Bradford Victorious At Ford Inner Cities Cup

Bradford Victorious At Ford Inner Cities Cup

Action from the day at Arundel Castle Cricket Ground

©Lord's Taverners

The Ford Inner Cities Cup, hosted by youth cricket charity The Lord’s Taverners, came to an exciting conclusion as Bradford took victory in a competitive Grand Final at Arundel Castle Cricket Ground. Former England Cricket Captain, Mike Gatting, was on hand to cheer on the eight teams who made it through their respective regional heats of the competition.

The long-running Ford Inner Cities Cup is now in its 15th year and continues to provide youngsters (under 14s) from urban areas the opportunity to play representative cricket. The finals follow a series of competitive regional heats which saw 27 inner-city teams play throughout the UK since the competition started in May.

Representative teams from Birmingham, Bradford, Derby, Edinburgh, Leeds, Leicester, Southampton and Swansea competed in the three-day finals, which began on Wednesday 11th, in a two group round-robin format. Having both finished as group winners, Bradford and Swansea earned their chance to go head-to-head in the Grand Final.

Individual player awards were presented after the Grand Final:

Best Bowler – Most Wickets Taken: Bradford – Josh Smith
Best Batsmen – Most Runs: Leicester – Rishan Chopra

Shiv Krishan, Team Manager of Bradford, said, “After finishing 7th in this competition in 2009, it is a great feeling to have made it to the National Finals once again, and even better that we are this year’s Champions! It’s a long journey down to Arundel but with such a great location and atmosphere amongst the competing teams, it is well worth the trip!”

As well as helping improve access to sport for young people from inner city areas, the competition focuses on developing grassroots cricket and encouraging more youngsters to enjoy the game. Current England and Essex star Ravi Bopara has credited the competition with providing his first taste of cricket, having taken part as a member of a London team when he was at school.

Matthew Patten, Chief Executive of The Lord’s Taverners, commented, “The Lord’s Taverners is all about giving young people a sporting chance, regardless of ability or background. The Ford Inner Cities Cup provides youngsters from urban areas, where sporting opportunities are often limited, the opportunity to participate in a national competition, make new friends and enjoy the benefits that competitive team sport offers. Playing in the finals of such a prestigious competition, in a setting like Arundel Castle, is a positive experience for these youngsters, win or lose.”

Final Standings

Grand Final Standings

Bradford
Swansea
Southampton
Edinburgh
Leicester
Birmingham
Leeds
Derby
 
Final Day Results:

Bradford (183-9) bt. Swansea (182-9)
Southampton (102-9) bt. Edinburgh (64 a.o)
Leicester (158-8) bt. Birmingham (105 a.o)
Leeds (175-8) bt. Derby (66 a.o)
 
National Finals Group Results

Group A

Swansea (151-6) vs. Southampton (151-9)
Swansea (86-3) vs. Leeds (85-9)

Swansea (123-3) vs. Birmingham (121 a.o.)

Southampton (151-9) vs. Swansea (151-6)
Southampton (101 a.o) vs. Leeds (79 a.o)

Southampton (88 a.o) vs. Birmingham (53 a.o.)

Birmingham (53 a.o.)vs. Southampton (88 a.o)
Birmingham (121 a.o.) v.s. Swansea (123-3)

Birmingham (89-3) vs. Leeds (86 a.o)

Leeds (79 a.o) vs. Southampton (101 a.o)
Leeds (85-9) vs. Swansea (86-3)

Leeds (86 a.o) vs. Birmingham (89-3)

Group B

Bradford (59-3) vs. Edinburgh (55 a.o)
Bradford (119-7) vs. Leicester (118-9)

Bradford (64-1) vs. Derby (62 a.o)

Edinburgh (125-3) vs. Derby (121 a.o)
Edinburgh (131-6) vs. Leicester (99 a.o)

Edinburgh (55 a.o) vs. Bradford (59-3)

Leicester (200-4) vs. Derby (65-7)
Leicester (99 a.o) vs. Edinburgh (131-6)

Leicester (118-9) vs. Bradford (119-7)

Derby (65-7) vs. Leicester (200-4)
Derby (121 a.o) vs. Edinburgh (125-3)

Derby (62 a.o) vs. Bradford (64-1)