The Cricketer Schools Guide 2025 by The Cricketer

SCHOOLS GUIDE 2025

Nobody wants to be the player at training whose balls land on the roof of the net or fail to reach the other end.

With RapidArm ball throwers, even the most useless net bowler can now throw like a pro and give their teammates a true challenge with every delivery they send down.

“Ball throwers have revolutionised cricket, so every player can now add value at a training session,” says former Scotland international Colin Smith, whose Katchet ﬁrm stock models suited for every player.

“In the past, if you were just a batter who didn’t bowl then you’d roll your arm over and it was a waste of time, but now you can give your teammates a good session – and it’s quite good fun!”

RapidArm is four products in one, with adjustable shaft that gives four lengths so a coach can vary speed and, importantly, the bounce of their deliveries too – especially handy for those coaching players of varying levels of ability, such as in school teams.

“I’ve always had the idea that it’s topdown,” says Smith, who represented his country in 35 ODI and T20I games between 2006 and 2009.

“If it’s useful for the professionals, it’ll feed down to the grassroots – not the other way round.

“The products are as good for pros as they are for kids, whether you’re playing at Test level or a beginner.”

While the RapidArm+ o ers outstanding practice for elite players and gives peace of mind to their coaches, the RapidArm EZY model is an ideal practice tool for those coaching at

grassroots level – including mothers and fathers playing with their children.

And there’s guaranteed peace of mind too. Both products uniquely come in three parts, all engineered in materials speciﬁc to their role, meaning a broken part can also be replaced without having to purchase a whole new one.

The RapidArm+ also comes with a 12-month warranty, while the EZY comes with a three-month warranty.

“A pro coach might go through half a dozen ball throwers in a year and I’ve spoken to coaches at schools who throw two or three in their bag because two might break in a session,” says Smith.

“Ours are incredibly durable. They’ve been tested in Dubai, in 45-degree hear, so we know what they can withstand.

“For parents who want to throw balls for their kids, this gives them meaningful practice.

“We wanted to produce something they can enjoy themselves, while giving their son or daughter that practice.

“Equally, we want to make life easier for coaches who don’t use training equipment day in, day out.

“It’s new to the market but the guys that have taken it on absolutely love it.”

STAFF

Editor Huw Turbervill

Managing director Jim Hindson

Deputy editor James Coyne

Art director Geo Barton

Chief correspondent George Dobell

Reviews editor Richard Hobson

Head of digital Tom Canning

Digital editor Nick Howson

Social media editor Owen Riley

Features Writer Nick Friend

Sta reporter Oscar Ress

Marketing manager David Sharman

Business development manager

Rohan Kulkarni

Subscriptions executive Gemma Neagu

Sales and marketing apprentice

Welcome to The Cricketer Schools Guide 2025

Never let anyone tell you that playing cricket at school is a waste of time.

One of my teachers used to be furious when I left their class to play in a school cricket match.

They couldn’t quite believe it when I prioritised cricket over their A-level lesson. Who knows, maybe my grade was affected. I don’t regret it, though…

A huge number of parents do not let their children play sport at exam time.

Sport gives you a sense of enormous well-being, however. And there is a lot to be said for playing on the Saturday, forcing you to focus on study on the Sunday, rather than half-heartedly revise “all weekend”, with your phone buzzing away and the telly on. And cricket, especially, is the most companiable of games – it is brilliant for networking.

I ﬂunked one of my A-levels (not that one) for reasons not worth going into at this stage. No problem. Being my school’s 1st XI cricket captain was a good line to have on my CV. Playing cricket for Suffolk up to under-19 level counted as an A-Level when it came to getting into higher learning.

When I graduated into the workplace, I never had to show any exam certiﬁcates (not that I had anything to hide).

What felt far more crucial when it came to writing for The Sunday Telegraph was

knowing my cricket. And then I was asked to play down at Hinton-Charterhouse Cricket Club, the Westcountry club of the then cricket correspondent Scyld Berry. I scored 97 not out (yes, my colleague did an Atherton on me!), and I felt I belonged after that.

Never let anyone tell you that playing cricket at school is a waste of time.

Here at The Cricketer, we’ve covered the schools’ game since our inception in 1921, as part of our commitment to follow cricket at all levels. We’re proud of this coverage, and the 10th anniversary of this guide recognises the fantastic cricket programmes that exist in school curricula up and down the country. One of the most phenomenal things about the last decade is seeing cricket usurp rounders as the sport for girls. Rejoice!

We have also introduced a section for state schools, a top 25. The demise of the game in the state sector in the UK has been heartbreaking for us all, but it is uplifting to see some teachers are determined to keep the ﬂames alive.

School cricket has come a long way since I left in 1991, but I hope the boys and girls take as much pleasure from the game as I did (and still do).

Emily Till TO

Inclusion in the guide: Every year we invite schools across the country to submit their entries. Having collated the entries the judging panel scrutinises the schools against a number of criteria - including facilities, coaching set-up and commitment to cricket in the curriculum - to determine which should be included in the top 100 senior schools, top 25 state schools, top 20 all-girls schools and top 50 prep and junior schools. We can, of course, only include the schools who submit an entry – so if you believe your school is worthy of consideration please do make sure you submit via www.thecricketer.com/schoolsguide or by emailing us at magazine@thecricketer.com

Congratulations to all the schools featured in this esteemed guide – now in its 10th year celebrating the nation’s best cricketing schools. As a leading supplier of cricket ground equipment to clubs, professional counties, and schools, we are proud to support The Cricketer’s excellent coverage of school cricket. This highlights

the signiﬁcant contributions of coaches and sta to grassroots cricket. Wishing you all a fantastic winter and the best of luck for the upcoming 2025 season!

Cristian Durant

Managing director, Durant Sports

HUW TURBERVILL Editor @huwzat

On the cover: Oakham v Kimbolton (main pic), Oundle School (bottom left), Bedford v Stamford (bottom middle) and Oakham v Kimbolton (bottom right) all by Paul Carroll.

guide: Getty Images Supporters of The Cricketer Schools Guide IN PARTNERSHIP WITH

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SCHOOLS GUIDE 2025

Van Emden, Hatton‑Lowe, Lategan… county stars of the future?

The Cricketer’s reporters put in the miles to scour the talent over the 2024 season

It is always tempting to speculate how far a standout player will go in his career, when The Cricketer reports on schools matches.

Our reporters have been at games this summer all over the United Kingdom – and even the Continent – and are convinced that they have seen some professional stars of the future.

First up this season, deputy editor James Coyne donned his poncho to venture to Desert Springs. There he saw a fistful of wins for Epsom College, who had the tournament’s leading wickettaker in Ben van Emden, as they won The Cricketer Schools 100. You can read his full report on page 10.

Next up Nottinghamshire academy star Byron Hatton-Lowe came on the radar of our reporter Jim Hindson.

Hatton-Lowe took four wickets with his brisk medium-pace, and scored a savage 59 from 23 balls, including seven sixes, as his Trent College side gave MCC an early-season lesson. He was dismissed with just one run needed for victory, giving his team-mates a welcome chance

to warm their hands with a rapturous round of applause.

The following evening he thumped 188 off 70 balls against Loughborough Grammar School in a T20 match.

“I’ve really enjoyed the county 2s cricket I’ve played and have found lots of the lads open to giving me advice,” he said. “Notts probably is one of the tougher counties to break through at but it’s something that I want to achieve and believe I can do.”

There is a steeliness to him, even a bit of arrogance, backed up by an ubercompetitive mindset and a ton of talent.

Trent’s master in charge Scott Boswell said: “I had stressed to the boys the importance of this fixture and the tradition that goes with it. I did some research the other day and discovered we’ve been playing MCC for more than 100 years. We don’t actually play that much cricket in whites, wearing our baggy cap, which is another reason the boys love this fixture.”

Nothing is certain in life, but Brighton College captain Dan Lategan must have as good a chance as anyone to

ABOVE

make it as a professional cricketer.

Born in Cape Town, his parents relocated to Worcestershire, and he is on the books at New Road. He has now finished his A-Levels, so look out for him in 2025.

In a home match against Hurstpierpoint College, he did not deploy his offspin, to the puzzlement of his coach Mark Davis, the ex-Sussex offie who was also born in South Africa. He did open the batting, though, and impressive he looked too, powering his side to an emphatic 10-wicket victory.

The 100-ball Langdale Cup match,

Brighton openers

Freddie Wallis and Dan Lategan

played by the independent schools in Sussex, was at the Jubilee Ground in East Brighton Park, a lovely pitch under the gaze of the stunning South Downs. The 1st XI will play back in the main school from next summer, however, after seven years of building works.

Hurstpierpoint were coached by Mark Nash, brother of ex-Sussex stalwart Chris, and Billy Godleman, the former Derbyshire captain.

Lategan scored a century against Hurstpierpoint in the same competition last year. This time he struck the splendid, modern pavilion with a six over deep midwicket, and also cleared the rope for a fourth time to score the winning runs and bring up his half-century (51 not out), from 40 balls. He received great support from Freddie Wallis, shorter but still powerful. A member of the Sussex academy, he made 43 from 30 balls.

Meanwhile just down the road, the remarkable state school in Falmer, known as BACA, keeps going from strength to strength. The cricket programme was set up by entrepreneur and philanthropist Sir Rod Aldridge, who is from the area, and this summer they enjoyed a ﬁne run in National Schools T20 Cup.

Captain Frankie Cripps made an unbeaten 66 as BACA won

by nine wickets with 7.5 overs to spare against Hurstpierpoint. In the next round, Toby Munt was the star in the 76-run win against Brighton College, making 57 and taking two wickets, while Felix Holt scored 29 and took four wickets. Alas, their great run came to an end with defeat to Cranleigh School.

BACA’s under-14s also beat Hurstpierpoint, which was the ﬁrst time one of their junior sides has claimed such a big scalp, with Sussex batsman Ollie Mason making 80 not out.

Reed’s School in Surrey was where David Sharman learnt about the dying art of declarations.

It is there that attempts are being made to ensure that such matches serve more of a purpose than simply preserving both a historic format of the game and the kind of Corinthian spirit stereotypically associated with it.

There are multiple practical reasons too for trying to repopulate the ﬁxture list with more declaration ﬁxtures at Reed’s, according to master in charge of cricket, Malcolm Dunn.

“One main point is the fact there’s no restrictions on the bowlers, and I see that as being really important,” said Dunn. “Quicker bowlers need to learn how to come

back on for second spells and spinners need to get used to bowling 20 overs in an innings.

“The other side is the art of captaincy. You have to take 10 wickets to win the game and you have to start to see how you do that. You have to ﬂirt with losing to have the chance to win and dangle the carrot a bit to let the opposition think they have the chance.

“We deﬁnitely see that improvement in the captains, the more declaration games we play.

“All formats are valid, but these games prepare them for if they want to go and play Premier League cricket in whichever county they live.” And how better to put that to the test than in Reed’s 1st XI’s ﬁxture against a Hurstpierpoint College side captained by Henry Rogers, who has both England Under-19s and Sussex 2nd XI appearances under his belt.

After electing to bat, Rogers scored 74 at more than a run-a-ball until he was caught by Josh Millerd o the bowling of Reed’s skipper Yusuf Afzal (20.5-1-1005). Hurstpierpoint’s other opening batter, Ben Willsdon, went further and recorded a century before being bowled by Afzal’s fellow spinner, Ben Choy, for 112.

Wicketkeeper Cam Ward’s 87 then pushed the home side’s total up to 311 for 6, with the declaration on 57.5 overs being sparked by his wicket falling, as Afzal completed his ﬁve-wicket haul.

In reply, Reed’s posted 252 for 5 from 51 overs as both sides shared a draw. Notable highlights of the chase included Archie Jenkins (100) and Aaron Bates (83) sharing a secondwicket stand of 149.

The same writer rounded up our campaign by seeing Scarborough College become the ﬁrst Yorkshire school to win the English Schools’ Cricket Association One Day Cup.

They triumphed after beating Millﬁeld School by 62 runs in the competition’s ﬁnal, held at Oakham School.

The defeat marked the first occasion 13-time winners Millfield had been beaten in the final of the 40-over tournament, which has been held annually since 1972.

Fistful of wins for Epsom

Nat Sciver-Brunt’s alma mater went unbeaten across ﬁve games at Desert Springs to seal The Cricketer Schools 100, reports James Coyne

Afurious gallop away from the Spanish sandscapes immortalised in the iconic Spaghetti Western movies, Epsom College gunned down all-comers with the laconic ease of Clint Eastwood to secure The Cricketer Schools 100 2024 at Desert Springs.

The Kent state school Canterbury Academy had come home with the spoils in 2022 and 2023, but their absence this year took the prospect of their own ‘Dollars Trilogy’ o the table.

