Lilleshall Juniors
ECB Guidance on helmets for juniors
The ECB have announced changes to the guidance on young players wearing helmets.
1. Young wicket keepers will be allowed to wear a face mask if they wish to do so or continue to use a helmet as they are currently required to do.
2. Parental consent not to wear a helmet is now no longer allowed and all Under 18 players must wear a helmet when batting.
We would recommend that junior wicket keepers continue to use a full helmet for keeping but if your child keeps wicket and is interetsed in using a face mask instead, please talk to one of the coaches about this. For information, the face masks the ECB are referring to look like this:
Junior Handbook
Now available on line with lots of new skill drills and additional information so please make use of this resource and let us know what you think using the feedback form.
Practice
We run four junior teams at under 10, under 11, under 13 and under 15. Under 10s, 11s and 13s practice is on Monday nights at Lilleshall and u15s practice on a Tuesday (which allows more space on the ground).
Age Ranges we Coach
We usually start coaching children from the age of 8. Under 10s are classed as up to and including primary school years 4 and 5, under 11s are primary school year 6s (but may include year 5s), under 13s are secondary school years 7 and 8 and u15s are secondary school years 9 to 11. After this, players will become part of the senior squad. Girls are allowed to play one year beyond the boys (so year 7 girls can still play at u11 and year 9 girls can play at u13).
What Do We Do At Practice?
Practice starts with registration at 6:15pm (all players must sign in before going on to the field) ready for a 6:30pm start. We aim to fnish by 8:00pm, although we may need a little additional time to arrange team selection. Practice will usually start with any one of a number of warm up exercises that incorporate a cricketing skill (such as catching, target bowling and fielding). We will then follow a preset coaching plan that covers all aspects of the game. We will make reference to the Juniors Handbook as we progress through the season and may ask juniors to read up on certain skills for the following week.
Practice will include the use of hard cricket balls and practice windballs depending upon the activity, we will also allow time for short timed games (such as kwik cricket), match practice and some net practice where appropriate. Children are encouraged to try new skills, participate fully and ask questions. Full details on the code of conduct, coaching policy and expected behaviours are published in the Junior Handbook. A copy of this will be provided to each junior member on registration and payment.
Team Selection
Obviously we have more juniors than we do places in the team (nearly twice as many). That inevitably means that your child may not play in every game in a season. We try to be fair in our selection policy and we will ensure that every junior that wants to will represent the club at least once during the season (weather permitting) and usually many more times than this. Some of our younger juniors may not be ready for selection to play in a match in our opinion in their first season with us and, if that is the case, we will tell you. If a junior member does not wish to play competitive cricket then there is no compulsion to do so, but we would encourage all juniors to play a match if and when they are selected; subject to their availability. In response to feedback from parents, the club has produced a written selection policy for the 2010 season and copies will be given to all juniors at the 2010 registration evening.
Cancellations Due To Bad Weather
As we know all too well, poor weather can play havoc with the fixtures! When poor weather forces us to change our plans this website and Twitter feed will be the primary means of letting you know about any changes to either coaching or match nights. It is important therefore that you check it for the latest information as we will not routinely send SMS and email messages to advise of cancellations; unless this is a last minute decision (in which case we will use every means at our disposal to let you know). However, when we know some time in advance that we will have to cancel training or a match, it makes far more sense to update eveyone via the website in one hit where we can and we will post details under Notices on the home page.
Matches
Under 10s play matches on Sunday mornings, under 11 and under 13 matches are on Wednesday evenings and alternate between home and away; under 16 games are played on Sunday afternoons - see individual junior pages for the 2010 fixtures. We are happy for parents to transport children direct to games but please let one of the coaches know if you are intending to do this and make sure you know where the venue is. Directions to away venues will be posted on the website.
Juniors Score Sheet
New score sheets and score books will be available for 2010 to reflect the change of code from pairs to eleven-a-side cricket.