Cricket club offer young Black players chance to turn pro
A TOP cricket team is offering young Black people the chance to turn pro to stop a 75 per cent decline in the sport.
Gloucestershire Cricket is hoping to reverse the drop in the number of Black players in the game.
The club has launched a partnership with Royal London and ACE – an independent charity set up to tackle a decline in involvement in English cricket from members of the Black community.
The African Caribbean Engagement programme is expanding to Bristol, after securing £100,000 in funding from Royal London.
ACE was first launched by Surrey County Cricket Club in January 2020 in response to a decline of Black British professional players by 75 per cent in recent years.
By providing opportunities for young black players through quality coaching sessions, trials were subsequently held for 70 young boys and girls at the Kia Oval in early 2020, resulting in the awarding of 25 cricket scholarships with Surrey CCC.
Through their partnership with the ECB, Royal London has pledged to help ‘level the playing field’ by donating £100,000 to the ACE programme over the next two years.
Susie Logan, Royal London’s group chief marketing officer, said: “We’re immensely proud to be supporting the ACE Programme and helping them to expand into Bristol by becoming a regional partner.
‘’We are excited to launch the programme in Bristol and looking forward to working closely with ACE and Gloucestershire Cricket over the coming years.
‘’The opportunities this will generate for young people from black communities will be invaluable both on and off the pitch.”
Gloucestershire Cricket’s association with ACE will be officially launched today, when England Women take on New Zealand for a One Day International match at Bristol County Ground.
The ‘Royal London x ACE One Day International’ will celebrate ACE, Royal London, Gloucestershire County Cricket Club, Gloucestershire Cricket Board’s (GCB) and the ECB’s commitment to supporting the creation of more opportunities in professional sport for talented young Black people.