Cricket gets a funding boost

Feb 29 2008 by Phillip Nifield, South Wales Echo

SCHOOLS cricket in Cardiff is to get a £100,000-a-year handout from the city’s council.

It will the first of a five-year £500,000 deal to develop cricket in primary and secondary schools and, hopefully, produce the stars of the future. The funding is part of the overall deal which led to Glamorgan’s redevelopment of Sophia Gardens for the 2009 England-Australia Ashes clash. The council loaned the cricket club £4.5m.

Keen cricketer Councillor Mark Stephens, Cardiff council’s executive member for finance, said: “The initiative will see first-class cricketers going into schools and this is the result of the partnership between the council and Glamorgan.”

A spokesman for Glamorgan County Cricket Club said: “This funding to develop cricket in schools is a key element of the overall development at Sophia Gardens. It is not just about a new stadium but developing the game, taking players into schools for coaching, and allowing youngsters use of the academy facilities.”