Sheromie Brewster, speaking at the African Caribbean Cricket Festival in Beckenham, tells Adam Hopkins how cage cricket can help bring the game to a wider audience
“You know what? Mum, Dad, I want to play cricket.” That’s the conversation Sheromie Brewster wants to hear happening far more often in homes across the country, particularly in African-Caribbean and Black communities.
Brewster is one of the UK’s leading lights when it comes to getting children and young people involved with the game. Ahead of the recent Women’s T20 World Cup, she was one of the 53 women recognised by the ECB for their work in, and influence on, the game.
An accredited ECB coach developer, Brewster is also a lead coach for the Blaze Her Trial Programme, an initiative by the African Caribbean Engagement (ACE) Programme that identifies and transitions top female athletes of African and Caribbean heritage from other sports into cricket, addressing under-representation, and targeting 15-to-21-year-olds in particular. She is also head of Cage Cricket London and in June ran a cage cricket session at the African Caribbean Cricket Festival in Beckenham. Delivered by the ECB and ACE Programme in partnership with Kent Cricket Foundation, the fourth edition of the festival was attended by hundreds of people celebrating cricket, culture and community.
“It was amazing,” says Brewster. “The fact you’ve got legends of cricket there, just mixing and mingling with everybody else.” Young people enjoyed coaching sessions and games alongside appearances from ex-players such as Courtney Walsh, Devon Malcolm and Curtly Ambrose, while new stars such as Davina Perrin and Emilio Gay were also in attendance.
“Just having events like this to encourage participation within the African and Caribbean community [are extremely important], because, as Dev [Devon Malcolm] touches on a lot, it’s not what it used to be. It’s just nice to see the younger generation coming through with the older generation and just having a day out watching cricket.”
Brewster’s cage cricket session saw children of different ages and abilities getting involved, some even having their first experience of playing cricket. Cage cricket is a hybrid version of the game. It’s fast-paced and played in an enclosed space, with six players playing at a time as individuals rather than as part of a team. Players score runs by hitting the ball into specific coloured scoring zones and every participant gets to bat, bowl and field, with one player emerging victorious at the end.
“It allows all different levels [to play],” Brewster explains. “All age groups, all abilities can play, which is what’s great about it. It can be used as a training tool, but also be used for youngsters or people with disabilities just to enjoy playing and developing their batting and bowling and fielding skills. It’s good for communication, numeracy, and literacy. It’s mutually beneficial.
“They really enjoyed it. We got a lot of youngsters involved, along with their families. It was really nice to see. Devon Malcolm’s really behind it because he wants to get more youngsters back into cricket, and loving cricket like their parents and past generations. It’s important.”
While there are still more steps than can be taken to get people from Black communities into cricket, Brewster praised ACE for the work they’ve been doing over the past few years, and Ebony Rainford-Brent, the programme’s founder, for her influence as a role model for young girls.
“She’s so inspiring. For her to be able to tell her story and share it with the younger girls coming through, it’s amazing. If we can have more events where she’s there alongside other Black female African-Caribbean cricketers, they can inspire young girls to say: ‘If they can do it, I can do it.’
“When I was younger, I’d love to have played cricket, but unfortunately it was never offered to me because it wasn’t seen as a sport for women back then. With cage cricket, it’s allowing the opportunity for girls to get more involved in cricket. It’s allowing them to see themselves within cricket, develop those skills from grassroots and then work their way through to academies such as the ACE programme. With the right backing and right support, it can happen.”
