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The Lions Cricket Club, Regina: the tale of a dying cricket club that became the savior of cricket in Regina
(Courtesy: Lions Cricket Club/Facebook)

The Lions Cricket Club, Regina: the tale of a dying cricket club that became the savior of cricket in Regina

REGINA, Saskatchewan — “Nobody is bigger than cricket and the cricket club.”

If this is the first time you read this, it is crucial you know that these words can only be linked to the Lion Cricket Club, Regina. 

The Lion Cricket Club was founded in the early 90’s and is based in Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada. It was formerly known as St. George Club. Members of the Club place the game above anybody’s selfish interest. This is pure passion. 

The Lion Cricket Club came at a time when cricket was one of the least-loved sports in Canada. In the early 90’s, when the Club came to be, only four other cricket clubs were in existence. The most challenging thing about having a cricket club is that only a few want to play or identify with the sport.

The weight of building the club became a little light when the club signed a memorandum of understanding with India to form the India Canada Association. The Club registered as Indian Canada Cricket Club and was the only cricket club still standing at the time. However, it was still struggling in terms of getting players. They had to rely on players from Saskatoon to keep the only surviving cricket club in Regina going.

The sun later shone on the club when Mike Sharma took over its leadership. As the president of the club, his first point of rebranding was changing the club’s name. He had a vision where all could come and play the game of cricket irrespective of where they are from, but he felt the club’s name (Indian Canada Association) could limit that. Hence, he changed the Club’s name to Lion Cricket Club. 

That is why one of the club’s values is respect for each other irrespective of country of origin or socioeconomic background. For them, equality is fundamental. 

Sharma’s rebranding tactics worked magic, not just in the club but also in all of Regina. First, players from different walks of life and nationality started joining the Club. Second, the interest in the sport was high as donations were made to provide things the club needed to operate. In less than two years, the Lions Cricket Club went from being the only cricket club in Regina to having 15 additional clubs. Eventually, the then Mayor of Regina saw what the club was doing and provided the club’s second ground.

The Lions CC went from a dying cricket club to become the revival of cricket in the whole of Regina. Today, they feed in three teams in competitive championships. They have two T20 teams and one ODI team.

More so, the club has known success not just in staying alive and reviving cricket in Regina, but it has kept cricket alive and remained one of the dominating forces in the leagues they compete in. Their first championship came in 2013 when they became the ODI Champions of 2013. From then onward, the doors of trophies were opened to them.

In 2015, they became Regina T20 Champions for the first time and were crowned Division 2 Champions the following year. They also made the T20 semifinals for Division II in 2019.

Players like Abhay Panchal, Darshil Shal, Sanjay Prajapati, and many others are putting heads together to ensure that they maintain a good position at the league table.

“I find it intriguing that frequently we’ll build recreational centers with double ice pad or double ball diamond or double soccer field with a cost that would be in excess of $35 million, and it’s never a discussion, it’s almost automatic but, when you take on some expenses for a sport (cricket) that hasn’t historically been invested in, all of a sudden people question whether we should be spending so much money,” said Mayor Patrick Brown.

The Lion Cricket Club was the first to share the good news when Mayor Patrick Brown defended a plan to spend $35 million to build a cricket stadium. This is the first in Canada, and the future of cricket is looking brighter.

Many credits may not be accorded to the Lions Cricket Club today, but history will never forget what they did for the game of Cricket in Regina. However, anyone who loves the game of cricket passionately is grateful for the bravery displayed by the Lions in ensuring that they kept standing when no other cricket club could.

This is an unedited user writing submission. The views, information, or opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of Best Version Media or its employees.