WCB Emerging Players Programme Report Name
Chris Camwell Left Arm Seamer, U14
Notes Chris’ attendance has been poor for the EPP sessions. He attends (at best) 1 in 3 sessions. The communication from his father is also poor and I am always chasing him up to find out why he has not attended. However, Chris does have some ability and has played in the U14’s and U15’s this season. He has not bowled quite as well as he did last year but his pace has been good and he has swung the ball. He has struggled hitting a regular line and length. Academy Prospects – There is a question mark on whether we can keep chris in our elite programmes ie EPP or Academy. He is also in Coventry City’s academy and it appears he is more committed to his football than cricket. If he is struggling to attend EPP sessions, it may make sense that he remains in the DoE system and see how things go over the next 12 months. George has done well for his school side (Shrewsbury School) and technically looks a good player. He is however very small for his age and once he physically matures, I am confident he could be a very good player. He has not managed to get a score yet in either the under 14 or 15 squad, he keeps getting starts and the getting out. Keeping wise, he has been quite tidy standing up but needs to keep working on standing back as he has dropped a few catches. He has an excellent attitude and remains a good prospect.
George Hargrave Batsman/Keeper, U14
Academy Prospects – Possibly one more year in the EPP but still one to watch for the summer to see if he stakes a claim for an academy spot Arjun did very well in the midlands trial and only just missed out on selection for the Bunbury U15 Midlands Squad. Whilst he still has technical areas to work on with his batting, he does have the ability score consistent runs in his own age group and the age group above. Arjun has scored runs in the under 16’s this season and every season he has shown some steady improvement. Academy Prospects – Arjun may well be best suited with one more year in the EPP, however there is plenty of cricket left this summer for him to push on for an academy place.
Arjun Bath Batsman/Seamer, U15 Aaron has simply gone from strength to strength and has been outstanding this summer. He has bowled with good pace, has scored vital runs in the middle of the order and has been superb in the field. His attitude is first class and has real fire in his belly. He plays the game on the edge. Aaron has played in the under 17 and 19’s this summer and also gained selection for the Midlands U17’s. Having chatted to the England U19 Coach, I would be very surprised if he was not selected for the England Development Programme this winter. All of the above is really a fantastic effort bearing in mind Aaron is still under 16. Aaron Thomason Seamer/Batsman, U16
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Academy Prospects – A definite for the academy and possibly some 2 XI towards the end of this season Jim has had an excellent start to the season and at the time of writing, he has scored more county runs than anyone else in the system at any age group (over 400) at an average of 67 including 1 century for the under 16’s. Academy Prospects – Good – he deserves a chance in the academy this coming winter.
Jim Clifford Batsman, U16 Jake has been an enigma. Most games he has gone in and played two or three magnificent shots and then got out. He has done quite well at school level with bat and ball but has failed every game so far this season for the county. Whilst he has some ability and strikes a good ball, at the moment he has not demonstrated the consistency required to play at a higher level. nd
Academy Prospects – Unlikely at the moment, he will need a very good 2 half of the season. Jake Salmon Batsman/Occ Seamer, U17 nd
Daniel’s has kept wicket really well this summer for the under 17 squad and also in the 2 XI at the start of the season. Danny is a very competent keeper but he does struggle with the bat. In terms of an all round cricketer, he is behind other young keepers such as Peter McKay, Tom Banton and George Hargrave because they can all bat. Academy Prospects – Unlikely. Daniel Brosnan Keeper / Batsman U17
WCCC Academy Report Name
Notes Tom has had a very busy summer with school cricket this year and it is something that needs to be looked at for next summer. Tom has already played 29 games of cricket for school this summer and has said he is quite tired. It is the first time Tom has not had a good season and part of the problem is that he has been playing so much; he hasn’t had the chance to practice in between games. Tom reached the final stages of the midlands U15 trials and just missed out on selection. However he is a year young and should get selected next season. Tom is not only a talented cricketer, he also plays hockey to high standard as well. It is vital a sensible programme is put together for him next year as he is doing too much at the moment and he hasn’t even really started playing the county games yet. nd
