Three of Guernsey’s top cricketers have raised £3,600 after challenging themselves to climb two of Europe’s highest peaks. 
In September, Guernsey captain Jamie Nussbaumer and team mates Tim Ravenscroft and David Hooper set out to climb Grand Paradiso, which stands at 4,061m. Although injury forced Jamie to cut short his challenge, Tim and David went on to ascend the 4,807m high peak of Mont Blanc, which is the highest mountain in Western Europe.
The challenge was the first in a series of annual events that the island team will be taking on to raise money for local charities. This year’s challenge means the GCB Players Development Programme Fund will receive £1,800 with Male Uprising Guernsey and Only Fools and Donkeys each receiving £900.
‘Guernsey’s national squad has had the privilege of playing at tournaments across the world and that’s a real incentive for younger players to train hard. The GCB Players Development Programme Fund is there to support islanders starting their own cricketing careers and I’m sure that the money raised by Jamie, Tim and David will help a number of players who are destined to represent Guernsey in the years to come,’ said GCB chief executive Mark Latter.
‘It’s also fantastic that two local charities have also received nearly £1,000 each, which we know will be put to good use. The rest of the team now have their thinking caps on trying to come up with next year’s challenge.’
Only Fools and Donkeys was chosen as a beneficiary by long-standing GCB cricket partner Ravenscroft.
‘When you’re playing at a representative level, it could be very easy to just concentrate on your own sporting performance but through this initiative the island players have shown that they are very aware of the needs of up and coming players and of those in the community who are less fortunate than themselves. They should be very proud of their efforts,’ said Charlie Roger, chief executive officer, Channel Islands for Ravenscroft.
Only Fools and Donkeys used the £900 it received to buy a new settee for the quiet room at Le Murier School which it has supported for four years.
‘We want to thank Jamie, Tim and David for pushing their own fitness to help those with limited ability. The youngsters at Le Murier have varying needs and sometimes need a quiet room to go to refocus and it’s important for their wellbeing that it’s a place which is comfortable and we know they will appreciate this,’ said Mike Marshall, founder of Only Fools and Donkeys which is organising a bike ride in France in 2016 to raise money for local charities.
The £900 given to Male Uprising Guernsey will be added to the money raised by islanders who grew facial hair in November to fund the purchase of an ultrasound scanner for template prostate biopsies. The scanner costs £40,000 and MUG hopes to raise the rest of the required funds by early 2016.
‘Template Prostate Biopsies is considered as a state-of-art investigation for men where there is a suspicion of prostate cancer. Currently men from the Bailiwick who are recommended to have a template biopsy have to wait about five months and then spend a night in Southampton for the procedure to be undertaken. By purchasing a scanner, MUG aims to cut down the waiting time to an absolute minimum and remove the cost and inconvenience of going to the UK. We’re delighted that with the efforts of Jamie, Tim and David, and the commitment of so many islanders to grow facial hair in November that we are now well on our way to raising the money needed,’ said MUG chairman Trevor Kelham.
