The much-anticipated Selby Active cricket programme delivered by Middlesex in the Community kicked off at the Selby Centre with several renowned personalities, children and parents showing their support for the revival of cricket in the north London community in Tottenham. Former England cricketers Devon Malcolm and Angus Fraser, Selby Trust CEO Paul Butler, along with key stakeholders from Tottenham Hotspur Foundation and the England and Wales Cricket Board, were present to mark the start of a cricket programme that focuses on grassroots participation and community engagement.
This Selby Centre is of particular significance for Middlesex in the Community and cricket for the Afro Caribbean community in general, as it sits just adjacent to where the once legendary Haringey Cricket College was located, that went to on to produce a majority of England’s first class Black cricketers – some of whom include Mark Alleyne and Keith Piper between the early 1980s and late 1990s. The charity’s lack of funding and its sponsors going bankrupt led to the closure of the college in 1997, which produced over 17 first-class black cricketers, many of whom went on to play for England. The Sports Council at its peak, dubbed it the ‘most successful sports academy in the world’ as it gave several young black men careers in professional sport, besides playing cricket.
With plans for redevelopment of the Selby Village in the works, cricket will be a key feature in the community once again, and this junior programme will hopefully go a long way in inspiring more young people from all backgrounds to take up the sport their parents and grandparents loved and breathed once upon a time. With football firmly taking over the community since the early 90s and the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium less than a mile away, Middlesex in the Community is keen to provide alternate sporting opportunities to young people in the region, not just in playing the game but also upskilling them to enter coaching and officiating pathways in the future.
“The Selby Active cricket programme is open to boys and girls between the ages of 6 and 12 years and is a free-to-participate programme hosted on Wednesday evenings from 4:30 to 6 pm during the school term. If you are interested in playing the game or want to get involved in coaching or just volunteer for the benefit of cricket in the community, contact us.”, Dharani Thayi, Cricket Cities, Partnership Manager for MiTC
For more information on the programme or to sign your child up to the session, email: [email protected]
