Observations on Batting Techniques, Coaching & Fitness

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Canterbury U19Expectations were high for the young U19team but they were not able to defend theirtitle they won in the 2006-7 season. Theywon their first game outright, a three dayeragainst Otago, but the team then moved outto Lincoln for the rest of the tournament and,very disappointingly and surprisingly, did notwin another game, finishing 6th. The overallperformance was reflected in only one player,Corey Anderson, being selected in the NewZealand team to play in the U19 World Cup.Several players had been in considerationprior to the tournament but simply underperformed at the tournament.The team was young, with 7 of the 14players used available at U19 level againnext season. One significant factor in theteam’s performance was that only two playershad played in last year’s tournament forCanterbury. Experience at this tournamenthas proved crucial in the past with playersgenerally performing much better in theirsecond year.Canterbury U17The U17s won the national title with a fineall round team performance. Three playerswere selected in the national U17 team: TomLatham, Matt McEwan and Tim Johnston.Latham and McEwan won the ‘Best Batsman’and ‘Best Bowler’ of the tournament awardsrespectively. Tim Johnston was the leadingtournament wicket taker. The team’s successwas built around a ‘never-say-die’ attitude,contributions from all batsmen at crucial timesand steady bowling performances.Canterbury U15Two Canterbury U15 teams played theircounterparts in a zonal tournament againstOtago and both teams won convincingly.At school level Christchurch Boys’ HighSchool won the Gillette Cup for the third yearin a row reaffirming them to be the leadingsecondary school in New Zealand.Canterbury MagiciansCanterbury women’s cricket has enjoyedunprecedented success this season, winningall three national tournaments. The Magicianswon the inaugural State League Twenty20trophy, a competition that was thoroughlyenjoyed by all the players and a welcomeaddition to the women’s game. They alsoretained the State League title winning thefinal by 7 wickets. This proved to be a highlysuccessful first season for Gary Stead ascoach. Several new players were introducedto first class cricket and contributed well whichbodes well for the future.Canterbury Women’s DevelopmentThe Canterbury Women’s Developmentteam won their national tournament for thethird time in four years. This was a veryyoung team that played exceptionally well allweek. They beat Auckland in the final havingbeen soundly beaten by them in the roundrobin game.Three players (Frances Mackay, JanetBrehaut and Lizzie Rae) went on to maketheir debuts for the Magicians as a result oftheir performances at this tournament.This team was specifically selected witha view to the future, a young team whothe selectors felt could all progress to firstclass cricket within the next 5 years. Thisis particularly relevant as it is expected thatseveral Magicians will retire from first classcricket after the next World Cup in Australiain 2009.Canterbury Secondary SchoolgirlsThe secondary schoolgirls’ team played twogames against their Otago counterparts andwere convincing winners.The future of women’s cricket in Canterburylooks strong.SummaryOne of the most encouraging statistic to comeout of the season is that of the 21 playerswho have played for the Canterbury Wizardsthis season, 17 have come through our agegroup and high performance programmes.There are some areas of concern: qualitywicket keepers, top order batsmen andseam bowlers with genuine pace are all inshort supply. I’m sure that Canterbury is notthe only major association struggling to findtalented players in these areas. This problem
should be somewhat alleviated by theintroduction of the specialist skill coachesin all skill areas. On a positive note, thereare several spinners with real promisecoming up through the age group ranks inCanterbury.Richard HaywardMarch 2008
Page 7: Interview with ECB Coaches- Rupert
Page 14 and 15: Otago Cricket - Season RoundupOtago
Page 16 and 17: Central Districts - Season SummaryA
Page 18 and 19: Auckland - Season SummaryThe Winter
Page 20 and 21: coincidence that Auckland Cricket
Page 22: Source: This article is reprinted c

Observations on Batting Techniques, Coaching & Fitness

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