Still Going Strong Cricket Club

Hello Duco and thank you SGS !

I am sorry that this has taken so long to get to you. The Christmas and New Year period has been very hectic with visits to the UK and having old firends staying with us for a holiday. With 5 session of training last weekend I am now getting back into cricket mode!)

The attached photos give perhaps some idea of what I found in Rwanda. There is ONE pitch (artificial) and designated cricket ground. It does have a net area but the pitch, the practice net and the outfield are not good. The pitch plays OK but the mat is coming up around the edges and the backfoot delivery point is a hole! I was asked to do a groundsman's report for the Rwanda Cricket Association in which I recommended several low cost (or no cost) actions. There is a league of 8 teams based around Kigali as that is where the only ground and pitch are situated. Cricket is played elsewhere but mostly with rubber or plastic balls. Some hard ball cricket is played on bare clay areas, usually on football pitches.

Despite all of this, there was tremendous enthusiasm for the game, both from men and women (girls actually). Children loved the tip and run forms of cricket and at the universities, students enjoyed playing a more organised game with recognisable cricket skills. The CWB charity has now trained over 30 coaches to a Level 1 standard.

What they do lack is equipment and organisation. Donations such as that from SGS and from the Cricket Without Boundaries Charity will help with equipment. The CWB and the ICC (Africa) are working closely with the Rwanda Cricket Association to help them improve their organisation. There is great potential for cricket to grow and improve in Rwanda.

I plan to visit again in the Autumn as I will be too busy working on the pitches at Kampong to be able to visit in the Spring. I will get the items that you have kindly donated over to the UK so that they can travel with the Spring group.

Many thanks again for the support from friends at SGS.

Kind Regards,
Mike Ferrant

Fotopresentatie met de foto's uit Rwanda

Rwanda bedankt ons via Mike Ferrant

Onze materiaalactie vindt goed gehoor. Zo kreeg ik van CC Bloemendaal een geweldige hoeveelheid cricketshirts en van Steven Lubbers een vracht ballen, twee grote bags, bats, stumps en bats voor de oudere jeugd en mini stumps voor de allerkleinsten.

De twee bags kwamen goed van pas en werden compleet vol gestopt met bovengenoemd materiaal.

Daarna een belletje gepleegd met een zeer enthousiaste Mike Farrant van Kampong die de bags graag in ontvangst neemt en voor verzending naar Rwanda, via Engeland, zorg zal dragen.

Steven belde nog op dat hij voor het eind van het jaar nog een grote doos met cricketmateriaal bij mij wil afgeven.
Dat materiaal gaat dan weer naar onze vrinden in Suriname. Hun beurt !

Mocht u nog iets hebben waar u graag afstand van doet dan kunt u bij mij terecht en zo krijgen uw spullen een tweede leven.

Suriname heeft ook behoefte aan zomerkleding en met name aan dames- en kinderkleding…..

Vast bedankt.

Duco Ohm - 29.11.2011