In the time it takes a club side to bowl 40 overs, our team travelled early from Biratnagar into the heart of the hill town Dhankuta, where many of the houses are decorated in luxuriant orange.
Within twenty minutes of arriving in the centre of the 25,000-inhabitant town, situated at 1200m in Koshi province, the capacious Scorpio vehicles were unloaded, and the coaching teams dived into their first school coaching sessions. One of which was at the fittingly named ‘Deep English School’ where else would one be coaching cricket !!
Stunningly beautiful steep hills totally engulf this pretty town, the light changing their state continually. Diesel tuk-tuk transfers were one of the features in Dhankuta, the electrically powered tuk-tuks used in the Terai would have struggled in ‘Avocado’ central with steep slopes to negotiate.
Ten schools were reached with 870 children, 37% girls having fun, and educational coaching sessions, featuring key messages for participants and teachers that cricket is a ‘Game for All’ and gender equality in society can be strengthened by using the power and reach of cricket.
The coaching team took well to their tasks in the small play areas that would test people back home. In some cases, 50 people in 50sqm made the cricket experience a challenge but with the CWB mass participation specialists giving their all to the children through cricket – what’s not to admire.
In one school, space was at such a premium that a few balls in the bowling session went sailing over the gated entrance that also contained a small entrance door. On one occasion, much to the surprise of the coach, less so for pupils, a teacher entered on a motorised scooter via the side door in the gate at mid-off, then without hesitation or apology travelled to fine-leg. Another, ‘what’s behind the gate’ surprise were the three ducks making their way down the road just as two boys ran out to retrieve balls followed by two goats being taken for a walk on leads embellished with orange flowers, apparently to keep them interested in the perambulation.
Fortunately, in the centre of the town, a large open space exists which is used by the youth in the community. This dusty, worn space provides a dawn to dusk opportunity, especially well used for pre and after-school activity.
Waking-up in Dhankuta isn’t an issue, activity commences before dawn when the local dogs have a great ‘party’ howling and barking just no musical accompaniment, interestingly before dawn, the local cockerel’s get crowing. No need to await the frequently used hammer struck gong as the community is alive with pick-up games of soccer, more than one game taking place simultaneously.
On our final afternoon coaches organised a spontaneous cricket session as soon as school soccer had ended. Many of the participants in the earlier cricket sessions moved away from their football and joined in with some ‘diamond-cricket’ and ‘three ball and run’ pairs cricket with a wind ball.
A return to the hotel after coaching left a few of the coaching team with some work to do, retrieving their handwashed items which when drying were blown from the balcony, CWB shirts, shorts were rescued from a roof below the rooms and a pair of knickers, clearly lighter in weight than the robust CWB kit, made it further gently drifting on the breeze into the swimming pool requiring retrieval by the life-saving pole.
Next stops Pathri and Itahari with an early start – No clock or phone alarm required, the dogs and cockerels have captured the market.
Paul Bedford
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