We are delighted to be asked to share the cricketing journey of the British Gorkhali Cricket League (BGCL) in this edition of the NACC’s newsletter and we hope to share our journey and aspirations as a new but highly motivated cricket league based in Hampshire.
The BGCL was launched this season with support, help and guidance by the National Asian Cricket Council, Hampshire Cricket Board, Berkshire Cricket Foundation, ECB and the Marylebone Cricket Club, with the initial aim of providing the British Nepalese cricketing community a platform to play regular 40 over games on Sunday’s throughout the season but also to promote the values of the British Nepalese community in our region and nationally.
With all the enthusiasm and excitement of setting up a new league we soon realised that we needed support and guidance from all our partners in terms of forming a cricket committee, drawing up a constitution and having very real aims and objectives on how we can offer a very real cricketing experience for the community with the view of building greater understanding of integration and collective work moving forward. We offer our sincere appreciation to all our supporters that made this dream become a reality.
For the 2021 season we were delighted to have 7 teams participating being –
Naya Yuva Cricket Club (NYCC)
Khukuri Cricket Club (KCC)
Queens Gurkha Signals Cricket Club (QGSCC)
Ramailo Cricket Club (RCC)
Nepalese Warriors Cricket Club (NWCC)
Himalayan Cricket Club (HCC)
Invicta Cricket Club (ICC).
All the teams and players are from the Nepalese community including some from the Brigade of Gurkhas battalions and we had competitive cricket played each Sunday, with the eventual winners being crowned with the Legacy Trophy. This year’s winner was Naya Yuva Cricket Club (NYCC).
Like many leagues around the country we too have a group of volunteers who have worked tirelessly in making this dream become a reality and for their help I am extremely grateful.
Our current committee is –
Nick Turk – Honorary President
Prashant Kunwar- League Chief Consultant
Gam Gurung- League Secretary
Subash Gurung – League Treasurer
Ramesh Gurung – MOD representative for Brigade of Gurkhas players Bikram Gurung – Administration Manager.
We also have independent disciplinary officers Captain Chandra Pun and Captain Lalkaji Gurung from the Brigade of Gurkhas whose role is to work with the NACC dealing with any serious disciplinary matters.
We are also grateful to Ex England fast bowler Ajmal Shahzad for becoming our very first Patron.
The makeup of our teams who are all highly competitive is made of good recreational players as well as ex Nepalese national and u19’s players such as Prakash Bista and young promising player Ashish Kurmi. Our aim in the coming seasons is to continue providing the very best competitive cricket possible and ensuring that these games are played on good local facilities. We will strive to work with all key local and national stakeholders thus making sure that we remain a progressive league that strives for the development of cricket. Just one example of working in collaboration is the fact we have been given two defibrillators at no cost by the National Asian Cricket Council via their programme with the ECB, Club Cricket Charity & The Community Heartbeat Trust.
Our success as a league this season has been a collective effort and we are also extremely grateful to Aldershot CC, Dogmersfield CC and Reading CC for helping and supporting us by making their grounds and facilities available. We very much look forward to next season and are confident we will go from strength to strength.
“Hampshire Cricket Board has been delighted to support the development of the league. An initial email enquiry resulted in meetings and introductions to new partners (clubs, county officials associations). We were also able to advise on matters such as constitution and insurance to put the organisation on a firm footing. The growth of cricket in the Nepali community was rightly recognised by BBC during its coverage of The Hundred and on the BBC World Service’s Stumped podcast, and we look forward to supporting the continued growth of the British Gorkhali Cricket League.”
Simon Jones, Cricket Development Manager (clubs and leagues), Hampshire Cricket Board
“At BCF we were delighted to help the formation of the British Gorkhali Cricket League. Whilst largely based in Hampshire, there is a sizeable Nepalese population in Reading, with a big passion for the game. With continued county board support, it would be great to see the BGCL go from strength to strength and become an integral part of the local cricketing landscape.”
Adam Davidson, Cricket Manager, Berkshire Cricket Foundation
