MCC will launch T20 competition, conceived with input from Michael Vaughan
MCC is set to launch a new national T20 tournament exclusively for state schools, the finals of which will be played at Lord's.
Planning is underway for the scheme, which will include competitions for both boys' and girls' teams, with the inaugural tournament set to be held in 2026.
The club's charitable arm, MCC Foundation, is currently recruiting for a programme officer to deliver the project, which will be officially launched during an event at Lord's this coming June.
The competition has been conceived with input from former England captain Michael Vaughan, while the ECB, as well as county clubs and boards, are being consulted on the project.
Details of its structure are yet to be ironed out, but existing competitions around the country could be used as qualifiers, eventually culminating in a finals day at Lord's for four successful boys' and girls' sides.
Related: James Anderson to form part of task force charged with reviving state school cricket
Ex-England captain Michael Vaughan has contributed to the formation of the new tournament (Getty Images)
Angus Berry, MCC Foundation's head of operations, told The Cricketer: "I went to a state school where we played very little cricket, perhaps one or two games a year.
"As someone who loved the game, the idea of trying to corral other kids in my class to play in something that might give them the chance to play at Lord's would have been really exciting.
"We know there are people who are already doing great things, but we want to be able to utilise our space at Lord's for something really positive for state school cricket like this."
The plans come after three England internationals – James Anderson, Chris Jordan and Lydia Greenway – were appointed in January 2024 to a task force charged with reviving cricket in the state school sector.
Others appointed to the task force included Ed Balls, the former MP and former Labour shadow chancellor, and county chairs Sir Michael Barber (Somerset) and Mark Rhydderch-Roberts (Glamorgan).
The following month, MCC members rebelled against the club's attempts to remove the traditional Eton College v Harrow School fixtures from the Lord's fixture list in contravention of the ICEC report, which revealed structural and institutional racism, sexism and class-based discrimination across cricket.
Related: MCC appoint Robert Lawson as new CEO
MCC members have rebelled against attempts to remove historic fixtures (Stu Forster/Getty Images)
MCC has tried to redress this in some way, with the finals of the Foundation's National Hub competition, which features sides drawn from state schoolchildren who play at 126 of the charity's centres across the country, making up part of the calendar.
In that scheme, players represent the towns or cities in which the centres are based; Bradford won the 2024 boys' final and Guildford triumphed in the girls' final.
But the new tournament will see individual schools compete directly against each other for the honour of playing at Lord's.
"What we've done with the finals of the Hub competition are things like giving the kids lunch in the players' dining room, as well as access to the changing rooms and the pavilion," added Berry.
"As a day, it feels different and really exciting. The more people we can expose to that, the better.
"We want to make this a real celebration day beyond the four teams playing in the final."
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