Fresh off his first appearance at Lord’s, Kamau Leverock wants to use the trip as motivation in his quest to become a professional cricketer.

Leverock said the trip to the “Home of Cricket” for the MCC Universities Challenge Final was something he would never forget, and hoped to repeat as soon as possible.

He might not have to wait that long, the Bermuda all-rounder has been selected to play for the MCC Combined Universities team in the North Division of the Second Eleven Championship for the remainder of the season.

His first appearance for the side is today, when they face Lancashire in a three-day game at Liverpool.

Performances such as the one against Durham MCCU, where he took four wickets for 30 runs in 16 overs, not only helped propel his university side, Cardiff MCCU, to the two-day championship title, but also brought him to the eye of the MCC coaches.

Taking wickets for club side Newport, who play in the South Wales Premier League, has helped as well, and Leverock said his confidence in his game was growing by the day.

“My season has gone exceptionally well, the [university] coaches are delighted with me and have seen me grow [as a player] since I arrived in September,” Leverock said.

The summer ahead seemed a long way off for Leverock in September when a bumpy start to life at Cardiff led to a few “hiccups”, as he put it. Those off the field problems are now behind him, and an appreciation for what it means to be in a professional environment has changed his focus.

“I haven’t been in a professional environment until now, so just seeing my first year, how my game has grown in just these couple of months have given me a bit more hope that I can get into a [county] side,” he said.

Although his Cardiff side were on the wrong end of a heavy defeat to Leeds/Bradford at Lord’s, Leverock said just being at the ground gave him goose bumps, and a feeling he “wants more often”.

“It was a lovely experience, getting there the day before, looking at the wicket, getting a feel for the dressing rooms, it’s something I’ll always remember,” he said.

However, it wasn’t until he ran in to bowl his first ball that where he was, and what he was about to do really sunk in.

“Actually, when I was walking out to bat and I was running down the stairs through the Long Room I was thinking ‘I’ve seen this on television, and I’m doing it now myself’, it was quite exciting, and a bit nervous at the same time.

“I didn’t really think about it until I had to bowl my first ball, that’s when it really sunk in that I was playing at Lord’s and I was about to bowl a ball at Lord’s. It was a ‘hair standing up on the back of your neck’ moment.”