Our UK Coaching 2023 Finalist podcast focuses on Junior Cricket Coaching and in it we hear from people who share a passion for developing the next generation of young cricketers. We will have guests from grassroots clubs, schools, district and county age group junior cricket. There will be guests who specialise in a certain age group, boys or girls, batting coaches, bowling, keeping, leadership, psychologists, parents, junior coordinators and many more.
Episode 178 with Seb Connor on his experience of setting up his own coaching business which is all about giving skills to youngsters to help them become better individuals
Seb started working with Kira Chathli at Surrey on the women and girls' pathway and has made it his mission to help coach in this area of the game and so founded Next Level Cricket Academy in Dulwich. He is now looking to create a model for week long coaching camps which he can take anywhere in the world. His philosophy of "less is more" is central to his coaching approach alongside very specific focus on details he believes will add value to players Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Episode 177 with Chris Morgan on the importance of successioning junior club cricketers into senior cricket as second eleven captain
Chris has been a player, coach, a scorer, a captain and now an umpire all at Ponteland CC in Northumberland. Over time he has coached and supported many junior cricketers develop their game and move into senior cricket. Today he is doing more umpiring and in this episode he share what he observes about the younger players in games he officiates. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Episode 176 with Sam Heazlett on how being self aware from a young age has helped him play cricket professionally and forge a career as a coach too
Sam is by his own definition a reserved, quietly spoken and reflective individual but with strong motivation to get better as a person and a competitive determination to do as well as he can on and off the cricket field. He is also a fully qualified physio so has a number of roles within the game but the coaching is where he really thrives. He has clearly worked out his values as a coach and stays true to these with all the players he coaches. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Episode 175 with Samara Afzal on how a supportive Father allowed her to continue playing cricket when others said it was not allowed
Samara remembers playing cricket with her brothers growing up with great pleasure but if it had not been for her supportive Dad she may never have played cricket again and therefore not got involved in coaching and other areas of the game. She now is a coach of junior and women's cricket and is also a Trustee of Cricket Wales all this alongside her full time profession as a GP! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Episode 174 with Andre Burger on how and why he set up Neuro Batting as a focus for his coaching in Australia
Andre originates from South Africa but has lived in Australia for a while where he played and has coached for a number of years. Over time he saw a gap in the market to set up what he calls the Neuro Batting Program and this is the main focus for this episode. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Episode 173 with Darius and Daniel Joseph on how cricket has offered them so much in their lives already and how there is much more still to come
Darius and Daniel are 19 year old twin brothers from Barbados who have been brought up with cricket since the age of four. They have experienced schooling in the UK at Kings Bruton and Scarborough College and now are doing well in the coaching and playing arenas. Both have ambition to continue to improve themselves through the game and both have hunger to achieve but with slightly different approaches. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Episode 172 with Darryl Rebbetts on how a love of the game combined with a desire to help create opportunities for kids to enjoy sport through education has shaped Darryl's life
Darryl loves the team and individual dynamics of cricket and has played since he was 10 years old. After finishing University and going into PE teaching he has found how much he loves helping children of all abilities enjoy sport and cricket. He is a massive believer in volume practice and showing visual feedback to players as a coach. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Episode 171 with Paddy Rathbone on how to create the right environment for the players you coach is so important
Paddy has built up a wealth of experience in and around junior cricket from his tenure as Chair of Percy Main CC and coach at South Northumberland CC. He is also the Father of two sporty sons one of whom absolutely loves his cricket so he has this dimension added to his cv as Dad! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Episode 170 with Ian Reece how as a coach he prioritises building rapport with the players he coaches and also values the subject of feedback
Ian is a sports psych who is from and lives in Barbados. Ian is a passionate, caring cricket coach who focuses a lot on building the confidence in the athletes he supports. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Episode 169 with Arsalan Khalid: how cricket became a safe haven and social hub for Arsalan in Ireland having moved there from Pakistan aged 19
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Episode 168 with Min Patel; how prioritising fielding with young players is a priority at Kent Cricket
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Episode 167 with Henry Thorpe on how he brings positive energy to every session he runs and in doing so helps deliver the best hour for a young cricketer each week
Despite loving the game of ricket from a very young age Henry didnt think he was great at it or anything else until he realised he was good with people. He now really loves coaching with Surrey and with In Touch Cricket Academy from which he has developed his own philosophy for coaching: 1. Physical: transfer your weight as a batter staying strong and balanced 2. Meta physical: absorb every failure and decide how you will respond 3. Resilience: rid ourselves of false beliefs and re-frame! He enjoys bringing positive energy to each session + keeping things simple. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Episode 166 with Faisal Shahid on how an authentically caring approach to helping others led to coaching finding him some time after taking a break from the game
Faisal worked his was through all the age groups with Worcestershire CCC and got a first year contract only then to find that nerves got the better of him. He did carry on playing for a few years but then took a break away from cricket and in this period found out more about himself and what he liked and from this point forwards he got on a pathway to discover coaching. He places significant importance on helping a player feel confident and starts from a perspective about caring for every player that he comes into contact with. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Episode 165 with Shiv Hustler on how a random meeting at a cricket match led to her working in the county age group system with Kent Cricket.
