Talented young female cricketers set to benefit through the launch of new Kia Super League Regional Development Centres.
· Sport England investment enables ECB to further enhance girls’ talent pathway
· Six new Regional Development Centres aligned to Kia Super League teams
At just over the half-way stage in the inaugural Kia Super League, the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) has announced plans to enhance the England women’s cricket pathway for players under the age of 16, after receiving reward and incentive talent funding from Sport England during the 2013-17 funding cycle.
From this autumn, the former England Women’s Development Programme Under-15 (EWDP U15) will expand from being a national programme, which catered for 20 players, into six Regional Development Centres which will provide high quality coaching support for up to 120 young female players across the country.
The six Regional Development Centres will be directly aligned to the new Kia Super League structure to enable the implementation of a simple but aspirational pathway for the most talented young players. Alongside the players’ existing county allegiances, the Regional Development Centres will provide additional opportunities for young players to develop a connection and an aspiration to the six new Kia Super League teams.
ECB Women's & Girls' High Performance Manager, Jonathan Finch, said: “To compete with the best teams in the world on an ongoing basis, we need to make sure that the infrastructure is in place to allow the next generation of talent to move seamlessly through the England women’s cricket pathway.
“This additional funding from Sport England enables us to implement six new Regional Development Centres aligned to the Kia Super League, which will help us to significantly broaden the talent pool that we are currently working with from 20 to around 120 players. Without the age constraints of the previous Under-15 structure, we can also take a broader and extended view of a young player’s potential, making sure that we nurture and support them as they move through the pathway.
“Being able to attach the Regional Development Centres to our Kia Super League teams is an exciting step for us. We want our most talented youngsters to not only aspire to play for their counties but also for their closest KSL team, whether that be the Southern Vipers or the Yorkshire Diamonds. However, unlike the KSL teams, the Regional Development Centres will be non-competitive: they will be training centres providing players with a long term developmental focus.”
The new Regional Development Centres will sit underneath the England Women’s Development Programme Under-19 (EWDP U19), which will continue to exist in its current form.
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