And Epsom took full advantage, riding into Desert Springs with an impressive cast of their own.

From the moment they brushed aside St Paul’s School in the opening game, it was clear that the team coached by Damian Shirazi were playing a very high standard of cricket. The Surrey school’s cricketing reputation has only burnished since helping to produce Nat Sciver-Brunt a few years back.

Best of all was the strength and variety of their attack: two genuinely quick bowlers in Alex Chambers and Jack Martin; a very steady o -spinner in Ben van Emden (the

tournament’s leading wicket-taker with 12); leg-spinner Shamir Shah; and a classy slow left-armer in Ralphie Albert unafraid to bowl in the Powerplay. Albert, not yet 17, went on to play for England Under-19s by the end of the summer.

And Epsom’s batting was always streetwise enough to put enough runs on the board. Chambers, Epsom’s triumphant captain and one of four players with Bunbury Festival experience, said: “It’s been really good. The boys have put in a lot of work this winter, working really hard with our coaches. It’s good to see it pay o in pre-season.

ABOVE Epsom College toast their victory in Spain

BELOW Ralphie Albert looked a very assured left-arm spinner at just 16

“Not many of us had played abroad before. We knew it would be slightly drier than at home, but we’re fortunate to have a pretty good spin attack for these conditions.

“Hopefully for a lot of our lads going up and progressing through the ranks in counties, we’ll be touring abroad sometimes, so it’s a good experience to go and play in countries where it’s slightly hotter.

“It was a little bit di cult playing the 100-ball format at ﬁrst. We’re used to longer formats or T20, but as the competition has gone on we’ve adapted really well. We’ve all loved it here. We’re very grateful to the groundsta putting these two wickets together for us, and the accommodation and the catering has been fantastic too – so I would recommend it to anyone.”

The Desert Springs resort near Almería is primarily a golﬁng getaway, but in recent years it has built a strong reputation in cricket as a warm-weather escape for international teams to prepare for series, county sides to warm up for the new season, and Associate nations to play key tournaments. The Ireland seamers who took 19 of the 20 wickets in their maiden Test victory in Abu Dhabi had spent a few days of key prep at Desert Springs.

The ODI and T20I-accredited venue has room to expand, and a new high-speed railway from Murcia to Almería was under construction within sight of the ground.

This is the driest part of Europe, but it was hard to believe that as biblical levels of rain battered southern Spain across Holy Week. Yet it was testament to the facilities and the groundsta that none of that was obvious – besides perhaps a little extra nip for the new ball over the ﬁrst couple of days – by the time the tournament began on Easter Monday.

As the sun beat down during the week, spin bowling would prove a major weapon, helping broaden the horizons of the players taking part.

Most impressive of all, though, was how swiftly the teenagers got their heads around the 100-ball format – including the ﬁelding restrictions, speedy over-rates and wildcard of bowling 10 balls in a row. Several young

fast bowlers were willing to shoulder that responsibility with the new pink Kookaburra ball.

With the competition expanding to six teams – Bloxham School, Canford School, Dean Close School, Epsom, St Paul’s and Westminster School – for the ﬁrst time, the format switched to a round-robin league. And once Epsom overcame their most dangerous challengers, Canford, with an e cient allround performance in their third game, it was going to need something special to topple them.

Even so the destination of the title was in doubt until deep into the fourth day, when the last remaining challengers Westminster were brushed aside by Canford.

Epsom were actually pushed hardest by bottom side Dean Close that same day. The table-toppers had taken something of a risk by shu ing their batting order and resting their skipper for the understandable developmental purpose of giving all their players a decent go. And, at 12 for 4 at the end of the Powerplay on a fresh wicket – Henry Read taking 3 for 9 by the end of the sixth over – Dean Close looked set to blow the tournament wide open. But Albert (32) and Nathan Farmer (22 not out) managed to salvage a score of 101, which proved enough for Epsom’s excellent attack to defend.

Elsewhere, both St Paul’s and Westminster were well-led and willing to put a heavy price on their wickets, as the value of building a platform became clear even in the 100-ball format. Arran

Duguid’s composed 50 not out from 45 balls in a tournament-high total of 128 for 5 for Westminster against Bloxham was a case in point. Only once was a 100-plus score chased down, when Bloxham and Dean Close produced the most thrilling ﬁnish of the week in their battle to avoid the wooden spoon.

A reassuring partnership of 80 between Charlie Watkins (38 not out) and Will Waltham (37) steered Dean Close to 116 for 3, but the Gloucestershire side possibly left a few runs out on the ﬁeld. Dean Close still appeared to have victory covered o until the imposing Will Turner smashed three sixes at the end to take Bloxham to their target with one ball remaining.

Canford, who brought with them a number of travelling supporters from Dorset, then closed out second place thanks to Sam Martin’s powerful 69 o 49 balls against St Paul’s, which dominated his side’s 109 for 6.

Martin’s score was second only to Alﬁe Haxton’s 76 not out for Epsom in their match against Bloxham.

St Paul’s came a cropper in the runchase against Sam Reeve (3 for 10), and had to settle for third spot in the competitive three-way race behind Epsom. But they too had an impressive cadre of spinners.

All in all, The Cricketer Schools 100 provided plenty of insights to both a fastpaced format and arid conditions, which should be of great value for any of these young cricketers who one day make it to the top.

All games at The Cricketer Schools 100 were streamed using FrogBox kit. See how to capture all your cricket with FrogBox by heading to www.frogbox.live

Bloxham and Dean Close battle it out on the last day

Westminster

Bloxham

Dean Close

St Paul’s

Canford

Indoor delights wow both school and county players

Middlesex players are impressed by the new artificial indoor surfaces installed by Durant

Sports at Merchant Taylors’ School, writes David Sharman

Ahigh-quality indoor training facility is exactly what any professional cricketer needs to stay on top of their game all year round.

And, at Durant Sports’ new installation at Merchant Taylors’ School, Northwood, that’s exactly what they’ve got.

“Middlesex players have told me they believe it to be the best that they have trained on,” said Ian McGowan, director of cricket at the school.

High praise indeed, but it should hardly be surprising when Durant’s impressive work on the facility is broken down.

In total, five new nets were put in –two designed to aid spin bowling, two bouncier surfaces for fast bowling, and one which includes a surface designed to help the ball do more off the seam.

“It creates a unique training environment, not just for bowlers having to bowl under different conditions, but for the batters too,” said McGowan.

“They’ve had to think differently across the different surfaces and, from a coach’s point of view, you can create scenarios

for them that you would just have been imagining before.”

In addition, the back third of the centre also features a completely different long pile surface, designed to help pupils get much better fielding practice, whatever the weather outside.

The area has proved a hit too – and not just among the wicket-keepers and best slip catchers on the school’s books, as might be expected. According to McGowan, all the boys who use it “really enjoy” their time fielding.

Gone, then, are the days when fielding drills are an aspect of training just to be tolerated by many cricketers – now, they’re a firm part of what makes sessions so much fun, thanks to the new installation.

For coaches setting up the sessions, the stress of deciding what aspects of play to focus on, and when, has been removed thanks to Durant’s new net system, which has given them the flexibility to do so many different things concurrently within the same session.

Durant’s work includes dividing nets

BELOW & RIGHT

The new facilities at Merchant Taylors’ School, Northwood

for the back, front and side of the centre – meaning sessions involving bowling machines and fielding drills can all be going on at the same time, as well as regular line nets.

The ability for both white and black sightscreens to be used also maximises batters’ ability to focus on how they will tackle training scenarios involving both red and white balls.

And there’s peace of mind for quick bowlers that they won’t stumble or cause themselves unnecessary injury in training thanks to Durant’s flooring installation, with shock absorption at the heart of it.

But projects like this don’t just magic themselves out of thin air. According to McGowan, Durant owner Cristian Durant’s determination to provide a bespoke installation for the school set the company apart from the competition when he was deciding how best to proceed with the development.

McGowan also felt like he was a key part of the process too, with Durant’s keen ear for bespoke solutions being the real clincher.

“They listened to what we wanted and worked back from there. It wasn’t just about what they could provide,” said McGowan.

“The way Cristian listened really impressed me, as well as the way he helped me throughout the process.

“For what was quite a unique project in their portfolio, that really stood out to me.”

The centre also left an impression on none other than former England captain Sir Andrew Strauss, who said the following upon its opening in April: “This new indoor training centre is an outstanding facility and will provide young cricketers with the opportunity to train year-round and hone their skills for success on the pitch.

“It truly is world-class and will, I am sure, help develop young talent for years to come.”

How your school can make a positive impact in the community by supporting the Lord’s Taverners charity

As many of you reading this will be aware, the Lord’s Taverners has a long history and association with cricket. As the charity enters its 75th anniversary year, the impact it has through national inclusive cricket programmes, on young people from disadvantaged communities to those living with a disability who are at risk of inequality, is the strongest it has ever been.

Its programmes are now delivered in every English county, Scotland and Wales, and there are so many ways in which you and your school can help the charity to continue growing its impact and reach.

There is already evidence of the di erence a strong link between schools and local programme projects can make on young people in communities near you.

FETTES COLLEGE, EDINBURGH

In October 2023, Fettes College in Edinburgh became a standalone hub for the Edinburgh Wicketz project. The sessions, which are delivered by Cricket Scotland, combine cricket coaching and competition with workshops that are designed to improve the participants wellbeing, life skills and social integration. Access to the school’s facilities has enabled young people from

disadvantaged communities in the city, who would not have had access to such facilities before, to take part in their first ever hardball cricket sessions. Just one year on from the introduction of this hub, there are now 49 participants in Edinburgh benefiting from free access to cricket and all the personal development opportunities that brings.

Friendships have been formed, valuable life skills learned and opportunities being provided such as cricket coaching courses being delivered on site have been beneficial to those who have got to a place where they are ready to take that step. Young people from these communities gaining such qualifications can only benefit the local community and increase the number of role models, coaches and access to all the roles and opportunities available through the game.

Mohammad Afzal, Edinburgh Wicketz development officer, says: “We are so grateful to Fettes College for loaning

us their fantastic sports hall for our Edinburgh Wicketz sessions. It’s amazing to be able to give participants the opportunity to use the sports facilities Fettes has and encourage more people to get involved in the sport.

“Cricket can serve as a valuable tool for educating young people on physical fitness, teamwork and communications skills, as well as improving character development and allowing for personal growth, helping young people build life skills that will serve them well in various aspects of their lives.”

Mark Appleson, director of sport at Fettes College adds: “We’re pleased to host the Edinburgh Wicketz project’s hard-ball cricket sessions at Fettes. What the programme does for disadvantaged young people across the UK is incredible, and provides them with an outlet to learn new skills, make friends and improve their wellbeing. It’s great to see young people taking part and having fun.”

How can you follow in Fettes College footsteps?

There are numerous ways to engage with the charity and it’s cricket programmes. The charity would be very open to discussing ways in which you could work together. Some of the options are listed below:

• Make your facilities available for Taverners programmes in your area.

• Spread the word within your networks and communities about the work of the charity.

• Make coaching and volunteer opportunities available for your staff and pupils by partnering with a project near you.

• Fundraise for the Taverners work in your area – either through your own school activities or one of the many challenge events the charity has access to.

• Partner with your alumni to host a fundraising event – perhaps a match against the Taverners Celebrity

Cricket XI?

• Offer support to any of the Lord’s Taverners programmes that work with young people in your communities. For example, could someone connected with the school run a life skills workshop at a nearby project? There is so much that could be gained from a mutually beneficial partnership, and the Lord’s Taverners would ensure that awareness of any potential link up is publicised both locally and through its own communication channels, with the priority of making cricket as accessible as possible at the heart of it all.

The Taverners have staff located across the country, whether it be the local Development Officer who delivers and oversees programme activity or a member of the central staff team, who could work closely with you on any relationship that may arise.

Lord’s Taverners cricket programmes

The Lord’s Taverners positively impacts the lives of young people facing the challenges of inequality. The charity works across the UK to provide inclusive and impactful cricket programmes, empowering young people with disabilities and from disadvantaged communities to develop the knowledge, skills, capabilities and confidence required to overcome the challenges of inequality and reach their potential.

WICKETZ

Wicketz is a community cricket programme, initially targeting young people aged 8–19, living in high areas of deprivation and hard-to-reach groups. The programme focuses on understanding and tackling local issues that negatively affect young people and their communities.

SUPER 1s

Super 1s is a disability cricket programme which is delivered across the UK. It provides young people with disabilities aged 12–25 with the opportunity to regularly access cricket and helps improve physical and mental wellbeing. Each Super 1s project and session is adapted to ensure all participants experience a sense of belonging while gaining skills for life such as confidence and independence.

