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Cricket CoachingA club cricket coach will often be both a trainer and team manager. This is a big commitment, and all coaches appreciate help and support. If you’re supporting your junior cricketer during practice or the match, why not offer to help? You’ll learn what the coach is trying to achieve, and you might be inspired to become a coach yourself. You don’t have to be a cricket expert to do this – if you can learn the common sense safety rules, you will be a valuable assistant. If you have some knowledge of cricket and the ability to communicate effectively with children, you’ll be even more valuable. A good coach plans each practice to include some fun drills for developing batting, bowling and fielding skills. The session will end with a cricket game that suits the age group. Want to get involved? Ask the coach how you can help him to carry out his plan. 
To support the Coach, there are additional coaching resources online, in books and on video. In particular, the
BBC Cricket skills web page
is a fantastic resource. And, just watching how the stars play live cricket is a great learning experience. As in any sport, the best players make it look easy by getting the basic techniques right every time - practice makes perfect! With a little knowledge, parents can help with these skills at home; all potential batsmen need a bowler to practice their strokes, and all young bowlers need someone to bowl at. And, catching practice can be fun for all the family! Need some guidance? Here are some coaching points for batsmen and top tips for bowlers that arise at every coaching session. Fielding skills are also vital for all modern cricketers. In days gone by, fielding was considered a chore to be done between batting and bowling, especially by juniors. However, top fielding can make the difference between winning and losing the match. Before you think about cricket coaching for specific fielding skills, its good to learn about the many cricket fielding positions and how important they are for your team to win the game. Whether you're a beginner or a more experienced cricketer, there's no substitute for professional coaching to raise your skill level. If you're interested in coaching from current and ex-county cricketers, then go to Pro Cricket Coaching Academy, who provide specialist coaching services in the Midlands and North of England, or Pro Coach Cricket Academy who provide coaching by professional cricketers in Yorkshire. If you're in the south east of England or central Scotland, then go to Darren Talbot Cricket Coaching who provide a network of ECB qualified coaching services as well as promoting junior cricket. Modern cricket coaching has a structured training framework organised in the UK by the ECB. The qualifications range from Coaching Assistant, through Coach, Head Coach and Master Coach. The Coaching Assistant course runs for four 3 hour sessions, while the Coach award runs over several weekends. Most club coaches will hold one or both of these awards (or their former equivalents). Coaching Assistants are trained to carry out coaching drills on the outfield, usually with a soft practice ball. In addition to this, Coaches are trained to work in the nets with a hard cricket ball. All responsible cricket clubs should have a certified child protection policy, which includes coach accreditation. Being in charge of children is a great responsibility, so the coach must be their guardian and be responsible for their safety and well being while they are with him. Modern, structured coaching methods are a massive improvement on those of only 10 years ago, and in a different league to much of what went before. So, today’s junior cricketers have more opportunity than ever to improve their skills and to have fun while they do it!
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