KIND-hearted cricketers from Collingbourne gave under-privileged Kenyan players plenty to smile about during a 15-day tour of the African country.

They arrived in the emerging cricketing nation armed with a full kit bag, including bats, pads, gloves and shoes and donated the goods to players from the Narobi club Kongonis .

Club secretary Karl Rogers was pleased his club had been able to help young players in Kenya, whose national one-day side reached the semi-finals of the recent cricket World Cup.

Said Rogers: "The kit will be distributed among the Kongonis players, who are among the most promising in the country. A couple of them have already made it to the national side at their age level.

"We took out a kit bag full to the gunnels and it was more than appreciated. Some of our guys also gave away their personal kit in addition.

"The players in Kenya have to play for big clubs because there is no such thing as a village side, but don't have the equipment to do so."

A 43-strong touring party travelled to Kenya for their third overseas tour, following visits to South Africa and Sri Lanka.

They were based at Nairobi Club, near the centre of Nairobi, and took on Jafferies Sports Club in their first match on a newly-developed ground.

The home team amassed a total of 297 after losing their first three wickets for 66 runs, and Collingbourne could manage only 129 in reply as their tour began on a losing note.

The tourists were skittled out for 94 in their second game against Rift Valley Sports Club with only Dave Cummings and Jamie Stamp reaching double figures, and the local team won by eight wickets.

Collingbourne's touring party then spent three days on safari in the famous Masai Mara national reserve and were beaten by Kongonis in their third match.

A 14-hour overnight train journey then took the tourists to Mombassa, the venue for their fourth game and were beaten by nine wickets by the Coastal X1. Collingbourne went down to a five-wicket defeat at the hands of Mombassa Sports Club, one of the oldest clubs in the country.

Both games took place at the superb Mombassa Sports Ground, which has hosted many international fixtures.

On their return to Nairobi, Collingbourne tasted victory on Kenyan soil for the first time as they beat the Nairobi Club Chairman's XI by one wicket in a nailbiting encounter.

Jonathan Chandler weighed in with 92, while Paul Isherwood's unbeaten 13 helped steer the tourists to victory.

Said Rogers: "We had an unbelievably fantastic tour. We played two games at Mombassa Sports Ground and it was a privilege for a village side like us to play there. Kenyan cricket is on the up and I'm convinced they'll achieve their aim of full Test match status."