WORK IN SEND SCHOOLS

The charity is now making cricket accessible for more young people with a disability than ever before through sessions delivered in special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) schools across the UK. Sessions are adapted to ensure participants get the chance to engage in the most appropriate form of cricket (softball or table cricket) and raise awareness of their nearest Super 1s hub to encourage participation in the game outside of their school setting.

From school cricketers to international stars, B3 Cricket provides VIP treatment for all players

At B3 Cricket’s factory in the heart of England, David Sharman found an operation deeply rooted in a passion for the game and a commitment to advanced bat-making that serves both professionals and amateurs alike

Young cricketers, when shopping for bats and equipment, deserve the same high-quality service that professionals receiveunfortunately, this is often not the case. However, the team at B3 Cricket prides itself on delivering an exceptional experience to every cricketer who walks through their doors, from school players to Test match stars.

That’s not just a hypothetical brag either, their high-quality bats and gear are used by renowned England players such as Tom Hartley, Freya Davies, and Josh Tongue. “Every amateur or junior

player who comes to us receives the same quality willow and custom bat options as top professionals,” explains owner Michael Blatherwick. “Our unique batmaking process ensures that every player, from grassroots to elite levels, can find their perfect bat.”

A visit to B3’s factory in Hucknall, north of Nottingham, reveals a familyrun business with probably the most advanced bat making facility in the cricketing world.

3 ways to find your perfect B3 Cricket bat B3 Cricket offers an extensive selection

ABOVE

B3 owner Michael Blatherwick

BELOW

The B3 team; England player, Freya Davies

of bats and kit, with the ‘3’ in ‘B3’ representing the three different ways customers can find their ideal cricket bat:

1. Series Range: This collection features six of B3’s most popular bat shapes with various middle positions. Always in stock and available in different willow grades and weights, these bats can also be custom-made within days (if they don’t have your perfect bat in stock), to meet your exact preferences.

2. Custom Bat Builder: If you can’t find something that suits within the Series Range, then B3’s Custom Bat Builder provides over 600 combinations of middle position, edge shape, spine and toe profile. Players can play with the options, visualize their designs on the B3 website and download a PDF of their final bat.

3. Bespoke Service: This is ideal for those wanting to replicate an old favourite. This service uses advanced computer-aided design (CAD) technology to map any bat shape and reproduce it in the B3 factory. “Customers often bring in cherished bats from years past, and we can recreate them exactly. We even offer Bat Mapping via Zoom, allowing us to serve customers worldwide,” enthuses Gavin Corns, B3’s Production Director.

A one stop cricket shop direct to the customer

Founded in 2012, B3 is now recognised as one of the world’s leading makers of high quality genuine English willow cricket bats. In addition, they also o er a range of batting gloves, batting pads, thigh guards, wicketkeeping gear, bags, shoes, and coaching products, making B3 a true onestop shop for cricket enthusiasts.

What’s more, because they only sell direct to their customers and not through retailers, they o er exceptional value and

service to their growing customer base.

“We aim to o er our customers exceptional choices and a personable service while creating the best bats in the world at great value,” added Blatherwick.

The best genuine English Willow

With recent concerns about the shortage of English willow and counterfeits in the market, B3 assures customers they are receiving genuine products. “100% of our willow comes from JS Wrights, and we only source the top grades,” guarantees

LEFT

Tom Hartley in batting action during the 1st Test between India and England in January 2024; every B3 customer gets the same quality and choice as a pro player

FANCY A BUMBLE FACTORY TOUR?

B3 welcome players, parents and coaches to visit the B3 factory to see what sets them apart as a bat maker. Alternatively, if you can’t get to Nottingham, you can do this virtually.

Simply scan the QR code below and let legendary cricket pundit, David Lloyd, take you on the Bumble B3 Factory Tour.

Blatherwick. The team’s dedication to customer satisfaction and expert craftsmanship shines throughout the B3 experience.

Using CNC technology for precision shaping, each bat is individually pressed to maximize performance and ﬁnished by hand in their state-of-the-art factory. Every B3 bat carries a unique serial number, ensuring that once a customer ﬁnds their ideal bat, it can be precisely recreated in the future. “Our clients, from elite Test players to club cricketers, appreciate that we keep their design on record. Our precision, balance (pick up) and pressing process sets us apart and maximises performance. At the end of the day, we help our customers score more runs with a bat that suits them and pings!” explains Corns.

Become a B3 Ambassador B3 is dedicated to nurturing young cricketers’ potential. Their School Partner and Ambassador Programmes o er aspiring players at partner schools exclusive sponsorship discounts. For those near Nottingham, B3 invites players to book a net session at the B3 Academy, adjacent to the factory and showroom, where they can test various bats and receive expert coaching.

By cricketers, for cricketers

When you choose B3, you are working with cricket enthusiasts. Everyone at B3 has played the game and is committed to providing the best equipment to help players excel. They ensure that every player ﬁnds a bat shape, size, and weight that enhances their development. Furthermore, they collaborate with coaches to ensure the best ﬁt.

“We are dedicated to giving the best advice, and if a customer isn’t completely satisﬁed with their bat, we will make them a new one—no questions asked,” concludes Blatherwick.

With that level of customer service and dedication to the game, it’s no wonder some of the world’s best players keep coming back for more.

Eleiko’s expertise helps Rugby cricketers to meet the demands of the modern game

With the demands of modern cricket, strength and conditioning training has never been more important to youngsters aiming to play at the highest levels. And, thanks to Eleiko, Rugby School now has a unique facility for its cricketers to make the most of their development indoors.

Tasked with transforming an old shooting range into a modern gym facility fit to help youngsters with great sporting ambitions, Eleiko employed their expertise in the field, which has stood the test of time since 1957, to ensure the needs of a top sporting school like Rugby are now being met. Eleiko pride themselves on building strong partnerships, from the initial consultation phase to the post-install education. Initial site visits form the foundations for the overall project, allowing them to really get a feel for the facilities they will be transforming.

This also ensures they can cater for the needs of each school’s talented sportspeople, whether they’re hoping to employ their training on the cricket field or elsewhere.

“Through the consultation phase and site visits, we gained a clear understanding of Rugby School’s vision for the space,” explains Eleiko’s strength expert Jayne Jones, who worked on the development at Rugby from start to finish.

Next, a 2D map of the proposed project is created by Eleiko’s facilities design team, who work on gyms all over the world, followed by the creation of custom-designed products to help schools looking to really bring out their pupils sense of pride when they train.

At Rugby, this included custom rack colours, as well as branded Prestera rack

plates, turf track and plyo boxes.

“Personalising the equipment was important to Rugby School due to their rich history and a unique identity as a school,” says Jones.

“Adding these branded elements help to create a memorable experience for the athletes.”

“We then began to consider the project from an installation perspective, recognising the importance of coordinating around key dates to ensure a smooth process”

The finished gym includes features such as custom-branded Prestera racks and a variety of Eleiko strength tools such as speciality barbells, sport training plates, plate dumbbells, a dual adjustable pulley machine and more.

Eleiko is now planning to organise an Independent Schools Day, hosted at Rugby School, which will allow the company’s dedicated education team to offer their expert advice and guidance to independent schools from around the country.

This will give coaches the opportunity to learn more about how they can make the most of strength and conditioning training and equipment for all the talented young sportspeople on their books.

“It’s a real passion of ours,” says Jones.

“We see Eleiko as an ideal fit for these facilities, and we’re committed to partnering with our clients from start to finish.

“Our goal is to work closely with them to design innovative, brandaligned spaces that go beyond simply installing equipment.

“It’s about building long-term partnerships that help our clients maximise the potential of the environments we’ve created together.”

Phil Lewis, Director of Sport, King’s College Taunton Winners - 2023 National T20 U18 Cup

Head of Girl’s Cricket, Ipswich School Winners - 2023 U17 Girls T20 Nationals Cup

Put your school on the map with NV Play’s Live Streaming next season

NV Play is redefining and democratising the way cricket is scored, streamed and analysed

Play-Cricket Scorer Pro (PCS Pro) is widely used in the professional game by all 18 First-Class Counties, as well as the England Men’s and Women’s International teams. There is also a huge footprint in the recreational game where the natural keystroke and click of the everyday scorer powers the live streaming overlays, deep match statistics, ball clipping, online match centres and local scoreboards.

PCS Pro allows users to bring their own cameras or purchase from NV Play’s own curated range of Camera Kits which are tailored for every budget and specifically designed for use at cricket grounds. Combined with a growing trend for permanently installed cameras on scoreboxes, sightscreens, pavilions and outbuildings, the whole match set-up time is reduced to a few button clicks where live streams can be automatically scheduled

via your own YouTube channel.

The platform is equipped with the likes of Duckworth-Lewis-Stern method (DLS), pairs cricket and other match formats including The Hundred. It also features auto editing capabilities, making it robust and battle-hardened to stand up to the challenges of the most pressurised situations.

New for 2025 are our batting & bowling wagon wheel graphics, which can be used to showcase player or teamspecific information to enhance your broadcasts output.

With an ever-growing number of schools now using the NV Play platform for boys’ and girls’ cricket, here is what some have had to say:

Scott Boswell | Trent College

We use PCS Pro with the 1st XI. It’s an excellent tool for streaming and links extremely well with Play-Cricket. More importantly as a coach we use it for player development as a coaching tool. This year we have put on a scoring course for the students to use PCS Pro so all age groups will be scored by laptop with even more data! We currently have 15 students who can use the system.

Dean Headley | Blundell’s

School

On moving to Blundell’s School, I asked about getting cameras to allow for live streaming. The process of getting them set up was really straightforward. Linking the scoring and streaming through PCS Pro, and now the Scoreboard as well, has made our setup very professional, which also includes getting footage for PE GCSE and A-Level students. We will continue to find ways to improve our interaction, moving on to coding clips for individual players. The fact that players at amateur level can see themselves play is just amazing.

Simon Jackson | Whitgift School

“With NV Play, Whitgift School brought cricket closer than ever—allowing players and coaches to enhance their game through analysis and feedback, while families and classmates could cheer from anywhere in the world. Great value and addition to our department”

NV Play’s vast experience in providing cost effective, high-end coverage for the professional and recreational game in the UK via the ECB makes it the solution of choice for every match day. Last season alone saw over 400 clubs and schools across the UK utilising NV Play’s best in class video features and your school can join the revolution too.

Strong partnerships mean MR Cricket Hockey and Surridge Sport stay ahead of the game

Understanding the ever-changing needs of schools and cricket clubs gives suppliers the edge when it comes to ﬁnding solutions for both teamwear and individual equipment

We all know how crucial building partnerships can be in any game of cricket.

At MR Cricket Hockey, that philosophy extends away from the middle and into their retail shop – both with clients and suppliers.

The East Anglian ﬁrm has recently celebrated 15 years of supplying kit to more than 180 schools and cricket clubs across the United Kingdom including one of the most prestigious private schools, The Perse School, in Cambridge.

But how does such a partnership thrive for so long among the ever-evolving demands of cricket, where equipment is changing all the time and new challenges keep cropping up, such as innovations in the use of coloured kit and increased demand for women’s clothing?

“Great partnerships with all our suppliers are key to making sure all the schools’ and clubs’ needs are met,” says MR Cricket Hockey director Merrick Fuller.

“One of the strongest supplier partnerships we have is with Surridge Sport.

“We are heavily customer-focused and customer-led. If parents and pupils have any issues or questions they can email, phone or come into our store to try on uniform and equipment and get expert advice from all our knowledgeable sta .

“The Perse School for example have continued using our services for almost 15 years because of the level of personal service we are able to provide to parents. Since securing the contract to supply, The Perse School has grown from 700 pupils to over 1,500.

“We’ve adapted and grown with them, building trust and a great working partnership,” adds Merrick.

“We now supply all of their sportswear and uniform o ering parents that one stop shop

to make back to school purchases of sportswear, uniform and equipment as easy as possible.

“We have been very focused to ensure that as well as great products and competitive pricing we keep customer service as the main driver of our business.

“At MR Cricket Hockey, our sta are keen to help as many youngsters as possible to enjoy cricket from those who have a keen understanding and knowledge of the game and equipment to those who are new to the sport and just starting out on their cricketing journey.

“If a beginner comes to us and clearly doesn’t need top end equipment we’ll try to ﬁnd the right ﬁt for them at the right quality and price.

“We want any child to leave our shop with a product that’s right for them, so they can enjoy cricket without breaking the bank of

mum and dad.”

It’s not just with schools and clubs that MR Cricket Hockey needs to maintain a strong partnership - suppliers are key too, and Surridge is among the company’s strongest partners.

And why not? With 150 years of heritage, supplying kit across more than 60 different sports, Surridge is a marketleading name – especially when it comes to cricket.

