Finnish cricket team
Encyclopedia
The Finnish national cricket team is the team that represents the country of Finland
in international cricket matches.
the following year.
Cricket is growing in the country, and there are currently 10 teams contesting the national league, over 300 male players, 30 female players, 20 ECB
qualified coaches, and over 30 qualified umpires.
The Finnish national team has participated at various levels in European regional tournaments, their first coming in 2000, when they finished last in the ECC Representative Championship. They won the same tournament 2 years later, and were runners-up in 2004. They also competed in the ECC Affiliates Championship from 2001 to 2005, their best performance coming in their first year, when they finished in seventh place. They came last in 2005, placing them in Division Four of the newly expanded European Championship
. They won that tournament in August 2006, giving them a spot in Division Three in 2007. In that tournament they were relegated to Division Four where they currently play.
European Cricket Championship
again in 2011.
(Suomen Krikettiliitto ry) was set up in 1999 to develop and organise the game of cricket in Finland. The Finnish Cricket Association is currently responsible for the following areas:
Finland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
in international cricket matches.
History
Cricket was first played in Finland in the 1960s, but didn't become formally organised until the 1970s, under the auspices of the Helsinki Cricket Club. More clubs were founded in the 1990s, and the Finnish Cricket Association was founded in 1999. They became an affiliate member of the International Cricket CouncilInternational Cricket Council
The International Cricket Council is the international governing body of cricket. It was founded as the Imperial Cricket Conference in 1909 by representatives from England, Australia and South Africa, renamed the International Cricket Conference in 1965, and took up its current name in 1989.The...
the following year.
Cricket is growing in the country, and there are currently 10 teams contesting the national league, over 300 male players, 30 female players, 20 ECB
England and Wales Cricket Board
The England and Wales Cricket Board is the governing body of cricket in England and Wales. It was created on 1 January 1997 combining the roles of the Test and County Cricket Board, the National Cricket Association and the Cricket Council...
qualified coaches, and over 30 qualified umpires.
The Finnish national team has participated at various levels in European regional tournaments, their first coming in 2000, when they finished last in the ECC Representative Championship. They won the same tournament 2 years later, and were runners-up in 2004. They also competed in the ECC Affiliates Championship from 2001 to 2005, their best performance coming in their first year, when they finished in seventh place. They came last in 2005, placing them in Division Four of the newly expanded European Championship
European Cricket Championship
The European Cricket Championship is a group of various tournaments in which national cricket sides throughout Europe compete. The tournament is designed to encourage and develop the best players in countries where cricket is not a major sport and Europe's only Test cricket playing country,...
. They won that tournament in August 2006, giving them a spot in Division Three in 2007. In that tournament they were relegated to Division Four where they currently play.
European Cricket ChampionshipEuropean Cricket ChampionshipThe European Cricket Championship is a group of various tournaments in which national cricket sides throughout Europe compete. The tournament is designed to encourage and develop the best players in countries where cricket is not a major sport and Europe's only Test cricket playing country,...
- 2006: 1st place (Division Four)
- 2007: 8th place (Division Three)
- 2009: 5th place (Division Four)
The future
Finland are due to play in Division Four of the European Cricket ChampionshipEuropean Cricket Championship
The European Cricket Championship is a group of various tournaments in which national cricket sides throughout Europe compete. The tournament is designed to encourage and develop the best players in countries where cricket is not a major sport and Europe's only Test cricket playing country,...
again in 2011.
Finnish Cricket Association
The Finnish Cricket AssociationFinnish Cricket Association
Finnish Cricket Association is the official governing body of the sport of cricket in Finland. Its current headquarters is in Ketjutie, Finland. Finnish Cricket Association is Finland's representative at the International Cricket Council and is an affiliate member and has been a member of that body...
(Suomen Krikettiliitto ry) was set up in 1999 to develop and organise the game of cricket in Finland. The Finnish Cricket Association is currently responsible for the following areas:
- Finnish national league (Suomen mestaruussarja), an 11 team league with clubs from the national capital HelsinkiHelsinkiHelsinki is the capital and largest city in Finland. It is in the region of Uusimaa, located in southern Finland, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, an arm of the Baltic Sea. The population of the city of Helsinki is , making it by far the most populous municipality in Finland. Helsinki is...
, and the cities of TurkuTurkuTurku is a city situated on the southwest coast of Finland at the mouth of the Aura River. It is located in the region of Finland Proper. It is believed that Turku came into existence during the end of the 13th century which makes it the oldest city in Finland...
and TampereTampereTampere is a city in southern Finland. It is the most populous inland city in any of the Nordic countries. The city has a population of , growing to approximately 300,000 people in the conurbation and over 340,000 in the metropolitan area. Tampere is the third most-populous municipality in...
.
- Youth development: An introductory level schools programme in the capital area, aided by developing club youth programmes.
- National team: The national team won the 2006 European Championship Division 4, enabling them to move up to Division 3 in 2007, from which they were relegated back to Division 4.
- Regional Development: Tampere and Turku are already thriving regional centres of cricket development. OuluOuluOulu is a city and municipality of inhabitants in the region of Northern Ostrobothnia, in Finland. It is the most populous city in Northern Finland and the sixth most populous city in the country. It is one of the northernmost larger cities in the world....
, JyväskyläJyväskyläJyväskylä is the capital of Central Finland and the largest city on the Finnish Lakeland, north-east of Tampere and north of Helsinki, on northern coast of lake Päijänne. The city has been continuously one of the most rapidly growing cities in Finland since World War II. The city is surrounded...
(http://www.cricketjyvaskyla.com) and LahtiLahtiLahti is a city and municipality in Finland.Lahti is the capital of the Päijänne Tavastia region. It is situated on a bay at the southern end of lake Vesijärvi about north-east of the capital Helsinki...
form the basis of the expansion of this programme.
- Umpiring: Each Finnish league game is officiated by ACUS/ ECC qualified umpires.
Domestic structure
Cricket in Finland has been expanding, here is the current list of teams playing in SM50 (the first division), SM40 (the second division), Developmental T20 League, Open T20 League and Indoor League.- Bengal Tigers Cricket Club
- Empire Cricket Club (also social team: Empiricists)
- Espoo Cricket Club (ECC)
- Finnish Pakistani Club (FPC)
- FinnAsia Cricket Club
- Helsinki Cricket Club (HCC)
- Merisotakoulun Krikettiklubi - Naval Academy Cricket Club (MKK)
- Men's Thinking Society (MTS)
- Stadin Krikettikerho (SKK) (also social team: Socialists)
- Tampere Cricket Club (TreCC)
- Turku Cricket Club (TCC)
- Vaasa Cricket Club
- Vantaa Cricket Club (VCC)
- Jyväskylä Cricket Club (JCC)
- Finnish National Team
- Finnish Youth National Team (YNT)
- Phoenix - The Ladies Team
Current squad
- The following list contains the 13 players in Finland's squad for the European Cricket Championship Division 4:
- Jonathan Scamans (CaptainCaptain (cricket)The captain of a cricket team often referred to as the skipper is the appointed leader, having several additional roles and responsibilities over and above those of a regular player...
) - Madhu Bhandari
- Amrik Bhatia
- Shakil Pervage Bin Islam
- Zakiullah Kamal
- Zahidullah Kamal
- Daniel Kingsley
- Sebastian Knight
- Ekhpelwak Kuchey
- Bilal Khan
- Cameron Goodings
- Obaidullah Sadiqui
- Christopher Shaw
- Michael Shaw
- Shabir Ahmad Sheerzad
- Jordan Gurney