Derbyshire County Cricket Club is delighted to announce the Boys’ Academy intake for the 2024 season.
The Academy, headed up by Head of Talent Pathway, Daryn Smit, will be working throughout the winter period with 11 young cricketers, from the ages of 16 to 18, training at The County Ground.
The players will be working closely with Derbyshire County Cricket Club coaching staff and support staff including Gareth Marshall (Player Pathway Officer), Ben Hutchinson (Player Pathway Coach), James Fitzgerald (Strength & Conditioning Coach) and Yasir Raza (Physiotherapist).
Six new players come into the Academy for the first time, these are:
Digby Evans
Jake Green
Joe Hawkins
Zak Kelly
Harrison Parker
Matty Stewart
A number of these players featured for the Second XI last season, including memorable hundreds from Will Tarrant and Yousaf Bin Naeem. Seamer Harry Moore made his first team debut in August 2023, claiming a wicket on his first outing in the Metro Bank One Day Cup.
The Academy squad for 2024 are as follows: Yousaf Bin Naeem (Sandiacre CC), Digby Evans (Hayfield CC), Oliver Flindall (Ilkeston CC), Jake Green (Spondon CC), Joe Hawkins (Moddershall & Oulton CC), Zak Kelly (Hyde CC), Tom-Kent-Smith (TBC), Harry Moore (Rolleston CC), Harrison Parker (Clowne Town CC), Matty Stewart (TBC) and Will Tarrant (TBC).
The winter programme will consist of coaching for two hours at a time, twice a week focusing on individual and small group work. In February, the Academy group will also experience a cricket tour to Desert Springs (Spain) which will combine training and matches against Surrey and Middlesex Academy throughout the week. James Fitzgerald will also be working the players hard to improve their overall general fitness throughout the winter.
Daryn Smit said: “The academy size this year has expanded, which enables the players to push each other to develop and improve. They are a close group with five players continuing from last year, which is brilliant to see.
“You just have to look at the success of the Academy last year, these players getting an opportunity in Second XI cricket and impressing, but also Harry Moore making his first team debut, seeing moments like that make all the off season hours even more worthwhile.”
Emerging Players Programme squad
Derbyshire County Cricket Club is delighted to announce the Boys’ Emerging Players Programme intake for the 2024 season.
The Academy headed up by Daryn Smit (Head of Talent Pathway) will be working throughout the winter period with 14 young cricketers from the ages of 13 to 15 training at the Incora County Ground, Gateway Centre.
The players will be working closely with Derbyshire County Cricket Club coaching staff and support staff including Gareth Marshall (Player Pathway Officer), Ben Hutchinson (Pathway Coach), James Fitzgerald (Strength & Conditioning Coach), and Yasir Raza (Physiotherapist).
For these players, it is a great opportunity to hone their skills and fitness levels with the contact time they will get with the coaches and support staff. These players should be looking to follow in the footsteps of Academy players such as Yousaf Bin Naeem and Harry Moore who were a part of the EPP and now have moved up into the main Academy and playing a part in senior cricket.
The EPP intake for 2024 is as follows:
Hassnain Akhtar (Quardon CC), Jake Bull (Rolleston CC), Izaan Chohan (Ticknall CC), Freddie Clarke (TBC), Sam Cliffe (Cheadle CC), Lewis Dent (Rolleston CC), LJ Grimbaldeston (Didsbury CC), James Jordison (Sandiacre Town CC), Rehan Khan (Whitley Hall CC), Riaan Mahmood (Ockbrook & Borrowash CC), Harry Smith (Quardon CC), Dan Spiers (Rolleston CC), Spencer Sutton (Elvaston CC) and Oliver Woodward (Quarndon CC).
The winter programme will consist of coaching for two hours at a time, twice a week focusing on individual and small group work. This will include identifying different themes, technique and game scenarios for both red and white ball.
Gareth Marshall said: “We have seen multiple players now progress through the EPP into the academy now, that’s brilliant to see as a group of coaches.
“Starting the players at a young age and preparing them for potentially senior cricket at this Club is a priority, and we’ve seen brilliant success over the past couple of years doing this.
The intake of players this year have a willingness to learn and develop, as well as natural ability, it’s an exciting time for this group of players.”