“Surridge is always our number one place to go because our trust in the quality of their garments is extremely high, as well as their range of different price points,” says Merrick.

“You know you’re getting something that’s going to last and feel good.”

Surridge marketing manager Ben Robinson adds: “It’s a long-standing relationship and there’s a really good level of confidence between Merrick as a trader and us.

“Both of us understand what’s needed

by both the schools and the clubs – and that’s why we’ve been trading together for 10 years.”

Surridge has also proudly celebrated an extension of its long-standing partnership as official kit supplier to Cheltenham College, which will have been established for almost two decades by the time the new contract ends in 2030.

Since 2011, the firm has processed more than 60,000 orders and produced more than 500,000 garments for Cheltenham, both across its senior and prep schools.

Like MR Cricket Hockey, Surridge understands the need to change as cricket kit evolves.

“We’ve got that heritage but we’re also giving it that modern feel,” says Robinson.

“It’s about making sure we listen to the needs and desires of schools and clubs.

“We want to be honouring that passion and giving some creative freedom to the schools to express themselves and show what they’re about.”

OPPOSITE AND BELOW Cheltenham pupils in their kit

TOP 100 SENIOR SCHOOLS

High Performance coaching

Uni-Turf indoor training facilities

Stunning coastal cricket grounds

Established coaching links with Lancashire

Regularly host county programmes

Players progressing on Interleague & County age group pathways

50% A Level grades at A*/A and 75% at A*-B

49% GCSE grades at 9-7

ABINGDON SCHOOL

Park Road, Abingdon OX14 1DE

Established 1256

Number of pupils 1050 Director of cricket James Golding Professional Rupert Evans (Oxfordshire)

Teams Boys: 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, 4th XI, U17, U15ABCD, U14ABCD, 13AB, U12AB, Sta XI.

Girls’ cricket Though currently an all-boys’ school, the school hosts Kwik Cricket Festivals. St Helen and St Katharine girls use facilities for matches and training Fixtures Up to 180 matches. Standouts come against Radley College, Magdalen College School, Cheltenham College, Winchester College, Bradﬁeld College, Stowe School, Berkhamsted School, Warwick School, MCC and a strong Old Abingdonians side

Facilities Five indoor nets, eight grass main-square wicket nets and a six-lane outdoor cricket centre. Ten ﬁxtures can be held on the grounds, including two artiﬁcial pitches Club/county a liation Oxfordshire

AKS LYTHAM

Clifton Dr S, Lytham Saint Annes FY8 1DT

Established 1896

Number of pupils 800 Director of cricket

Liam Castellas

CCC, Sussex CCC, Abingdon Vale CC

Best prospect Left-handed opener and left arm bowler Connor Lamsdale has represented the 1st XI. Currently representing Berkshire, Hampshire Academy and Henley CC

Cricketers of note Michael Hill, George Ede, Edward Ede (all Hampshire CCC), Ben Gannon (Gloucestershire CCC), Nathaniel Watkins (Jersey)

Brief history A constant at Abingdon School, cricket remains a major summer sport. Originally occupying the picturesque pitch at the front of the school, the sport expanded under headmaster Sir James Cobban, who instructed the purchase of War

Castellas Director of cricket

Teams Boys: 1st XI, 2nd XI, U17, U15AB, U14AB, 13AB, U12AB, U11AB, U10AB, U9 – Girls: 1st XI, U17, U15, U14, U13, U12, U11, U10, U9 Girls’ cricket A central and important part of the curriculum for all students reception to Year 10 Fixtures Sedbergh School, Lancaster Royal Grammar School, Myerscough College, night match at Queen Ethelburga’s and MCC are the chief opponents of a 150-strong schedule

Facilities Two grass pitches adjacent to each other, two Flicx pitches, two indoor sports halls with Uni-Turf ﬂooring (one with ﬁve indoor lanes the other with two, four outdoor astro lanes, three BOLA bowling machines, sightscreens, electronic scoreboard 100-year-old historic pavilion which houses a functioning café Club/county a liation Lancashire

CCC, St Annes CC and Lytham CC

Best prospect Rory Urquhart has played 1st XI cricket for several seasons and represents Lancashire CAG and EPP as an allrounder, having excelled in the Northern Premier League Academy

Cricketers of note Tom Graveney (England, Gloucestershire CCC, Worcestershire CCC), Richard Halsall (Sussex CCC), Taylor Cornall (Lancashire CCC, Worcestershire CCC)

Brief history AKS Lytham resulted from the merger of Arnold and KEQMS (formerly, King Edward VII, and Queen Mary schools) in 2012. Cricket has been an integral part of school life since its inception in 1896. The school is built around

Memorial Field. The original ‘Upper Field’ remains in use by junior sides and occasional sta ﬁxtures

Cultural cricketers Phil Selway, Ed O’Brien, Thom Yorke, Jonny Greenwood, Colin Greenwood (all Radiohead), Tom Hollander (actor), Toby Jones (actor)

What sets the school apart?

Abingdon is one of the oldest schools in the country and cricket has always been played. Recently, Oxfordshire have use the grounds for 1st XI and junior ﬁxtures

Finest moment on the ﬁeld The Under-15s becoming National T20 champions in 2010 and reaching the semi-ﬁnals in 2010

its two adjacent pitches, a unique facility which has played host to many festivals and tournaments Cultural cricketers Jimmy Armﬁeld (England football), Michael Smith (Nobel Prize Winner), Sir William Lyons (Jaguar founder) What sets the school apart?

Recent progress The largest number of students and sta involved in the cricket programme was seen in 2024, leading to a greater number of ﬁxtures across age groups. The U17s reached the Cricket Paper Cup last 16 in 2024, whilst the U12, U14 and U15 sides scooped the County Cup

What has changed in the last 10 years? The sheer number of students who are involved and representing the school weekly

Future plans In 2026, Abingdon will become co-educational, initially at years seven and 12, allowing the opportunity to develop a girls pathway

Tours Sri Lanka (Easter 2025)

Strong partnerships with local schools, hosting community camps and hosting annual Wyre & Fylde Cup competition. The school strives to deliver a holistic education, giving students the freedom to pursue their passions and ambitions

Finest moment on the ﬁeld Beating MCC

Recent progress Winning the regional tournament at U12, U13, U14 and U15 level, with each year group

making the County Cup quarterﬁnals. U13s girls are Lancashire County Champions. Plans are afoot to further develop girls cricket as the major sport in summer, led by female ex-county coaches

What has changed in the last 10 years? The amount of cricketers at the school and ﬁxtures played has quadrupled, with its 25 teams meaning more than 300 are playing competitive cricket regularly

Tours Annual UK festival tour

Liam

TOP 100 SENIOR SCHOOLS ARDINGLY

ARDINGLY COLLEGE

College Rd, Ardingly, Haywards Heath RH17 6SQ

Established 1858

Number of pupils 1000

Director of cricket Charlie Forbes

Professional Jordan Rollings (Sussex, Middlesex)

Teams Boys: 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, U15AB, U14ABC, U13ABCDE, U12AB, U11ABC, U10AB, U9AB. Girls: U15AB, U14AB, U13AB, U11ABC, U10A, U9AB Girls’ cricket O ered throughout the winter months with a substantial training programme, indoor tournaments and a competitive summer schedule. Partnership with Cuckﬁeld CC will bolster coaching sta

Fixtures MCC and Sussex Martlets are the most notable of 200 ﬁxtures

Facilities Three grass wickets, one astro strip, four-lane astro net, fivelane indoor nets, two grass practice wickets, one astro. New 10-lane outdoor net system incoming Club/county a liation Sussex CCC, Cuckfield CC, Oxted & Limpsfield CC

Best prospect U15s cricketer Hugo Tanous is part of the Sussex county pathway, and recently scored his ﬁrst men’s 100 for Cuckﬁeld. Emily Groves has recently been selected for Sussex

MEET THE DIRECTOR OF CRICKET

Muhammad Ali’s famous quote, “Service to others is the rent you pay for your room here on Earth,” captures the essence of compassion and community. This spirit is central to the cricket programme at Ardingly College, where fostering a love for the game goes hand in hand with nurturing a positive environment for growth.

Ladies Cricket EPP and represents

Ansty women’s 1st XI in the Women’s Southern Premier League Cricketers of note Tom Clark (Sussex CCC), Abidine Sakande (Sussex CCC & Leicestershire CCC), Ben Brown (Sussex CCC & Hampshire CCC), George Brann (England & Sussex CCC), Alfred Shaw (England, Nottinghamshire CCC, Sussex CCC)

Brief history Cricket has been deeply embedded in Ardingly College’s culture and history, welcoming MCC since 1883. The commitment to cricket is underscored by substantial investment in facilities and top-tier coaching sta , ensuring every pupil has the opportunity to excel Cultural cricketers Ian Hislop (Journalist)

What sets the school apart?

The college believe their cricket

Each year, from September to June, young cricketers of all abilities—spanning local clubs and state schools within a 20-mile radius, are welcomed to participate in masterclass

programme is unparalleled. A highlight is an extensive outreach programme, running winter masterclass sessions and a development centre programme that provides thorough training for local children. Introduction of September ﬁxtures maximises opportunities Finest moment on the ﬁeld Harry Rollings’ school batting record of 186* v Sussex Martlets and Sam Rattle taking a record 44 wickets in a

sessions. Led by Ardingly’s coaches, along with the 1st XI, these sessions aim to develop skills while building conﬁdence and camaraderie.

Describing the programme as “your club away from your club,” Charlie Forbes, Head of cricket at Ardingly, shares his vision of the college becoming a “beacon of cricket” in West Sussex.

“It began as a recruitment drive,” he told The Cricketer, “but over time, it’s evolved to focus on giving as many opportunities in cricket as we can. There’s a genuine family feel, and that’s what drives us.”

Reﬂecting on the programme’s true impact,

single season

Recent progress A successful and comprehensive girls’ cricket programme has been introduced, signiﬁcantly increasing participation and performance. The Performance Pathway and Development Centre has created a structured environment for talented players to reﬁne skills and pursue elite-level cricket

What has changed in the last 10 years? Heavy investment in cricket facilities, including new indoor and outdoor nets, enhanced pitch maintenance, and modern training equipment. Partnerships with local clubs and the Sussex Foundation have strengthened, leading to increased community involvement and youth tournaments

Tours Girls: Jersey (2025); Boys: 1st XI Sri Lanka (2026), Dubai U14 & U15 (2026)

Forbes shares, “What stands out most is seeing the conﬁdence and enthusiasm these young players develop. It’s incredibly rewarding to witness them leave each session with a genuine sense of accomplishment and excitement for the game.”

Since joining Ardingly in September 2023, Forbes has worked to build a “cricket culture” centred on respect, enthusiasm, and commitment. “When I arrived, cricket at Ardingly already had a strong foundation,” he notes. “My focus has been on reinforcing that foundation, fostering a culture that values both enjoyment and ambition. This shared vision creates an environment where both players and coaches feel fully invested, helping propel those with aspirations to reach their next level.”

Charlie Forbes Director of cricket

BARNARD CASTLE

Newgate, Barnard Castle DL12 8UN

Established 1883

Number of pupils 720 Master in charge Lee Clough Professional John Lister (Derbyshire, Durham)

Teams Boys: 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, U15A, U14AB, U13ABC, U12AB, U11AB, U10AB, U9AB, U8AB. Girls: 1st XI, U15 Softball/Hardball, U14 Softball x2/Hardball, U13 Softball x2/ Hardball, U12 Softball/Hardball, U11, U10, U9, U8

Girls’ cricket New age groups starting at U12 and continuing up to

U18 have been introduced, following the addition of a Girls 1st XI. Hope is to add a second hardball team to three age groups

Fixtures Ten-week block delivers 152 ﬁxtures. Most notable opponent is Durham Cathedral Schools, End of year tour opponents include Rossall School, King’s Macclesﬁeld and Edinburgh Academy

Facilities Three cricket ovals with 12 grass pitches on each square. Four astro for JNRS wickets, three indoor cricket nets, two squash courts used for throw downs and ﬁelding, outdoor nets, rugby grounds converted to softball pitches, astroturf used for hardball games, sports hall, gym and

S&C suite

Club/county a liation County

Durham Cricket Board, Derbyshire Cricket Board, Barnard Castle CC, Raby Castle CC

Best prospect Opening batter

Charlie Coulthard has played age group games for Durham and is interesting Derbyshire. Sam Gregory, a left-handed opening batter and left-arm opening bowler, has played for Gloucestershire youth teams. Leg-spinner Amelie Butterwick has played for North East Warriors. Opening batter and wicket-keeper Max Martin, is also involved with the Durham pathway

Cricketers of note George Macaulay

(England and Yorkshire CCC)

Brief history Cricket dates back to the school opening and the passion for the game ﬂows through the walls every day. A hub of cricket in the area which grows the game for girls, o ers umpire courses to players and community builds passion for the game

What sets the school apart? The ‘Barney Way’ is a profound set of values instilled in players from the outset

Finest moment on the ﬁeld Triumphing over Durham Cathedral Schools for the ﬁrst time in 18 years, a victory not seen since 2006

Recent progress Being among the ﬁrst UK schools to o er ECB Level 1 umpire courses, hosting a prestigious MCC Foundation game, upskilling teachers, establishing connections with Dubai club, developing a highperformance programme, increasing participation in local leagues and upgrading facilities

What has changed in the last 10 years? There has been a notable increase in recreational and competitive student participation Tours Kenya, Uganda (TBC)

As our cricket professional, former Essex batsman Jaik Mickleburgh knows, it’s about trust in your team, hours of practice when nobody’s watching and that hard-earned feeling of satisfaction.