Tom Banton Batsman/Keeper Under 14
2 XI /First Class Prospects – Assuming Tom continues to develop as he has done over the past few years, I would nd be surprised if he didn’t play some 2 XI cricket when he is 16/17. He is not ready at the moment as he has been st brought in as a long term prospect. Tom does have the ability to possibly go on and play 1 class cricket as a batsman, however he will need to work harder at his keeping to keep at the higher level. Tom is hopefully one to watch for the future and will retain his place in the academy this winter. Liam had an outstanding start the season scoring two hundreds and a 50 on tour to Barbados with Staffordshire Young Cricketers. His form continued into the early county games for Staffordshire in May but has not scored so may during June. However congratulations to Liam on gaining selection for the Midlands U15 squad for the bunbury festival a year young. His off spin bowling is becoming more and more of an option, so he should work on this during the winter nd
Liam Banks Batsman/Off Spinner Under 14
2 XI /First Class Prospects – Assuming Liam continues to develop, his chances of playing first class cricket are good. nd He should definitely be aiming to play in the 2 XI by 16/17 years of age. A definite for the academy this winter and one to watch for the future.
Matthew has had a very good season so far scoring the best part of 1000 runs in all cricket. He has a county average this season of 134 and has scored 268 runs in just four innings. As with Tom Banton, Matt has also played too much cricket already this season for his school and a sensible programme needs to be agreed for next summer. The key area matt needs to work on this winter is his fitness and in particular his speed across the ground and agility. He is a strong lad but at the next level, his fielding is not up to the required level. Matt was selected for the midlands under 17 squad, however due to a torn hamstring (which I believe is down to over playing and his lack of agility/flexibility) he unfortunately missed the tournament but he will continue to be scouted by the England Coaches. Matthew Lamb Batsman/Seamer Under 17
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2 XI /First Class Prospects: Matthew has dominated so far at under 17’s and once fit, he should also look to score nd heavily for the 19’s. He has played one 2 XI game this season and hopefully he will get another opportunity later this year. A definite for the academy and one to watch for the future. It is good to finally see Mark get over here from Belfast. He is currently involved with Ireland at under 17, 19 and at A team level. Mark couldn’t have come over at a better time for him as there are currently a few injuries to some of nd the staff seam bowlers and so he has been given an opportunity in the 2 XI. He played his first 3 day game against Worcestershire and he was the pick of the bowlers taking 4 wickets. Mark bowls at decent pace and at 6ft 3; he has the ingredients to become a good county bowler. nd
Mark Adair Seamer/Lower Middle Order Bat Under 17
2 XI /First Class Prospects: I think will only get better over the next few seasons, especially if he spends some time with Graeme Welch. Mark is a definite for the academy this winter and one to watch for the future.
Basit has had a excellent start to the season in the Birmingham League. Unfortunately he broke his finger a few weeks ago and up until this time, he was one of the leading run scorers in the Birmingham league. Whilst he has not really progressed over the last 18 months, there is no doubt that he has got some ability and maybe he has started to move forwards again. It is a big season for Basit and although he has started well, he does need to demonstrate nd the ability to score runs at 2 XI level. His starting point, in terms of county cricket, is to score heavily in the U19 nd squad and force his way into the 2 XI. nd
Basit Zaman Batsman/Leg Spinner Under 18
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2 XI /First Class Prospects: Basit ideally needs to be playing at 2 XI level and he has the ability to lay at that level but has not yet shown the consistency. Basit has been on the Academy for 3 years, he needs to convince us that his cricket is still moving forwards to secure a place in the academy for next year. There is still a question mark on whether he will be consistent enough to play first class cricket.
