Charity cricket auction
Closes Saturday 13th December 2025
Afternoon all
Sorry to darken your inbox on this day of all cricketing days. I’m sure most of you are ignoring the fact that our glorious sport even exists, and counting down the time until the new county season begins. For those wondering, it is 117 days until the first ball of the County Championship, weather allowing, is bowled at the CACG.
In the meantime, I’m taking the liberty of sharing you a link to a charity kit auction that I’m currently running. It is something that I’ve done annually for the last four winters, and, as ever, the Somerset lads and lasses have been very generous.
Amongst those to chuck shirts in were Sean Dickson, Jack Leach, Will Smeed, Charlie Dean, Heather Knight, Tom Abell, Sophie Luff, Ben Green, Tom Kohler-Cadmore and Josh Davey. Other items include England shirts donated by Mark Wood and Moeen Ali.
Please click here to go to the auction…
This year I’m supporting an initiative run by ex-Somerset man Gemaal Hussain.
After joining Somerset from Gloucestershire ahead of the 2011 season, Hussain made 32 appearances in a Somerset shirt, taking 58 wickets. However, his career was defined not just by numbers, but by the grit and resilience it took to get there.
Since stepping away from the professional game, Hussain has channelled that into coaching, dedicating much of his time to building opportunities that many young people in cricket never receive.
As well as working with Pakistan Women’s cricket and leading Singapore’s Men’s team, Hussain has played an influential role at the South Asian Cricket Academy, helping overlooked talent rediscover belief, direction, and purpose in the game.
His own lived experiences, outsider perspectives, late development, and barriers that others never see, are what fuel GMH Coaching & Mentoring, a programme built on access, respect and human growth.
GMH’s mission is simple: keep young people in cricket long enough to discover who they can become, not who the system tells them they are.
Funds raised by the auction will be used to ensure that promise is real, not theoretical. They will help single-parent families access cricket without embarrassment or financial strain, provide vital kit to children who otherwise feel “behind” before they even begin, and create meaningful mentoring roles for older boys and girls so that they remain valued and connected to the sport they love.
Each pound raised becomes a chance for a young person to grow, to belong, and to see their future with dignity, confidence and hope.
“I’ve been working in the South Asian community for several years now and see the same barriers and challenges year in, year out,” Hussain said.
“One of the big ones is single parent families. Cricket can be expensive, particularly during the winter when there are venue charges as well as the costs of the kit and the coaches. There are also the added costs if there are siblings who take an interest in the game and we don’t want them to be excluded.
“Access to cricket is key and the funds raised by this auction will be used to offer sessions at affordable rates, or for qualifying families, at no charge at all. These sessions will be vital to help keep the participants’ interest in cricket alive and allow them to progress not just in terms of their sporting skills but also as confident young humans, too.
“I’m trying to create that culture at GMH where the youngsters coming through believe in the value of giving back – whether through throwing balls at those younger than them or just lending an ear. Some of the funding will be used to help put in place a mentoring scheme for newly qualified young coaches so that we have a sustainable network and culture within the GMH system. “
Anyway, please do have a look and, if anything tickles your fancy, place a bid.
I’d also be very grateful for any shares on social media, via email, WhatsApp, fax etc. The greater the reach, the more money we can hopefully raise for a very worthy cause.
Please click here to go to the auction...
Bids can be made until midday on Saturday 13th December 2026
A huge thank you in advance.