Cricket Schools

A leading co-educational day and boarding school set in the stunning Sussex countryside.

Outstanding cricket facilities and expert coaching combined with an exceptional academic and co-curricular programme.

13+ & 16+ cricket scholarships

Bede’s Cricket Alumni include

Danial Ibrahim – England U19 and Sussex CCC

Archie Lenham – England U19 and Sussex CCC

Freya Kemp – England, Southern Brave and Southern Vipers

Alice Capsey – England, Oval Invincibles and South East Stars

Ryana MacDonald-Gay – England A, Oval Invincibles and South East Stars

Shai Hope – Barbados and West Indies

Fynn Hudson-Prentice – England U19, Sussex CCC and Derbyshire CCC

Delray Rawlins – Sussex CCC and England Young Lions

Luke Wells – England U19, Sussex CCC, Lancashire CCC and Welsh Fire

Ali Orr – Sussex and Hampshire CCC

Henry Crocombe – Sussex CCC

Mary Taylor – Southern Brave and Southern Vipers

Rashawn Worrel – Barbados

NaiJanni Cumberbatch – Barbados and West Indies A

HMC - Day, weekly and full boarding Boys and girls 13 to 18 For more information please contact: admissions@bedes.org T 01323 356609

Bede’s Senior School Upper Dicker East Sussex BN27 3QH bedes.org

TOP 100 SENIOR SCHOOLS BEDE’S

spinner Jake Vosloo plays for the Sussex Disability adult team

BEDE’S SCHOOL

Upper Dicker, East Sussex BN27 3QH

Established 1895

Number of pupils 810

Director of cricket

Alan Wells

Professional Neil Lenham (Sussex), Petch Lenham, Kash Ibrahim (Karachi, Pakistan U19s)

Teams Boys: 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, U17, U15AB, U14AB; Girls: U18, U17, U15, U14

Cricketers of note Alice Capsey, Freya Kemp, Ryanna MacDonaldGay (all England), Shai Hope (West Indies), Delray Rawlins (Bermuda), Luke Wells (Lancashire), Ali Orr (Hampshire), Fynn HudsonPrentice, Henry Crocombe, Archie Lenham and Dan Ibrahim (all Sussex)

Fixtures Of the 120 annual ﬁxtures, the most notable are against Eton and MCC

Facilities Four grass pitches, eight outdoor and six indoor nets Club/county a liation

Sussex CCC, Kent CCC, Surrey CCC, Hampshire CCC, Southern Vipers Best prospect Rudy Northcott is on the Surrey pathway, while left-arm

MEET THE DIRECTOR OF CRICKET

Bede’s have produced so many ﬁrst-class cricketers in the last 14 years, even head of cricket Alan Wells is taken back.

Brief history Archie Lenham’s grandfather Peter Pyemont championed all sports and had a special love for cricket. Pyemont played for Eastbourne and MCC, featuring in The Cricketer Cup in 1970 for Marlborough Blues. Cricket at the school has since gone from strength to strength, with the sport stepping up to the next level under previous head Steve Cole. He created a director of cricket role which enables the school to run a professionalstandard programme throughout the year What sets the school apart?

A bespoke cricket programme is o ered for all and run all year round. The programme is

“We continue to surprise ourselves a little bit,” the 62-year-old former Sussex, Kent and England batter tells The Cricketer. “Since 2010 we have had 28 Bedians play ﬁrst-class level and above, which is quite exceptional for any school; but for a smallish rural school tucked away in the heart of the East Sussex countryside (in Eastbourne), which is a co-ed, we punch above our weight.

“We have three girls playing for England: Alice Capsey, Freya Kemp and Ryana MacDonald-Gay. It is unprecedented really. We are really proud of them – it shows it’s not

delivered by ex-professionals and international cricketers, providing unrivalled contact time with coaches of around eight hours per week which means skills are in continual development

Finest moment on the ﬁeld

Joe Sarro taking a hat-trick in the semi-ﬁnal of the U17 National Cup against Millﬁeld, when they only needed one run to win. Girls winning two national cups in 100-ball and T20 cricket in consecutive years

Recent progress There has been a substantial development of girls cricket at the school, which has

just our boys having success. We run an exceptional programme. When students come into senior school in Year 9, they can choose cricket as part of their curriculum. You still have to do the proper subjects, but they can also come into our cricket academy, in place of a GCSE if they like – if we feel they have the potential to have a career in cricket, or they need their weekly ﬁx of cricket. That means they can have eight hours of cricket practice a week. It is because we know that the sport can help youngsters cope with the rest of their studies as well. Then in the GCSE years (10 and 11) they can carry on with it, if their parents are happy. We want to help them fulﬁl their dreams.”

Former Sussex captain Wells works with Petch

helped increase levels of participation and competition. Bede’s can also reﬂect positively on the continued progress of female alumni in the professional game

What has changed in the last 10 years? In recent years, Bede’s led an initiative to transform one of the county cups into a 100-ball tournament – reﬂecting a development in the professional domestic game

Future plans Plan are afoot to introduce two new pitches and more grass nets

Tours India and Spain (2025)

Lenham, wife of his former team-mate at Hove, Neil, in the nets with the youngsters; and Jamie Hall, who opened the batting for the county between 1990–96, has just been appointed head of cricket at the prep school. Neil is Wells’ assistant at the senior school.

Wells played for Sussex between 1981–96, then saw out his career with Kent until 2000. His single Test and ODI caps came in 1995. Does he miss playing?

“Watching my son (Lancashire’s Luke) now, I’d love to have had a go at T20. Every game seems like a cup ﬁnal, in front of big crowds. I think it would have really developed my game. The oneday cricket when I played was rather formulaic. The openers go in and bat in an orthodox fashion. You would accelerate in the middle, then have a dip at the end. T20 is so instant, you go from ball one. I also loved my ﬁelding, so I could have developed that side of my game even more.”

Alan Wells Director of cricket

BEDFORD SCHOOL

De Parys Ave, Bedford MK40 2TU

Established 1552

Number of pupils 750

Director of cricket Gary Steer

Professional Charlie Thurston (Northamptonshire)

Teams There are 16 teams across the school

Fixtures The traditional two-day match against Tonbridge is the standout game on a ﬁxture list containing 150 matches. Eton, Harrow, Stowe, Oundle, Haileybury, MCC, Stamford, and Old Bedfordians represent other highlights

Facilities Six new indoor cricket nets, 18 outdoor cricket nets (11 of which are new artiﬁcial nets), nine cricket squares and a pavilion next to the 1st XI pitch. The school also has access to four

bowling machines, including a new Merlyn spin machine Club/county a liation

Northamptonshire CC, Cricket East Best prospect Mustafa Haroon is a top order batter who played in the 2023 Bunbury Festival. He is a classy

MEET THE DIRECTOR OF CRICKET

After many years of working closely with them, including producing nine players who went on to play for them, Bedford School have formalised their partnership with Northamptonshire.

“We have their coaches coming in more so what we’re trying to do is provide boys that come to school with us a seamless transition if they’re on an Academy pathway,” explained assistant head (CoCurriculum and Partnerships), Ayden Du y.

In recent times, Bedford have seen their methods work as Emilio Gay and Gus Miller progressed to the Northamptonshire 1st XI from their cricket programme.

He added: “We’ve always had a really good relationship with the club but it’s just formalising that and expanding on it. As part of that, we’ve got the Academy Boys matches that we’re hosting at the grounds and we’ve got their

batsman who can score runs on both sides of the wicket and also bowls leg-spin

Cricketers of note Sir Alastair Cook (England), Ian Peck, Toby Bailey, Alex Wakely, James Kettleborough, Christian Davis, Charlie Thurston, Emilio Gay, Harry Gouldstone, Gus Miller (all Northamptonshire), Will Smith (Nottinghamshire, Durham, Hampshire)

Brief history Cricket was ﬁrst played at Bedford School in 1787 and the school’s ﬁrst cricket club was formed in the early 19th century. It continues to be one of the school’s four major sports

Cultural cricketers George Furbank, Fraser Dingwall, Andy Gomersall,

coaches coming in more.”

Cricket plays a strong part in Bedford’s overall sporting culture which has also produced four England rugby players, George Furbank, Fraser Dingwall, Andy Gomersall and Martin Bayﬁeld, all of whom also played cricket during their time at the school.

As Du y put it: “Sport is Bedford and Bedford is sport.”

He expanded: “The key thing for us is that we want all boys to have that rigour in their education and that holistic approach, as well as access to a sporting background.”

The atmosphere and spirit amongst their teams is something which Bedford has tried to create across their four major sports: rugby, cricket, hockey and rowing. Du y added: “That comes from the coaches and the teachers on a day-to-day basis. It’s not about winning, it’s about being a good human

Martin Bayﬁeld (all England rugby union internationals), Percy Godfrey (composer), Charles Randall, John Witherow (both journalists)

What sets the school apart?

Northamptonshire played two John Player League matches against Lancashire at Bedford, in 1971 and 1982. In the second of those, West Indies captain Clive Lloyd played and hit the ball over the pavilion

Finest moment on the ﬁeld Winning the National Schools U17 Cup

Recent progress An o cial partnership with Northamptonshire CCC will see the club utilise the school’s facilities for matches and practice sessions. It will create a pathway to ﬁrst-class cricket for elite players as well as an opportunity for boys in the Northants system to potentially come to Bedford School What has changed in the last 10 years? The biggest area of development is fewer declaration matches being played by Bedford. Instead, the ﬁxture list is full of more 20, 30 and 50 over cricket. However the standard of the cricket remains very strong.

Future plans There are plans to work more closely with local prep schools and deliver them masterclass sessions

and I think that the coaches and the teaching sta at the school are absolutely fantastic in developing that culture.”

The value placed on cricket, within the sporting structure, has been enhanced by the addition of two new full-time coaches, including former Northamptonshire cricketer Charlie Thurston as a full-time cricket professional and the recent appointment of Tom Brett (former English and Northamptonshire cricketer) as assistant director of cricket.

This is set to increase access to one-toone training for students on top of regular masterclasses from Northamptonshire coaches, with opportunities for boys to play up to six sessions per week all year round.

Under the stewardship of Gary Steer, the school’s director of cricket, the most talented students receive a cricket education on how to turn their promise into more meaningful scores. The next batter that Steer believes has what it takes to take the next step is Mustafa Haroon if he can turn his ability into big centuries like soon-to-be Durham batter Gay did for the school before him.

