Cricket Tasmania has been working hard since the beginning of the Cricket Tasmania Premier League season, engaging with clubs to ensure a strong connection with the governing body.
Throughout September and October, Cricket Tasmania staff including Greg Hechter (Head of Development), Sean Stevenson (Premier Cricket Manager), Pratik Sawakhande (Premier Cricket Coordinator), Alistair Addison (Head of Coach Development), Andrew Gale (Head of Pathways – Male), and Nat Schilov (Head of Pathways – Female) went on a ‘Club Roadshow’ to Premier League clubs across Tasmania.
The roadshow identified areas where Cricket Tasmania can support our clubs to produce an environment where strong clubs playing in a strong competition can allow for the best players, coaches and match officials to stake claims for state representation in the future.
Head of Talent and Development at Cricket Tasmania, Greg Hechter, discussed the importance of communication between clubs and Cricket Tasmania.
“The roadshow opened channels for ongoing two-way communication between CT and the clubs to jointly address common areas of concern and collectively propose solutions.
“This collaboration going forward will be key to achieving these goals and fostering relationships that ultimately service the game and place club cricket in a better condition in years to come,” said Hechter.
Sean Stevenson, Premier Cricket Manager, has been working with CTPL clubs since he started in the role at the beginning of last season to help make the competition stronger.
He appreciated the feedback that clubs provided the Roadshow team and spoke of the important role that clubs provide in the future of the sport in Tasmania.
“CT recognises that club administrators and coaches have demanding roles and need our support, and two-way communication is a very important element in that.
“While words are meaningless and we need to deliver, I believe the clubs have confidence that CT is committed to building stronger working relationships in all areas, and this view is supported by the fact that they are already seeing improvements,” stated Stevenson.
Head of Coach Development, Alistair Addison, only started at Cricket Tasmania over the winter, and is familiarising himself with the landscape of cricket in Tasmania.
He recognises that there is a lot of similarities between other sports and cricket, when it comes to developing coaches, but is excited about what’s to come.
“There are a lot of similar challenges for clubs regarding attracting and developing coaches that isn’t unique to cricket or Tasmania, however every club has subtle differences in their challenges and the roadshow has been important to help us get a clearer picture of what that is for each CTPL environment.
“It has been an important first step in building those vital relationships and I am looking forward to continuing to develop those relationships so we can work towards building a thriving coaching system,” said Addison.
From a talent point of view, Head of Male Pathway, Andrew Gale, and Head of Female Pathway, Natalie Schilov, discussed how difficult it can be to produce talent for the next level.
Both believe that there needs to be an importance placed on connection between Cricket Tasmania and the CTPL clubs, and that collaboration between all parties will create better cricketers in the state.
Schilov discussed what this means for the female pathway program.
“Across the business it is a priority to build the participation base and talent pipeline in female cricket and clubs play a critical role in that.
“It’s been important to connect with clubs early in the season to listen to ideas and challenges, as we work on a broader female action plan for premier cricket in the coming months,” said Schilov.
Cricket Tasmania continues to elevate the game of cricket in Tasmania and is looking forward to seeing what the CTPL season has in store.
[Image supplied by Solstice Digital]