Peter has had an excellent season and it is great to see a young local player playing first XI cricket at just 18 years old. Peter’s keeping continues to improve and you couldn’t meet a more enthusiastic person. He has worked hard on his fitness, which he needed to do, but he must continue to do this. Peter, in his own age group, is a good batsman but nd he has only shown glimpses of this in the Birmingham League and in the 2 XI. nd
Peter McKay Batsman/Keeper Under 18
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2 XI /First Class Prospects : Pete is the 2 XI keeper now and is unlikely to play too many games in the under 19’s, however it would be useful for him to play the odd 19’s game to give him a chance to bat higher up the order. Pete st has demonstrated he has the ability to play for the 1 XI and hopefully he will move out of the academy onto the playing staff this autumn. If not, he is a definite for the academy. Mark has only played the one county match so far this season as the under 19’s always start late due to exams. He is hoping to secure good enough grades in his A levels to go to Loughborough University this autumn. nd
Mark has been very consistent at youth level since he was under 10. He now needs to make the step up in to the 2 XI and show that he can score runs at the higher level. He has worked hard on all areas this summer and needs to do nd well in the 19’s in order to gain selection for the 2 XI. Mark Best Batsman Under 18
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2 XI /First Class Prospects: I am confident that Mark could score 30’s and 40’s at 2 XI; however he needs to show he can get big scores at this level. His first class prospects are 50 / 50 at the moment; a lot depends on whether he nd can dominate at 2 XI level.
Mike has some ability with the bat. He has improved his scoring areas against spin and to his credit, he batted very well in the under 19’s first game of the season, scoring 50 against the Midlands U17’s. My gut feel is that mike wants to be a professional cricketer but he doesn’t want to put in the necessary work to get there. It really is last chance saloon for Mike this season and he needs to get some big scores for the nd under 19’s and in the Birmingham League to get himself back in the frame for the 2 XI. nd
Mike Hingley Batsman Under 19
2 XI /First Class Prospects: There are several players in front of mike to step up to the 2 heavily in the U19’s, I would say it is unlikely Mik will progress any further.
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XI. Unless he scores
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Jack had a good start to the season with Knowle & Dorridge and the 2 XI games he played in. He remains consistent with the ball ie he bowls in excellent areas and he has chipped in with the bat in the league. Unfortunately Jack has had back problems and has missed the last 4 weeks of the season. He has been sent for a scan as Gerhard said he may have a stress fracture. nd
Jack Grundy Seamer Under 19
2 XI /First Class Prospects : Jack has performed well at all levels he has played in. The general consensus is that for him to step up to first class level, he does need to find a yard, if not two yards of pace. He is skilful enough to bowl at first class level but there is a question mark on whether he is quick enough. I believe that Jack is worth investing more time and money in to because if he can develop a bit more pace, he would make an excellent county bowler.
DoE Players George is a tall, strong seam bowler with pace and is also a hard hitting middle order batsman. He has been selected for the Midlands Under 15 squad and is a strong candidate for the England Development Programme. He was added to the EPP squad towards the end of the winter and he has done very well in the sessions. George has started the season well for the under 15 squad taking 5 wickets against wales. He has all the ingredients to become first class bowler and working closely with Graeme Welch should see him further develop this winter.
George Panayi Seamer, U15
EPP/Academy Prospects: George should be strongly considered for the Academy this winter. The only slight problem is that he is a boarder at Shrewsbury School, so getting here could be a problem but I am sure something can be worked out. Oli has improved significantly over the winter and this summer. He is a big strong lad who can strike the ball hard but his real strength is against spin. He sweeps/reverse sweeps really well and also has thw ability to hit over the top. There are still a few rough edges to his batting but time in the academy will hopefully smooth those out. He has a first class attitude and is desperate to become a first class cricketer. Oli has had a very good summer so far with lots of runs for Solihull School, runs for the county under 17’s (currently averaging 47 for the county) and he has also been selected for the Midlands U17 squad.
Oliver Haley Batsman Under 18
EPP/Academy Prospects: Oli should be strongly considered for the Academy this winter. A structured programme for him may just see him further develop to become a very good player. He is by no means the finished article but it is unusual to see a young player who plays spin so well.