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Episode 164 with Jenny Wilkes on how women's football's loss is women's cricket's gain
Jenny is the youngest of three daughters and remembers with great fondness how she was always playing sport with her Dad as a young girl. Very quickly Jenny found her way in football progressing from her local club side in the Tyne Valley to the Newcastle Utd FC Women's Academy to the England junior environment and then injury got in the way and she decided to move on from football. What she didn't expect was that cricket would be the sport that would fill the void and provide her with so much contentment and mental wellbeing. She is very grateful to cricket and to the people she has met at Corbridge CC and is now looking for ward to getting stuck into coaching this season for the first time too. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Episode 163 with Sab Muthusamy on how a lifelong love of the game has led to coaching his club U15s, starting a cricket podcast and a touring team all in 2026
Sab has always been interested in cricket. He grew up playing in the back garden and went on to enjoy playing junior club cricket in North Wales before stepping into the senior ranks and remaining steadfast in his pursuit of success. To the present day and he has managed to move in to coaching the club U15s, captain the third team and at the same time start his first venture in to podcasts with Clean Bowled and launch a Men's Touring Team called Nomadic Kings. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Episode 162 with Hugh Fort how the uniqueness, the nuances and inclusiveness of cricket have made Hugh a lifelong lover of the game of cricket
From playing cricket in the back garden as a young boy to the present day as a 40+ year old village cricketer looking forward to the upcoming season Hugh has always been hooked by the game . He by his own admission has never been a great cricketer but he has always enjoyed the uniqueness of cricket and the fact that on a Sunday afternoon you can have individuals spanning five different decades playing together! He remembers with great fondness his most influential coach as a junior called Eddie whom he recollects as being kind and humble and now in his capacity as a member of the club's Sunday Management team Hugh ensures that he takes this approach with the juniors as they take their first step into senior cricket. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Episode 161 with Callum Jackson on how having started a career in county cricket he went on to forge a career in coaching and PT and founded New Era Training (NET) which offers a quite unique environment for its clients to practise in
Callum went through all the junior CAG programmes with Sussex after which he was offered a first pro contract and represented England U19s alongside Ben Duckett and others. Callum then started to coach at high end academies in the UK and Abu Dhabi alongside which he worked as a qualified PT for high net worth clients in London and from these two experiences Callum formed the idea of NET. Soon after opening its doors for the first time he welcomed Jos Buttler to NET's premises and this got him off to a flying start on social media. NET caters for everyone who wants to come and practice their cricket game whether that be an 8 year old or a 60 year old, whether you are in the recreational game, at school or a pro. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Episode 160 with Dan Creasey on how a personal dislike of the game as a boy turned into a hunger to want to make cricket more exciting for youngsters
Dan openly admits he found cricket unexciting and dull up to the age of 14 but believes this helped him create the desire to do all he can to make the game more fun and entertaining through a coaching philosophy steeped in making the game competitive for boys and girls. Also he tells the story of how watching Hepmeyer bat for the West Indies gave him the idea of setting up Calypso Cricket which is a thriving cricket coaching business which Dan leads. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Episode 159 with Zach Lion-Cachet on how keeping cricket more as a hobby growing up led to it becoming his career
Zach always wanted to become a pro footballer and from the age of six to seventeen was at Southampton's Academy. During that time he played cricket with his mates as a hobby which he loved but not obsessing about it becoming a career....and then all this changed when he was offered a contract by Sussex and then really got stuck into improving his game with the help of Gary Kirsten. From here he gets selected for the Netherlands International side with whom he has just played in the 2026 T20 World Cup in India.... Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
