Photo Credit: Professional Cricketers’ Association
Legends of country and community unite to support grassroots cricket.
The PCA England Legends will return to the field for the first time since 2019 as they prepare to take on Bury St Edmunds CC in a showcase fixture this Friday.
With the entire 2020 season having been wiped out due to Covid-19, the fixture in Suffolk is the first of a 2021 schedule which will see the Legends travel nationwide to raise valuable funds for local clubs and communities.
From Monton CC in Lancashire to Eversley CC in Hampshire, the impact of a visit from the Legends will be felt across the country over the course of the next two months.
A day with the Legends, formerly known as the PCA England Masters, typically involves Colts training sessions run by our team of ex-England stars, followed by a fundraising lunch and finally a friendly T20 or 100-ball fixture between the host club’s first XI and the Legends.
From 2021, clubs also have the option to book a visit from two Legends players, and 6 August is set to see the first ever Legends tournament at Monton CC. The day will see eight former international stars split across four teams to give as many club cricketers as possible the opportunity to get involved in the day, and get close to some of their cricketing heroes.
The Legends will be buoyed by the extension of their partnership with Greene King IPA, which has raised over £700,000 for local cricket clubs in England and Wales since 2016. This money has been used by clubs to invest in coaching, improved facilities and more.
“A lot of the clubs have suffered through the pandemic, so we want to get them back up and running again because that’s where the next generation of cricketers will be coming from.”
ALEX TUDOR
The programme also enables PCA members to stay in touch with both each other and the game, which has taken on particular importance in the wake of a difficult 2020.
PCA England Legends captain Alex Tudor said: “I’m really looking forward to getting back out there with the PCA England Legends – it’s always one of the first things I look for in the diary at the start of the summer.
“A lot of the clubs have suffered through the pandemic, so we want to get them back up and running again because that’s where the next generation of cricketers will be coming from. The tournaments in particular will provide a great opportunity to get as many people involved on the day as possible.
“It will also be great to catch up on old stories and jokes with my teammates. After the pandemic, I think it’s particularly important to see how everyone is when you consider the mental health aspect of everything that’s happened.
“We’re looking forward to getting off to a good start in Bury St Edmunds on Friday!”
PCA England Legends team to face Bury St Edmunds CC: Alex Tudor (c), Usman Afzaal, Mark Alleyne, Ali Brown, Matthew Hoggard, Devon Malcolm, Phil Mustard, Monty Panesar, Mark Ramprakash, Owais Shah, Ajmal Shahzad.
Interested in hosting the PCA England Legends? Download our brochure or contact us at pcalegends@thepca.co.uk.
The PCA England Legends, sponsored by Greene King IPA, gives recreational clubs and schools a vehicle to raise significant funds for their community. Visit thepca.co.uk where you can find more information.
Name of Author: Professional Cricketers Association
The Professional Cricketers’ Association (PCA), founded in 1967 by former England fast bowler Fred Rumsey as the Cricketers’ Association, represents past and present first-class cricketers in England and Wales. In the 1970s, the PCA established a standard employment contract and minimum wage for professional cricketers. It also helped create a pension scheme in 1995 and launched the magazine All Out Cricket and the ACE UK Educational Programme in 2002.
