The team are playing the 11-a-side national title for the first time at the National Finals after coming 2nd in the country in the Indoor format on the last two occasions.

NewVIc’s cricket team have had an impressive year so far, with the Cricket Academy Team beating teams from Newham College, George Monoux, Hills Road and Moulton College and convincingly winning the AoC T20 Regional Cricket Championships. The team is now on their way to Derby to compete at the National Finals on Wednesday 23rd June 2021.

Now entering its 44th year, the National Championships are a celebration of competitive sports in colleges, providing recognition, enjoyment and a unique opportunity for students to compete. They also remain the largest annual student sporting event in Europe, with nearly 2,000 college students taking part last year. The AoC regional tournaments are open to students in AoC Sport member colleges. The top teams and individuals in 12 sports (including badminton, 7-a-side football, volleyball and indoor cricket) qualify for the AoC Sport National Championships, where they compete for both their college and their region.

On the success of the Men’s Cricket Academy over the years, NewVIc launched a Women’s Cricket Academy with Essex County Cricket in 2020, offering keen students the opportunity to play and develop in the game. The Women’s Cricket Academy also offers a full coaching pathway with support in achieving Cricket Activator, Cricket Leaders, Foundation 1 and Foundation 2 Coaching courses.

Cricket team Captain and Level 3 Sport student, Haider, said:

“This is a good win from the boys, we were ruthless and stuck to our plans. We put our opponents under pressure from the get go with bat then following on to when we were bowling, we always looked comfortable. Everyone in the team contributed massively and we are looking to carry on this form currently with no losses to the nationals and become the best cricketing college winner in the country!”

Selected from thousands of nominations, The Sports Academy Team that manages the Cricket Academy at Newham Sixth Form College won a Silver Award and ranked as the top two in their category in 2020. There were 14 categories in total of which there are just 76 Silver Award winners across the country. The Sports Academy Team was honoured with a Silver Award in The Award for Further Education Team of the Year for their outstanding commitment to changing the lives of the children they work with every day.

The team has seen numerous successes in regional and national competitions, has contributed significantly to students’ positive mental health, and works with external partners and employers to provide clear pathways for life after college.

Scott Simmons, Cricket Academy coach, added:

“We are beyond thrilled to once again have NewVIc represented at the AoC National T20 Finals. This is the forth time our Cricket Academy players have won the Regional Tournament and the first going on to represent the Capital nationally. We couldn’t be prouder of the students in the team. They showed real maturity to post a competitive total and then to bowl Moulton College out for just 88 was a pleasure to watch. We can’t wait to see what the team can do at the National finals.”

For more information about the Sport Academy visit: https://www.newvic.ac.uk/sport-enrichment