Gary Steer Director of cricket

BERKHAMSTED SCHOOL

6 Chesham Road, Berkhamsted, HP4 3AA

Established 1541

Number of pupils 2,000

Head of cricket George Campbell, with Mark Costin head of girls’ cricket

Professionals Ben Caidan, James Bell Teams Forty teams run across the senior school, with 20 each for boys and girls

Girls’ cricket Arising following the pandemic there is a focus on ensuring there is equity across all programmes, sharing facilities, sta , and equipment. All senior teams train together over the winter and girls often appear in the school’s 1st XI. In September 2023, Berkhamsted appointed its ﬁrst dedicated head of girls cricket, Mark Costin Fixtures Hertfordshire, Middlesex, Buckinghamshire, Sunrisers, MCC and The ACE Programme are the biggest games of a 300-match schedule

Facilities Twelve squares, six of which are covered and four astro turf wickets. Both 1st XI pitches have undersoil drainage and a laser levelled outﬁeld Club/county a liation

Brief history There is evidence of cricket being played as far back as 1880 when 10 matches were staged against Berkhamsted Brewery. Head groundkeeper for 20 years Alf Morgan was involved with Derbyshire. Head Edward Bartrum (from 1858) was a keen cricketer and 1st XI mainstay

Cultural cricketers James Rodwell and Will Fraser (England rugby), Sir Robin Knox- Johnston (sailor) What sets the school apart? Boys and girls’ cricket is led by ECB Level 3 coaching sta who are also qualified teachers. The large PE department meaning most teams are taken by specialist sta . Nineteen sta have ECB coaching qualifications Finest moment on the field The girls’ 1st XI reaching School Sport Magazine National T20 Finals Day in 2022

ACE Programme

Best prospect Twenty-ﬁve pupils from year nine upwards are involved with county or regional pathways

Cricketers of note

Bethan Miles (South East Stars), Anna Nicholls (Northern Diamonds), Alf

Recent progress All girls now play in navy, and there are designated girls’ changing rooms and 1st XI pitch, sitting alongside the boys’ What has changed in the last 10 years? A new pavilion has transformed the boys’ 1st XI ground which has wonderful boundary views. The girls’ 1st XI also has a new pavilion and a large LED scoreboard Future plans Strengthening links with the ACE Programme. During the summer of 2024, both 1st XIs played sides from the charity. Hope to o er places to ACE players on an annual basis Tours Desert Springs (2025), Sri Lanka (2026)

BISHOP STORTFORD COLLEGE

School House, Maze Green Rd, Bishop’s Stortford CM23 2PQ

Established 1868

Number of pupils 1,280 Head of boys’ cricket

Dave Hughes Teams There are 59 across boys and girls

Girls’ cricket All girls from U8-U16 do cricket as their main sport, and it is also o ered to our U17 and U18 girls. They had their ﬁrst girls’ 1st XI team this year

Fixtures An 86-game ﬁxture list see the annual clash with MCC as its highlight

Facilities Six main squares, 16 artiﬁcial outdoor nets, two mobile net cages, two indoor nets and 10 shared training/match pitches Club/county a liation Hertfordshire CCC use the main school square for representative matches across one and two days.

Bishop’s Stortford CC meanwhile provide boys and girls the opportunity to play high quality cricket

Best prospect Cameron Krauth, Charlie Waugh, Will Richardson, Abbie Tomlin, Mattie Hughes and all part of the Hertfordshire set-up Cricketers of note Graham Doggart (Middlesex CCC, Cambridge University)

Brief history Founded by a group of prominent Nonconformists in East Anglia who wanted to establish a public school which could deliver “an e ective and Christian education… not be beyond the reach of the

middle class”. Aiming to break down barriers between people and to respect individual conscience and college combined boarding and day pupils and was determined to play a role in the community. The school has a reputation for sport and was one of the ﬁrst to have its own indoor heated pool build In 1895 Cultural cricketers Sir Stephen Lander (MI5 Director-General), Andy Peebles (Radio 1 DJ, Top of the Pops presenter)

What sets the school apart? The college o ers sports scholarships and talented players an elite cricket programme throughout the oseason. Three practice sessions per week are complemented by tailored strength and conditioning programmes for all individuals involved Finest moment on the field The college was the first UK school to tour Sri Lanka in 1985/6 and played in the inaugural Sir Garfield Sobers International Cricket Schools Festival in Barbados

Recent progress The growth and uptake of girls’ cricket has encouraged the college, underpinned by an evergrowing ﬁxture list

What has changed in the last 10 years? A new pavilion has transformed the Boys’ 1st XI ground which has wonderful boundary views. The Girls 1st XI also has a new pavilion and a large LED scoreboard

Future plans Developing and enhancing strong links with Essex CCC

and Derek Morgan (Derbyshire CCC)

Dave Hughes Head of boys’ cricket

TOP 100 SENIOR SCHOOLS

BLOXHAM SCHOOL

Banbury Rd, Bloxham, Banbury OX15 4PE

Established 1860

Number of pupils 560

Director of cricket Greg Webber

Professional George Setterﬁeld Teams Boys: 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, Junior colts ABC, Yearling ABC, U13AB, U12AB. Girls: 1st XI, Junior

BLUNDELL’S SCHOOL

Blundell’s Rd, Tiverton EX16 4DN

Established 1604

Number of pupils 620

Director of cricket Dean Headley (England, Kent CCC, Middlesex CCC)

Teams Boys: 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, 4th XI, U15AB, U14AB, 13ABC. Girls: 1st XI, U15, U14, U13ABC

Girls’ cricket Boys’ teams are typically mixed and girls who are showing particular talent are given opportunity to play in those teams. Hardball and some softball cricket helps encourage those to play the game

colts, Yearling, U13, U12

Girls’ cricket Girls programme has expanded hugely over the last 12 months and is a very popular games option

Fixtures Over 100 ﬁxtures each year include matches with Eton, Magdalen College Oxford, Cheltenham College, Bromsgrove, MCC, South Oxfordshire Amateurs, Dean Close and Malvern College Facilities Eight outdoor artiﬁcial

squares and a junior pitch, nine grass nets, four artiﬁcial lanes, two professional BOLA machines, one junior BOLA Club/county a liation Devon CC Best prospect Right-hander opening batter and o -spinner Seb Linnitt is an U17 on the Somerset academy, who recently scored 210 against Sherborne School Cricketers of note Vic Marks (Somerset and England), Jeremy Lloyds (Somerset, Gloucester, Orange Free State) Hugh Morris (Glamorgan, England), Dominic Bess (Yorkshire, Somerset, England), Roger Davies (Glamorgan)

Fixtures There are 56 girls ﬁxtures, while U15 and U13 teams are entered in the Rachael Heyhoe Flint National Indoor Trophy in the spring. Mixed teams play 116 ﬁxtures across various formats

Facilities Five brand new indoor lanes with 700 Lux lighting, seven grass

Brief history The earliest record of a Blundell’s cricket match is from September 1844 against the Tiverton Club

Cultural cricketers

Christopher Ondaatje (author and philanthropist), Michael Mates (politician), Tristan Evans (musician)

nets, four grass pitches (one hybrid square), four indoor lanes and two grounds with Flicx pitches Club/county a liation Oxfordshire women train at Bloxham throughout the summer term. Several Oxfordshire age group games are staged at the school too Best prospect Previously on Warwickshire’s books, Sammy Dowson is a promising opening batter and o spinner. Seamer Rose Pinney represents Oxfordshire age groups Brief history Geo rey Boycott once played at Bloxham for MCC against the 1st XI. There is a long history of regular ﬁxtures against cricketing schools such as Eton, Magdalen College Oxford and they are part of the Woodard Cricket Festival alongside Norwich School, Worksop College and Hurstpierpoint College Cultural cricketers Tim Abraham (cricket correspondent) Alﬁe Barbeary (former Wasps and current Bath rugby union player) What sets the school apart? Players are o ered one-to-one coaching during their games afternoons. They also provide a popular winter academy for all, with

coaching contributions from the likes of Adam Wheater and Jamie Porter Finest moment on the field Beating Cheltenham in the final over in U14s, U15s and 1st XI fixtures in the 2023 season

Recent progress Coaches have all been upskilled with regular Continuing Professional Development (CPD) while over 400 out of the school’s 550 children playing cricket this year What has changed in the last 10 years? The number of teams representing Bloxham has multiplied across the school across all age groups. The ﬁxture card has vastly improved and touring has been brought into the cricket programme for the ﬁrst time. Girls cricket has been launched and been a huge success

Future plans Expansion of the grounds by adding a further square and pitch, allowing the school to host more ﬁxtures and expand the ﬁxture card. A continued broadening of the girls cricket programme and international tours for both senior sides

Tours Sri Lanka (2025), Channel Islands (2025)

What sets the school apart?

Blundell’s School can boast three Olympic gold medallists from Paris 1900, a unique achievement in cricket history. Harry Corner, Fred Cuming, and Arthur Birkett played for Great Britain in the only Olympic cricket tournament. A fourth Old Blundellian, Montagu Toller, was also part of the team

Finest moment on the ﬁeld The U15s reaching the National Cup semi-ﬁnals

Recent progress A 40 per cent increase of matches in the last 12 months. Introduction of a two-day festival for the girls and boys’ 1st XIs

against KES, Southampton which includes a two-day game for the mixed ﬁrst team

What has changed in the last 10 years? Cricket at Blundell’s has steadily grown and in 2023 the school appointed a full time DoC, Dean Headley. Increase of matches has been signiﬁcant, playing di erent formats to encourage players of all standards

Future plans Replacing the four-lane outdoor net facility, creating additional artificial areas and adding five artificial wickets. Schools aims to run a local school festival aimed at year four Tours Sri Lanka (2025)

BRADFIELD COLLEGE

Bradfield, Reading RG7 6AU

Established 1850

Number of pupils 830

Master in charge Mike Hill

Professional Rob Ferley (Kent)

Teams Boys: 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, 4th XI, U16ABC, U15ABC, U14ABCD. Girls: U15AB, U14AB; Seniors AB Fixtures The college has played over 230 fixtures in 2024. A typical Saturday will involve up to 20 fixtures against the country’s leading cricketing schools

Facilities Fourteen grass nets, 15 astro nets and one all-weather track. Winter fixtures are played on astro and training takes place in the five indoor nets. The Bradfield Preseason Festival hosts 38 teams and fixtures are played at Bradfield and four local clubs

Club/county affiliation Southern Vipers, Hampshire CCC

Cricketers of note Lauren Bell (Southern Vipers and England), Gus Atkinson (Surrey CCC and England), Ryan Higgins (Middlesex CCC), Harry Came (Derbyshire), Zach Lion-Cachet (Sussex) Poppy Tulloch (Southern Vipers)and Ava Lee (Southern Vipers and England U19)

Brief history Pit Pavilion lists the college’s 1st XI back to 1852, just two years after it was founded. These names, which include VC winners, cultural leaders and numerous professional cricketers always

BRENTWOOD SCHOOL

Middleton Hall Lane, Brentwood, Essex CM15 8EE

Established 1557

Number of pupils 1640

Head of Games & Cricket

Andrew Nolan

CC, Old Brentwood’s CC, Essex CCC

offer interest to visitors to Pit; the beautiful home of cricket at Bradfield. It was reputedly excavated by the headmaster with a pick and shovel in 1927

Cultural cricketers Neil Manthorp (commentator)

What sets the school apart? The expansion of cricket at Bradfield in recent years has been rapid; expanding from 13 teams just four years ago. The 1st XI and U15 boys both became regional champions in 2022 and 2023 and the Girls 1st XI won the National T20 Final in 2022 Finest moment on the field The Girls’ 1st XI competing in The Cricket Paper 100-ball final on the main square at Lord’s in 2024

Recent progress The number of pupils having individual coaching through the school year is approaching three figures. Rob Ferley, who played over 100 professional matches, and his team work with each team to help develop both skill levels and passion for the game

What has changed in the last 10 years? Supporting the development of individuals with professional aspirations and the growth in the number of pupils playing cricket. There are now 250 regularly playing inter fixtures, up by 60 per cent in 10 years

Future plans Expanding our provision of coaching to local primary and prep schools to help support the development of cricket in the region Tours Kenya (2024)

Professional Jaik Mickleburgh (Essex)

Teams Boys: 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, U15ABC, U14AB, 13ABC, U12ABCD. Girls: 1st XI, U17, U15 + indoor, U13 + indoor, U12

Girls’ cricket Indoor girls-only practice is held during the winter when the Lady Taverners indoor competition is played. Girls are also invited to the winter academy to receive high quality coaching from, among others, Essex coaches/players. Teams are entered in the Essex and National Cups. Alongside weekly Saturday fixtures for the U12 team there is an annual MCC match Fixtures There are 150 matches for boys and girls. Key opponents include MCC, Framlingham College, Ipswich School, Felsted, New Hall, The Leys School, Haileybury, St Joseph’s College, Mill Hill and Berkhamsted. End-of-season festival is against Oundle School, Abingdon and St John’s Leatherhead

Facilities Four nets in indoor sports hall, three-net local indoor cricket centre and an outdoor facility has six nets and three roll-on cages. Six pitches on site (four grass, two astro) with Brentwood CC square also available. Covers for grass strips help maintain standard Club/county affiliation Brentwood

Best prospect Left-armers Tom Arnold and Sophia Mitchell, who also bats, are both are on Essex’s books Cricketers of note Charles Kortright, Colin Griffiths, Graham Horrex, David Acfield, Richard Baker, Max Osborne, Ian Pont, Kishen Velani, Thomas Moore, Rishi Patel, Robin Das (all Essex)

Brief history Brentwood has a strong cricketing history, with many ex-pupils remaining in touch and providing competition to the 1st XI in the yearly fixture against Old Brentwoodians. Brentwood has been successful at all levels with many teams winning county cups and reaching the latter stages of the national competitions

Cultural cricketers Jack Straw MP, Frank Lampard (footballer)

What sets the school apart? School offers players one-to-one coaching during afternoon games sessions. Winter academy sees contributions from many professionals

Finest moment on the field

Won the Essex Independent Schools League in 2022

Recent progress The U12s, U13s, U14s and U15s all winning the Essex Cup. More students than ever participated in the winter programme with prep students invited for the first time

What has changed in the last 10 years? The amount of teams playing competitive cricket Future plans Cricket gallery when new sports hall is built and four new nets Tours Caribbean (2026)

Jaik Mickleburgh Professional

TOP 100 SENIOR SCHOOLS BRIGHTON

BRIGHTON COLLEGE

Eastern Rd, Brighton and Hove, Brighton BN2 0AL

Established 1557

Number of pupils 1640

Director of cricket Mark Davis

Professional Jason Swift

Teams Boys, 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, 4th XI, U15ABC, U14ABCD. Girls, 1st XI, U15AB, U14AB

Fixtures The boys’ 1st XI play 25 fixtures and the age-groups teams 10 depending on cup commitments. The girls’ age-group teams play around five fixtures a season but also play in the boys’ teams that figure climbs to 12. The girls’ 1st XI have around a dozen Facilities Ten artificial nets, three grass net surfaces and two more pitches on the Jubilee ground Club/county affiliation Sussex CCC, MCC, Sussex Martlets

MEET THE DIRECTOR OF CRICKET

Is there any better feeling for a young cricketer than playing in front of a packed crowd?

