Gough pedals a good cause

Darren Gough, one of the cricketers past and present who are taking part in the Big Bike Ride 2, is puffing red faced up the hills with a former Yorkshire team-mate, Jamie Hood, very much in mind. Hood was paralysed from the neck down in a car accident in South Africa in 1996 and is just one of the players being supported by the PCA Benevolent Fund.

"I played with Jamie Hood at Yorkshire. We were doing pre-season, he went away and came back in a wheelchair paralysed from the neck down. He was a young lad and a very talented player but that was the end of his career.

"Some of the older guys who were playing cricket before the PCA became as strong as it is now didn't have insurance and have fallen on hard times. The PCA are the first ones there to support them."

The PCA Benevolent Fund has helped fund a voice-activated computer, a mobility vehicle and overseas holidays for Hood who spent three years on Yorkshire's staff without making his first-team debut.

It is part of the PCA's commitment to helping current and former players and their dependants in times of hardship and upheaval to readjust to the world beyond the game.

The fund is sponsored by Royal London, a competition sponsor in England professional cricket, and the Tom Maynard Trust. Matthew Maynard, the Somerset director of cricket and former England and Glamorgan batsman, set up the trust after his son, a Surrey batsman, died in tragic circumstances three years ago.

"Surrey have been really hard hit by the deaths of a number of players in recent years and that has been really hard for them.," Gough said. "I knew Tom for a long time. He used to come on tour when his Dad was England batting coach. I played against Tom and Matthew and his Dad used to coach me so I am very close to the family."

Gough took part in the first three days of Big Bike Ride 2 which covered around 250 miles with legs from Truro to Instow in North Devon, Instow to Taunton and a 100-mile ride from Somerset's Taunton headquarters to the Ageas Bowl in Southampton.

He has not lost any of his competitive edge. "The first two days were very challenging with a lot of hills but the third day was great fun, one of the best days of cycling I have had. We went at a fast pace which is what I am used to and we did 100 miles in the day which is something I hadn't done before which I was really chuffed to bits with."

Gough proved a big hit with youngsters at the community cricket clubs that the BBR2 riders stopped off at along the way including Lanhydrock in Cornwall, Holsworthy and North Devon in Devon, Sparkford in Somerset and Sutton Veny in Wiltshire.

The BBR2 also have Gough to renew friendships with former Yorkshire team mates Alex Morris, Gareth Batty, Mathew Wood and Gavin Hamilton. "It brings back so many memories - it makes you feel young again," he said.

Jodie Kidd, the fashion model and television personality, joined the BBR2 riders for the last two legs from Southampton to Hove on Monday and from Hove to the Kia Oval on Tuesday.

She has joined two members of England's 2005 Ashes-winning side in Marcus Trescothick and Geraint Jones on BBR2 along with Kent and England batsman Rob Key and past and present county players.

The Tom Maynard Trust was set up in the summer of 2012 with the initial objectives of trying to provide low level financial support for young cricketers making their way in the game.

This has now been expanded to include grants for aspiring young sports people looking for support with different aspects of their career development, education and awareness programmes, the Tom Maynard Academy at the Desert Springs complex in Southern Spain where up to 14 emerging county cricketers will benefit from specialist technical and conditioning work and a scholarship at his old school, Millfield School.

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