MCC to welcome Capital Kids to Lord's

Date released: 25 June 2004

MCC will play host, next Tuesday, to over 300 London schoolchildren as part of the Capital Kids Cricket Festival. For the second consecutive year, children from all over the region will receive expert coaching on the main ground at Lord's - 'the home of cricket'.

The initiative, run by Capital Kids Cricket and supported by MCC and The Lord's Taverners, is designed to introduce and develop cricket in London's 800 primary and 250 secondary schools.

As part of the Cricket Festival, the 300-plus children will not only benefit from specialist coaching but will be given tours of Lord's, where they will visit the players' dressing rooms, the world-famous Long Room and the futuristic NatWest Media Centre.

Speaking about the Festival, Roger Knight, MCC's Secretary & Chief Executive (right), said: "We are delighted to welcome Capital Kids back to Lord's. We hope that the participating children have a thoroughly memorable day, and return to see us in years to come."

He added: "MCC is committed to the development of youth cricket and has put in place many programmes designed to identify the next generation of cricketers. The MCC Spirit of Cricket Challenge, for example, will this year provide an introduction to cricket for over 3,000 children in twelve different areas of the UK."

The Capital Kids Cricket Festival will begin at 10.00am with matches, coaching and tours for U-11s. From 2.00pm, the U-13s will then have their chance to play cricket on the main ground at Lord's.

The day will culminate with an exhibition of Twenty20 cricket between an U-16 London Schoolboys Select XI and the Young Lord's Taverners Buccaneers.