When Black History Month arrives each year, there is a huge amount of focus and attention on a part of society that has often been forgotten or simply ignored for long periods of time. And those three words now mean an awful lot to a lot of people.
But what do you think about when you hear them? For myself and perhaps others, if cricket was a part of your life in the 1990s, the mention of the word ‘history’ means one thing.
Devon Malcolm ripping through the South Africa batting lineup in 1994 to take 9-57 at The Kia Oval, having muttered to himself “you guys are history,” when he was hit on the helmet while batting.
He was right of course. He created a moment of spine-tingling history that will live on forever, long after we are all gone, representing incredible Black excellence in an England shirt.
For that alone, Devon could be considered a Changemaker, inspiring young Black kids both in the UK and in South Africa where he was treated like a hero and met Nelson Mandela who personally asked for an audience with the fast bowler, so impressed was he by the performance.
But this is not a story about his cricketing prowess on the field, rather his desire to make a difference off it and help bring the Black community back to the game from the grassroots upwards.
“Cricket has been so good to me,” he says. “I started out in the game and managed to climb the mountain and reach the top, and now I’m coming down the other side."
“I’m in the twilight of my career, how best can I still continue to contribute?”
This was the question Malcolm has asked himself several times, and thankfully for the game he has found an answer as the ECB’s Black Communities Liaison Officer.
It is a position that allows him to do what he does best which is provide a bridge between the Black community he knows and loves, and the game.
Growing up in Sheffield, he played for Sheffield Caribbean against lots of other Caribbean teams who operated outside the official recreation cricket circuit. They had strength in numbers and cricket quality, but the numbers have dropped off significantly since.
“When I played for Sheffield 40 years ago, there was a lot more encouragement because the community would look after each other and do things their way,” says Malcolm. “The love for the game from the Windrush generation was incredible.
“Over time though things have changed. Back in the 70s and 80s, there were 130 clubs or more, but in places like Coventry where there used to be three teams, now they can hardly make one.
“And the community feels left behind. They feel like there have been barriers in the game that have stopped them from truly getting involved.”
How does Malcolm know this? Well, he experienced barriers himself when he tried to become an umpire after retiring as a player and was given little support or encouragement to do it.
Eventually he did return as a match referee before deciding that his energy, skills and cricketing fame could be put to good use supporting the African Caribbean community.
Firstly, he organised listening sessions across the country, so that the ECB could hear directly from Black cricketers, coaches and administrators who are still pouring their heart and soul into the recreational game.
And then came a real piece of action that could grow and grow, which came because of the ECB listening to and acting upon feedback from the Black community in cricket. Launched in 2023, the African Caribbean Cricket Festival started at the first-class county ground in Northampton bringing coaching, cricket, food, music and even dominoes together on one day and is already a firm fixture in the diary, attracting over 2,000 people from all over the country and is growing year on year.
“Most Caribbean clubs want to know what the date of the next festival is,” adds Malcolm. “As soon as they know, they are booking it into their diary straight away.
“We used to play a lot of cricket in parks and turn the occasion into a little festival, but now we wanted to get the community to feel more welcome at a first-class ground. The county cricket boards also now have a pivotal role in encouraging and engaging with the young African Caribbean generations into cricket.
“We are growing the festival bigger and better each year. We had All Stars / Dynamos coaching sessions, ACE Academy v Northamptonshire Academy U19s and The Caribbean Cup team v Windrush Trophy team, this was an exciting game that went to a super over and the Windrush Trophy the eventual winners.
“You want to see young people playing cricket, the second and third generation kids, loving the game and playing cricket, but we need to build trust.
“This is what I am doing. You call it a Changemaker, but I see this as an opportunity to reseed participation, growth and the love for cricket in the Black Communities.”
The next African Caribbean Cricket Festival will be held at Leicestershire CCC on Sunday the 20th July 2025. More information to follow.