As we are no longer partnering or working with Birmingham Unicorns we wanted to put some why, when and what to the inevitable questions which arise from these situations.
The partnership was built on our trust and respect for the Chair, and a common vision of how to develop inclusive cricket at the club, whilst at the same time developing a group of talented players who aspired to build on these abilities to a level where they could compete in club league cricket.
We provided a plan for this, which was modified and agreed by the committee, and spent the first 6 weeks of this year delivering an agreed training plan and schedule, which was to be reviewed after 12 weeks so we could take feedback and modify as necessary for coaching throughout the season.
Whilst the chair was out of the country for an extended period, the committee reneged on this agreement, rendering the delivery of the agreed contract impossible.
A subsequent meeting of the committee saw the Chair take a sabbatical from the committee, and without any communication from the club the details of our partnership was removed from their website.
It is regretful, but we can’t work with partners without trust and respect.
We will continue to work with all the other LGBTQ+ clubs that we have developed relationships with, and welcome all LGBTQ+ players to join the NBCC LGBTQ+ Team, which already has two games scheduled this year and a squad approaching 20 players.
As a result of this change we will also be looking at the feasibility of weekly coaching sessions (hard with such a diverse squad geographically but we are looking at utilising existing club nights from the clubs we work with), regular squad coaching sessions, and more games (which will probably utilise free Sundays at our affiliated grounds) to provide challenging alternatives for the players.
We thoroughly enjoyed our time with the Birmingham Unicorns players, many of which have joined our program, and wish them all the best with their cricket.