to take the ball one handed after a rebound from the wall, a lightning-fast stumping, and some players bringing their arm through quicker in their bowling delivery which saw several maiden overs or the bails breaking from the stumps.
ANOTHER CRICKET CONTROVERSY
The day even had its own area of controversy, and it wouldn’t be cricket without one. It was noted that one team’s players looked different when they batted than when they bowled, fielding their best batters when batting, and their best bowlers when they bowled, with some even bowling two overs rather than their allocated one over per game. It’s just not Walking Cricket!
However, this did not put a dampener on proceedings, and after all fifteen fixtures had been played, and a fine lunch provided once again by the hospitality team at Lord’s, Gloucestershire’s playing efforts found themselves taking third place, with 2 wins, 2 losses, and 1 draw – the only one of the tournament.
THE ICING ON THE CAKE
But that was not the end of the day. The MCC Foundation had also organised a tour of the Home of Cricket, which took in the Media Centre, the world-renowned Long Room, and the changing room with its Honours Board. If playing at Lord’s had not brought out the inner child in the Walking Cricketers, then the tour certainly did. People could be seen posing for photographs in front of world known portraits, with Gloucestershire Walking Cricketers making sure they were seen with WG Grace or Gloucester born Sir Alistair Cook, next to his staircase of stumps.
One Walking Cricketer from Gloucestershire said:
“I thought these kinds of opportunities were behind me and never in my wildest dreams did I think I would ever represent my county in cricket, let alone at Lord’s, and at my age, yet here I am. It’s amazing. Walking Cricket is amazing!”
GETTING HOME
With the tour over, the day had reached its conclusion, and this good thing had come to an end. All that was left for the Gloucestershire Walking Cricket squad was to get through the London rush hour traffic, pop down the M4, and for those taking the M5, hope there were no goats on the motorway.
Crispin Shingler, Community Development Manager of the Gloucestershire Cricket Foundation said:
“Walking Cricket is clearly having an impact; not just for participants, but it is also supporting Integrated Locality Partnerships outcomes by getting more people physically active, improving the health and mental wellbeing of residents, which is intended to reduce the burden on local health services. We are always looking to Support our Communities with cricket and have ambitions to grow our Walking Cricket offer throughout our delivery region.”
If you would like to get involved with Walking Cricket, please contact Crispin Shingler.
Email: crispin.shingler@gloucestershirecricketfoundation.org
Phone: 07903 823922