At Brighton College, pupils will now have that to look forward to again after construction work at the school, which meant first XI fixtures were forced away from their historic Home Ground pitch in recent years, was completed.

Best prospect Dan Lategan is a left-

And, while the College’s idyllic Jubilee Sports Ground, set in the South Downs, makes for a wonderful alternative space for fixtures, master in charge Mark Davis is looking forward to games being back at the heart of school life again in 2025.

“Being back in the middle of the school is going

handed opening batter and off-spin bowler representing Worcestershire’s 2nd XI

Cricketers of note Sammy Woods (Somerset, England & Australia), Matt Prior (Sussex & England), Matt Machan (Sussex & Scotland), Carl Hopkinson, Neil Lenham (both Sussex), Joe Gatting (Sussex & Hampshire), Michael Thornely (Sussex & Leicestershire), Malcolm Waller (Zimbabwe), Bazid Khan (Pakistan), Holly Colvin, Sarah Taylor, Laura Marsh, Georgia Adams, Freya Davies, Clare Connor (all England Women)

to be a huge boost,” said the former Sussex cricketer.

“Cricket being quite prominent in the school will be good for our main games, with lots of boys and girls going past.

“If I remember back to my school in South Africa, the pitch was right in the hub of the school so I always felt really proud to represent the school.

“Hopefully it’ll inspire them and really motivate them too.”

The return to Home Ground comes from a position of strength, having been unbeaten in block fixtures over the course of 2024 and giving plenty of credence to Davis’ stated aim of making the College one of the top cricket schools in Sussex.

“Having been where we were when I started

Brief history The girls cricket programme is one of the most comprehensive in the country, and Brighton College has produced more England women’s cricketers than any other. The boys programme is comprehensive with a full winter programme and a great number of summer fixtures

What sets the school apart? Using the County Ground, Hove for the winter programme. The new home ground will have 10 hybrid surfaces which will transform the whole arena and make it a leading cricketing venue Finest moment on the field

Winning the BOWS cricket festival in 2023. In June 2016, the 1st XI tied two consecutive games within three days of each other. Both fixtures against MCC and Ardingly, respectively, were played on the same wicket

Recent progress The development of an indoor school in the new SSS building. Results and participation across all the girls and boys teams continues to be excellent. Two boys represented Sussex 2nd XI in 2024 What has changed in the last 10 years? Encouraging one day skills has become a key part of coaching school cricketers. The coaching has developed in line with how the game is moving and the element of fun is encouraged in sessions. The girls game is exploding with more playing the game

Tours South Africa (2023), Dubai (2024)

here just after Covid, we have done really well,” said Davis.

“My ambition was to make sure we were right up there and competing.

“Our development has been amazing and pupils will come to Brighton College now seeing cricket as a serious sport.”

But it’s not just those vying for First XI honours who are his concern, and Davis is keen to foster a love of cricket among the wider school community too.

“We want to make sure kids keep on playing the great game,” he said.

“That’s one of the great challenges for schools at the moment.

“With the better teams we try to focus on the cricket side of it, but for our younger pupils who aren’t as competitive, we try and have a lot of fun with them.

“We can play games that enhance the skills they need to play cricket instead.”

Mark Davis Director of cricket

TOP 100 SENIOR SCHOOLS

BROMSGROVE SCHOOL

Worcester Rd, Bromsgrove B61 7DU

Established 1553

Number of pupils 1604

Director of cricket Tom Milnes Professional Kelly Evenson (England Development)

Teams Boys: 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, U15ABC, U14AB. Girls: 1st XI, 2nd XI, U15ABC

Fixtures A total of 224 ﬁxtures across the boys and girls programmes are staged every year, with matches against touring opposition eagerly anticipated among players

Facilities Bromsgrove boast a number of quality cricketing facilities, including six grass cricket squares, five grass nets and a five-lane artificial net facility. For the winter months, 16 indoor lanes are available to use across three sports halls

Club/county a liation Bromsgrove CC, Kidderminster CC, Astwood Bank CC

Best prospect Alﬁe Higgins, Seth Benjamin and George Hall are all part of the Worcestershire system Cricketers of note Tom Banton

CATERHAM SCHOOL

Harestone Valley Rd, Caterham CR3 6YA

Established 1811

Number of pupils 1100

Master in charge Jonathan Batty (pictured)

Teams Boys: 1st XI, 2nd XI, U15ABC, U14ABC, 13ABC, U12ABCD. Girls: U15, U14AB, U13AB, U12ABCD Girls’ cricket Cricket is a games option for all year groups

Fixtures Of the 145 matches every year, MCC are the stand-out opposition

Facilities Seven cricket squares, ﬁve outdoor nets, four indoor nets and three roll-on cages

Club/county a liation Caterham CC

Best prospect Lucy Blincoe is a high-quality left -arm spinner who plays for Kent U15, U16 and U18s. Sam Mulvihill is an o spinning allrounder and plays for Surrey U14s. Charlie Atkinson is a fast bowling

(Somerset & England), Ben Cox (Worcestershire & Leicestershire), Matt Lamb (Warwickshire & Derbyshire), Will Fraine (Nottinghamshire & Yorkshire), Jonathan Webb (Warwickshire), Jacque Banton (Worcestershire)

Brief history Founded in 1553, Bromsgrove School is one of the oldest schools in the country with a long and distinguished history. The

all-rounder and plays for Surrey U12s. Sophie Savage is an all-rounder who plays for Kent U12s

Cricketers of note Alistair Brown (Surrey and England), David Sales (Northamptonshire), James Benning (Surrey), Nathan Barnwell (Surrey) Brief history The school was founded in 1811, in Lewisham, by the Rev John Townsend to provide a boarding education for the sons of Congregationalist ministers. In 1884 it moved to its current site in the picturesque Harestone Valley in Surrey, having outgrown its London premises. Co-educational for over 35 years after it merged with Eothen School for Girls to create a new independent co-educational foundation

Good Schools Guide proclaims that the school enjoys “outstanding sport”. MCC have been visiting opponents since 1964 and matches have been an annual a air since 2001. A Somerset side including Jack Leach and Archie Vaughan were opponents for a 2nd XI Championship match in April 2024 Cultural cricketers Digby Jones and Michael Heseltine (politics), Nicholas Evans (author), Fyfe Dangerﬁeld,

Ritchie Neville (musician)

What sets the school apart?

Hosting a number of Worcestershire CCC 2nd XI ﬁxtures, and hopes that the School Ground will emerge as a potential 1st XI venue at some stage in the very near future

Finest moment on the ﬁeld Winning the National U17 Cup ﬁnal in 2017

Recent progress The girls programme is now fully operational and sustainable. Already showing signs of plenty of talent, it should soon be providing players to the 1st XI. Local state school partnerships with St Johns Middle School and St Bede’s Catholic School have been developed What has changed in the last 10 years? The school continues to keep pace with the evolution of the sport. White ball cricket has been introduced in Saturday blocks and a 100-ball competition is now being entered to reﬂect cricket’s domestic direction

Future plans An increase in the facilities o ered to pupils, especially to accommodate the amount of girls now on programme

Tours Spain (2025)

Cultural cricketers Angus Deayton (TV presenter), Chuck Iwuji (actor) What sets the school apart? Few establishments can rival Caterham for its beautiful grounds, rich cricketing history and track record of producing ﬁrst-class players.

Given the wealth of knowledge and experience of Batty, who heads up the programme, his presence is a coup. Having had roles with Melbourne Stars, Delhi Capitals, Surrey and Oval Invincibles, students have access to one of the very best on the elite circuit Finest moment on the ﬁeld In 2015, a 50-over record of 427 for 5 was made against Christ’s Hospital Recent progress The continued growth of senior and prep school girls cricket

What has changed in the last 10 years? The growth of the women’s game has been the biggest change in the last 10 years. Caterham have gone from fielding 10 teams on a Saturday – which “come alive” with a flurry of fixtures - to 18 with eight girls teams playing alongside the boys teams Future plans The continuation of the growth of the girls programme and to progress the link with Caterham Cricket Club who share their facilities Tours Su olk (annual)

CHARTERHOUSE

Hurtmore Rd, Godalming GU7 2DX

Established 1611

Number of pupils 947

Director of cricket Martin Bicknell (England, Surrey)

Teams Boys: 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, U16AB, U15ABC, U14ABCD.

CHELTENHAM COLLEGE

Bath Rd, Cheltenham GL53 7LD

Established 1841

Number of pupils 738

Director of cricket Matt Coley

Professional Mark Briers (Leicestershire, Durham, Worcestershire)

Teams Ten boys teams and five for the girls across age groups

Fixtures Sides play 120 matches for boys and girls

Facilities Six cricket squares, double sports hall with eight indoor nets. Four artificial nets and four grass nets

Club/county affiliation

Gloucestershire CCC, Charlton Kings CC

Best prospect Tall fast-bowler Oliver Pearson is currently a member of the Gloucestershire academy and plays U18 and 2nd XI fixtures

Cricketers of note Kumar Shri

Duleepsinhji (Cambridge University, Sussex CCC and England) Josh Dell (Worcestershire CCC).

Oliver Soames (Hampshire CCC, Bedfordshire CCC), Mike Cawdron and Dom Hewson

Best prospect Surrey teenager Luke Griffiths, who has also represented England U19s is a very promising seamer. He debuted in the One-Day Cup, taking the wickets of Lyndon James and George Hill Cricketers of note Peter May (England, Surrey, Cambridge University), Aubrey Smith (England, Sussex), Frederick Fane (England, Essex)

Girls: 1st XI, U14

Fixtures In 2024 over 100 fixtures were run across all teams. Eton, Harrow, Tonbridge are the most anticipated matches on the card

Facilities Seven cricket squares, two artificial. 18 artificial nets and a sports centre for indoor training

(Gloucestershire CCC)

Brief history Cricket has been played at College since its founding in 1841. Today, the cricket club fields many boys’ and girls’ teams competing in fixtures against other cricketing schools

Cultural cricketers Jack Clement, Seb Blake (both Gloucester), Simon Danelli (Ulster and Scotland rugby), Nick Abendanon (Bath, Clermont and England rugby)

What sets the school apart?

