at home or in their garden. The aim was to create videos that allowed pupils to use everyday items that would be in their household or would be easy to locate. Although not a replacement for actual nets, this did enable our pupils to be challenged over the lockdown period and allowed us as coaches to provide videos that would continue developing their skill sets. Towards the end of the Michaelmas Term we had a team building Sports Excellence Quiz which was a lot of fun. The quiz was divided into three categories. The first round was ‘meet the players’ where all cricketers submitted their answers to a list of given questions; round two was general knowledge sports questions; and the last round was ‘name that trophy’. The nature of these quizzes can either be serious or amusing and this one was particularly amusing! We were fortunate enough to have a Zoom video call with current Kent CCC and England cricketer, Zak Crawley, on Tuesday 13th April 2021. It was a fascinating interview where Zak explained his journey from grassroots level through to the pinnacle of cricket. It was captivating listening about his various tours and the pressures that come with playing international cricket. Being around different changing rooms, learning from fellow teammates and discussing ‘what does your best look like’, were three areas that our pupils can integrate into their game. Our pupils also had the opportunity to forward their own questions to Zak. Three of my favourites were: What kept, and keeps you, motivated to continue pursuing a cricketing
career? How did you actually injure yourself on tour? And is Steve Smith exactly like how he is portrayed? There were some intriguing answers throughout the interview especially to the question “Do you have any superstitions and/or know of anyone who has?” Sports Excellence cricketers Charlie Bell, Ollie Jordan-Smith, Duncan Moore, Kalea Moore and Joe McCaffrey all represented various Kent CCC teams during the 2021 summer and further congratulations to Duncan Moore who has been accepted into the Kent CCC Academy for the new academic year. That means that three Sports Excellence cricketers in the last four years have been accepted into the Kent CCC Academy, a wonderful achievement for both the players and the school. Despite the Sports Excellence cricket programme having to be put on pause during the year, credit must be given to all those who are on the programme for their approach and dedication. Every pupil showed great progression and we wish good luck to those who are attending Kent CCC trials in the new academic year. We say goodbye to five Upper Sixth pupils - Harry Carter, Archie Ralph-Harding, Kalea Moore, Joe McCaffrey and TomMarshall, all of whom have left a legacy at the school. We look forward to supporting and watching their cricket careers unfold and we hope they return as Old Lawrentians next summer. We have two new additions to next year’s Sports Excellence programme - Jonathan Stanford and Edward Smith - and we hope to welcome all twelve of them when we return
for five September fixtures. This programme is designed to be more than just nets and training. We look to develop all their skill sets, knowledge of the game and athletic development. All of this is accompanied by interviews, team building exercises, online video and more and helps us to develop a more holistic programme for all of our talented cricketers at the school. This is why our cricket programme has allowed us to be recognised nationally as being in the top 100 cricket schools in the country.
Mr Simmons, Head of Cricket
‘Military fitness, cross country, personal survival and stage combat, to mention a few, helped to develop key components of fitness’
LAWRENTIAN 2021 65
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