Sports Management Q2 2012 - Leisure Opportunities

CRICKETNational CricketPerformance CentreCrispin Andrews visits the National Cricket Performance Centre at Loughborough Universityand finds out how coaches are developing England’s world-class stars of the futureNo sooner had the England andWales Cricket Board (ECB) developeda crop of fast bowlerswho were able to play internationalcricket without getting injured,the team presented the national governingbody (NGB) with another problem tosolve: How to bat in test matches on thesubcontinent. But while England captainAndrew Strauss and company turn to‘reactive’ camps in India and ‘naughtyboy’ nets in Sri Lanka, the ECB are currentlytaking a more progressive stancein developing England’s up-and-comingplayers of the future.Today, the ECB’s England DevelopmentProgramme (EDP) is focused on ensuringthe national team’s future success and, atthe National Cricket Performance Centreat Loughborough University, some of thecountry’s top coaches and support staff areusing state-of-the-art facilities and technologyto make sure that this happens.“We want to give every potentialworld-class cricketer every opportunityto develop the skills to perform at thehighest level possible,” says ECB scienceand medicine manager Dr Simon Timson.INDIVIDUAL ATTENTIONThe best of these players, when ready,move into the EDP, represent EnglandLions and, if they make the grade, eventuallymove into the full test, one dayor Twenty/20 side.Since 2003, when the centre opened,Matt Prior, Stuart Broad, Ravi Bopara andAlastair Cook have progressed throughthe whole pathway. But since 2010, whenthe ECB revamped the programme, theEDP is now solely about individual longtermplayer development: Results andteams no longer take priority.Timson says that the side took only onefull-time spinner on January’s Under-19tour to Bangladesh on turning wickets.“The tour is part of a plan, we picked thebest 15 cricketers we thought could helpEngland win in six years time, not a teamto win a test series in Bangladesh.”INTERNATIONAL PRACTICEToday, the music of U2 and Queen isblaring out from speakers in the practicearea, but the ECB hasn’t hired outits performance centre for an 80s disco.The players on the EDP are preparing fortheir tour of Australia and coaches playmusic to distract them – therefore aidingtheir concentration.PIC: ©WWW.SHUTTERSTOCK.COMPIC: © WWW.GETTYIMAGES.CO.UKEngland players during a performancetraining session at LoughboroughIssue 2 2012 © cybertrek 2012 Read Sports Management online sportsmanagement.co.uk/digital 51