National cricketing officials bowled over by student’s success

A Northumbria University sports student has been awarded a prestigious national award from the England and Wales Cricketing Board this month.

Adam Nichol, a 20 year old BSc Applied Sports Science with Coaching student, has been presented the National Young Volunteer of the Year award at the Natwest Outstanding Service to Cricket Awards (OSCAs) ceremony. The OSCAs form part of the England Cricketing Board’s (ECB) volunteering programme, with the annual awards ceremony aiming to reward the contribution that volunteers make to the game.

Adam, who also came runner-up as National Coach of the Year award, has been a member of Ashington Cricket Club since he was just three years old. Having first gotten into coaching at the age of 12, he has since gone on to complete his Level 1 and 2 ECB Coaching awards and is now Junior Coordinator at the club.

Adam’s efforts do not stop there however, as he is now responsible for coaching more than 70 juniors at his local club, as well as working with the Under 11 performance squad at Northumberland Cricket Board. He is involved with national sporting charity, ‘Chance to Shine’ coaching with young children in local schools in the area as well as training as a Level 4 football referee and Referee Tutor.

Adam said: “I am thoroughly enjoying my time at Northumbria and my course is just perfect for me. It’s very practical and the skills I have learnt and am developing are transferable into real-world work.

“One thing I know for sure, is that without the work of the Sports Science and Coaching department in supporting and developing me as a coach, I would not have been able to achieve such an award.”

The ECB described Adam as a young person who ‘worked tirelessly to revolutionise the junior section of Ashington Cricket Club, turning the club around from being on the brink of disaster to where it is now, with four sustainable junior teams.’

Angela Hibbs, Programme Leader for Sport Science with Coaching, said: “All the academic staff on the Applied Sport Science with Coaching Programme were delighted to hear of Adam’s success. Throughout his degree he has shown great drive and ambition to not only get the most from his degree programme but also embrace other opportunities available to him to enhance his coaching CV and employability upon graduation.

“It is fantastic that Adam has been recognised at a national level for all the hard work and dedication he has shown to the sport. Adam is a shining example of the type of student that we work to develop over the three years of the Applied Sport Science with Coaching course.”

To find out more about the Sports courses Northumbria offers, visit www.northumbria.ac.uk/sportrehab