Alex’s father, Clive Kibblewhite was there to cheer his son on at all of Germany’s matches.  He spoke of his pride at Alex’s achievement:  “I’m very proud, and if I’m honest, a bit surprised that Alex made the team.  It’s a great opportunity for him and his team mates.  At this level, most of the youngsters would not get a look-in on the national squads in the more developed cricketing nations, so it’s fantastic for them to be able to say they play international cricket”.

The JHQ Ground Organiser was Colonel John Grinstead, Deputy Chief of Staff UKSC(G) and Chairman of BA(G) and Rheindahlen Crusaders cricket.  He was ably supported throughout the week by RSU and RESG, especially Steven’s father Warrant Officer Dave Richards.  Whilst Colonel Grinstead played front of house with the ICC officials, the behind-the-scenes work was done by WO Richards, as he provided refreshments for the teams, help for the coaches and even marked the fielding restrictions on the pitches.

“Everyone pulled together to produce a really excellent tournament, even though the weather did its best to ruin it!” said Colonel Grinstead. “On their own, the German authorities could not have staged such a tournament but by utilising our facilities, we have helped them reach new standards and achieve a better understanding of where they are in terms of European cricket and what they need to improve.  This has been a really good example of how we can interact with our Host Nation for mutual benefit.  For our part, in addition to successfully hosting a prestigious international cricket tournament, we have had some long-overdue maintenance carried out to our own facilities, from which cricket in BFG can only benefit”. 

With regard to the performance of Germany in the tournament, Colonel Grinstead was typically diplomatic, “The Germans will see this as a learning experience; they have accrued many of the technical skills but clearly have some difficulty in applying them in a competitive situation, particularly when they are chasing runs”.

The ICC’s European Development Programme is part of a global effort, in conjunction with similar programmes in Africa, the Americas, Asia and East Asia Pacific, to raise awareness and playing standards and ensure the sustainability of cricket internationally.  Founded in 1997, it now involves 11 Associate and 16 Affiliate European member countries, with a further 13 prospective member countries.  Germany is an Associate ICC member and is now a well established member of the international cricketing community.  Domestically, there are five cricketing regions, each boasting a league structure of some 50  teams.  Youth and women’s cricket is rapidly expanding.  The watchword for the Deutsche Cricket Bund has always been “Cricket for Everyone” and the aim continues to be  that there is a place in German cricket for all those who want to play the game, from informal knock-abouts to international level.  As DCB president, Dr Brian Fell said: “For those bitten by the cricket bug, it is the greatest game in the world!”

For further details visit www.icc-europe.org and www.cricket.de.  More details of the tournament, including match reports, photos and statistics are available at www.icc-europe.org/EUROU17B/index.shtml .