W.G.Grace took 12 for 63 in the 1872 Gloucestershire v Surrey game and then in 1877 claimed 17 for 89 against Nottinghamshire, a year after scoring

Brief history The earliest Charterhouse Cricket register starts in 1837, but there are prints depicting cricket dating from the mid-18th century. The grounds in London were uneven, full of holes and quite unsuitable for sports and so it was not until moving to Godalming in 1872 that cricket could be played more seriously. Since then, Charterhouse has produced more than 80 first-class cricketers, 50 County cricketers, six Test cricketers and three England captains. The first girls’ team was formed in 1984 when very few were accepted into the sixth form. Isabelle Duncan was one of the first women to be elected to membership of the MCC. Charterhouse became fully coed in 2021.Today, the school can put

the first ever triple hundred against Yorkshire. Wally Hammond set a world record that still stands, taking 10 catches in an innings by a fielder. In the same again, against Surrey in 1928, he also hit two hundreds. The college also has an association with Gecko Cricket Camps - hosting summer sessions Finest moment on the field

Winning the ARCH Trophy in the UAE in 2019. The 1st XI were unbeaten against school opposition during the 2012 season

Recent progress Work has been put in to engage pupils to develop a love for all forms of cricket and to then keep playing once they leave

out up to 15 teams every Saturday What sets the school apart? Prep school tournaments throughout the summer. They are also partnered with Edgeborough, one of Charterhouse’s family of schools. Students have a former international to guide them on a day-to-day basis. Bicknell played for Surrey CCC for 21 years and represented England in four Tests and seven ODIs. He took 1,439 wickets for Surrey, scored over 8,000 runs and was named Wisden Cricketer of the year in 2001. Furthermore, the school are confident their facilities and grounds are the best on the circuit Finest moment on the field The school doesn’t choose to focus on moments. Instead, it cherishes camaraderie and sportsmanship teams consistently display, whether in victory or defeat, which reflects their core values

Recent progress The development of the girls’ cricket programme is an area of pride

Future plans Building a new indoor cricket centre and improving the girls programme with more high-level coaching Tours Cape Town (2024)

the college. The growth of the girls’ cricket provision continues to be a significant area of pride What has changed in the last 10 years? The pressures on the traditional school fixture calendar from external exams have increased dramatically, making it a challenge to find players willing to commit to fixtures. The growth of shorter formats has also changed the way that boys and girls view cricket

Future plans A new net system is being installed, upgrading the current facilities. Work is also being done to add to our the indoor provision Tours South Africa (2024)

Martin Bicknell Director of cricket

TOP 100 SENIOR SCHOOLS CLAYESMORE

CLAYESMORE SCHOOL

Iwerne Minster, Blandford Forum DT11 8LL

Established 1896

Number of pupils 380 Director of Sport Dan Conway (Oxford MCCU)

Teams Boys: 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, U15AB, U14ABC. Girls: U18, U15 Girls’ cricket Winter programme includes all students together and girls are encouraged to play. They are integrated into the summer teams

Fixtures All teams play a combined 80-90, ranging from 100-ball to declaration cricket

Facilities 10 grass nets, four artiﬁcial nets, four-lane Indoor sports hall and four turf pitches

Club/county a liation Shroton CC

Best prospect Opening batter

Tom Baines can bowl o -spin, keep wicket, and plays county cricket for Dorset CCC County Age Group (CAG). George Gundill is a hard-hitting batter who bowls a heavy length whilst swinging the ball away. Plays county cricket for

Wiltshire CCC CAG

Cricketers of note

LD McManus (Hampshire CCC, Northants CCC, England U19s), JWA Stephenson (Essex CCC, Worcestershire CC), G Reynolds-Brown (Essex CCC)

Brief history Clayesmore has been growing its cricketing tradition and has showcased the sport since 1896. For the past 62 years the alumni have held their cricket week at the start of the summer holidays

Cultural cricketers Anthony Allen (Gloucester, Leicester, England rugby), Shannon Falcone (sailor), Tom Hicks (author), Tony Hart (artist)

What sets the school apart?

Links have been formed with Bournemouth CC, Shroton CC, Bashley CC and Hampshire Academy which creates a pathway into cricket outside of the school. Holiday courses are run so pupils and the community can enjoy the game when school has broken up Finest moment on the ﬁeld

Winning the South West T2 T20 in 2023 and 2024

Recent progress Local links with clubs have been strengthened, which o ers more cricketing opportunities for pupils to engage with the game both inside and out of school. Having lots of pupils in CAGs sees a close working relationship with county boards to ensure they are developing at the right pace. Some coaches work in the community. Facilities have vastly improved What has changed in the last

10 years? Growth of girls and community programme, which has cemented links with clubs and county pathways

Future plans Continued encouragement of pupils to engage with the ACE programme and develop their coaching skills while working with the juniors. Further upskilling of coaches and o cials. Four new grass wickets in the nets, new pavilion and theatre development Tours Lanzarote (biennial S&C tour)

SW CHAMPIONS 2024

Dan Conway, Director of sport

CLIFTON COLLEGE

32 College Rd, Clifton, Bristol

BS8 3JH

Established 1557

Number of pupils 1640

Head of cricket Tim Hancock

Professional Jim Williams (Glamorgan)

Teams Clifton ﬁeld 15 teams across age groups

Fixtures Most notable games come against MCC, a two day fixture and three-day game against Wales, Malvern College, King’s College, Taunton, Millfield and Bradfield College

Facilities Ten-lane artificial nets, five grass squares and three artificial wickets. From 2025 the Chellaram Sports Complex will have eight indoor net lanes as well as the existing fourlane indoor facility

Best prospect Zain Syed, Zaman Shaﬁ and Logan Bowden are currently on Gloucestershire’s Academy and Jack Hope-Bell and Lewis Popple are part of Glamorgan’s system. Bea Willis, Bella Herring and Imogen Davies have represented Gloucestershire and Western Storm

Cricketers of note

Matt Windows (Gloucestershire and England A)

James Kirtley (Sussex and England), Jim Williams, Prem Sisodiya (both Glamorgan), Dom Goodman, Joe Phillips (both Gloucestershire)

Brief history Henry Newbolt’s“There’s a breathless hush in The Close to-night, Ten to make and the match to win” - lines in 1892 were about cricket on Clifton’s Close, making the ground a location famous throughout the sporting world. Seven years after the poem was written, AEJ

Collins scored 628 not out in a house match which remains the highest individual score recorded in England

Cultural cricketers John Cleese (actor/writer)

What sets the school apart? The Close is located in the heart of the college and is among the standout grounds in the country. The facilities are superb

Finest moment on the ﬁeld

Defeating a Tonbridge School XI including Zak Crawley on The Nursery ground in 2014. The game commemorated 100 years since the ﬁrst meeting at the start of the First World War

Recent progress The college continues to play the game enthusiastically at all levels. In April 2024, the U15 girls came second in the indoor national ﬁnals at Lord’s What has changed in the last 10 years? After a comprehensive review by Sir Clive Woodward, a new head of cricket role was established, followed by the appointment of Tim Hancock. This role has a broad remit for developing girls and boys cricket at Clifton at all levels from the prep school up to the 1st XI Future plans

CRANLEIGH SCHOOL

Horseshoe Ln, Cranleigh GU6 8QQ

Established 1865

Number of pupils 700

Master in charge Gareth Pritchard

Professional Stuart Welch (MCC youth)

Teams Boys: 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, 4th XI, 5th XI, 6th XI, U15ABCD, U14ABCD. Girls: 1st XI, 2nd XI, U15, U14

Girls’ cricket Fifty girls take cricket as their main sport. Three teams play on Saturdays with a full list of competitive ﬁxtures. U15 and U18s play the cups.

Fixtures Approximately 150 all teams. Tonbridge, Epsom, Whitgift, the two-day game against Charterhouse, MCC and touring teams are the big games

Facilities Five grass squares, three at the prep school, two astroturf wickets, two cages , 13 all-weather outdoor nets, two-lane indoor cricket centre and three-lane sports hall with adjoining hall

Club/county a liation Cranleigh CC, Surrey CCC

Majid (both Surrey), Michael Burgess (Warwickshire, Sussex, Leicestershire)

Brief history Cranleigh has a long tradition of producing top quality cricketers and giving opportunities for all to enjoy and improve their game. While there is an emphasis on elite players at the top of the club, there is a team for every ability

What sets the school apart? Former 1st XI captain Henry Calder is the only male Wisden Cricketer of the Year to win the award (1916) without having played ﬁrst-class cricket. Teas are described as the best on the circuit by visiting sta , parents and players

Finest moment on the ﬁeld

Winning both The Cricketer Cup and National U15 Cup in 2014

Recent progress Girls’ 1st XI toured Sri Lanka alongside the boys for the ﬁrst time last Easter. Girls now play home matches on the 1st XI square ahead of the boys’ 2nd XI

The Chellaram Sports Complex was completed in September 2024. This provides new training opportunities for all college players and the community

Tours Dubai (2025)

Best prospect Molly BarbourSmith is a member of the Sunrisers Academy who travelled with Scotland to the U19 World Cup in 2023. Adam Thomas has scored a double hundred for Surrey U18s

Cricketers of note Ollie Pope, Stuart Meaker (both Surrey and England), Tom Lawes, Yousef

What has changed in the last 10 years? There are six additional teams on a Saturday and a full-time girls programme. Outdoor and indoor facilities have been refurbished. The school has also produced an England captain (Pope) and multiple County Championship winning players Future plans Continued growth of the game at the lower levels. Number of boys playing has allowed for four teams at both U14 and U15 level alongside six senior teams Tours Sri Lanka (2024)

TOP 100 SENIOR SCHOOLS

DENSTONE COLLEGE

Denstone, Uttoxeter ST14 5HN

Established 1873

Number of pupils 650

Director of cricket Paul Borrington

Professional Wes Durston (Somerset & Derbyshire)

Teams Boys: 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, U15AB, U14AB, U13AB, U12AB. Girls: 1st XI, U15AB, U13AB, U12AB Girls’ cricket Girls benefit from the same provision as boys. Fixtures offer a mixture of indoor/outdoor and hard/ soft ball matches and opportunities to play in the boys’ teams Fixtures 1st XI play approximately 20 matches, including notable fixtures against MCC, Malvern, Shrewsbury, Oakham, Trent and the annual two-day fixture v Langley Park

Facilities Five cricket grounds across the site, 10 grass nets, six-lane outdoor astro net facility, three indoor nets in sports hall Club/county affiliation Denstone hosted the Chance to Shine tournaments for boys and girls at U15 and U13 age groups. Several clubs train regularly at the college,

including Uttoxeter CC, Clifton CC and Checkley CC

Best prospect Evan Dhanda plays for Derbyshire U18s, while Sophie Beech is part of the Central Sparks academy Cricketers of note Aneesh Kapil (Worcestershire and Surrey), Harvey Hosein, Rob Hemmings, Greg Cork, Alex Thomson (all Derbyshire), Jeremy Snape (Northamptonshire, Gloucestershire, Leicestershire, England)

Brief history Cricket has been integral to Denstone since its foundation in 1873. The 1st XI pitch is situated at the heart of the school site which has helped maintain the popularity of the sport

DULWICH COLLEGE

Dulwich Common, London SE21 7LD

Established 1619

Number of pupils 1800

Head of cricket Rob Craze

Professional Adam Riley (Kent), Sarah Taylor (England, Sussex)

Teams There are 45 teams between U8s and U18s

Fixtures There are over 200 annual fixtures, with the 1st XI playing around 20. Notable fixtures include MCC and Tonbridge School

Facilities Eight indoor nets in the sports hall, 14 outdoor all-weather nets, five all- weather match wickets and eight grass squares of varying sizes

Club/county affiliation Surrey CCC, London Schools Cricket Association, Dulwich CC, MCC Foundation

Best prospect Roan Kennedy is a fast-bowler, dynamic fielder and a technically aggressive batter who has been selected for London and South East Bunbury U15 squad

Cricketers of note Trevor Bailey, Roger Knight (Surrey CCC),

Cultural cricketers Alastair Hignell (Gloucestershire CCC, Bristol, England Rugby), Arthur Berry (England footballer, Olympic gold medallist)

What sets the school apart? Regularly hosting county age groups, as well as EPP fixtures and training Finest moment on the field In 2012, the U15s beat Tonbridge to be crowned national champions

Recent progress Continued development of fixture list, including the reintroduction of the 3rd XI and the first girls MCC fixture. Denstone U11 cricket festival and the U10 local primary school festival have remained. Sessions focusing on

Ruel Brathwaite (Durham CCC and Hampshire CCC) and Chris Jordan (Surrey CCC, Sussex CCC and England)

Brief history Dulwich College have been playing cricket since 1873 when fixtures were played against Christ’s Hospital, Epsom College and St Paul’s School. In 1874, Tonbridge School was added to the fixture card, followed by Bedford School in 1882 and Brighton College in 1883. England, Sri Lanka, South Africa, the Netherlands and Surrey CCC have all used the 1st XI square for training and practice sessions. There is a rumour that the name ‘cow corner’ originated at Dulwich due to cows grazing in an area near deep midwicket

Cultural cricketers PG Wodehouse (author)

Finest moment on the field U12-U15 county cup success and the

captaincy, leadership and psychology have been integrated within the cricket programme. What has changed in the last 10 years? The girls programme is flourishing, with cricket now the main summer sport. Fixture lists have evolved to include a mixture of all formats to ensure pupils are challenged to the highest possible standard Future plans An evolution of the outreach programme by working with as many local schools and clubs as possible. Providing more touring opportunities and windows for pupils to earn coaching and officiating qualifications

Tours Barbados (2024)

1st XI reaching the semi-final of the South London T20 Cup. Dulwich reached the first three finals of the U18 National T20 competition, beating Sherborne School but losing against Repton College and Millfield School

Recent progress Over the 2023/24 academic year, more pupils had access to cricket professionals

Adam Riley and Sarah Taylor during pre-season training. Dulwich have various community outreach events and fixtures with communities locally including a 1st XI match against a local Afghanistan refugee team and a state primary school cricket experience morning

What has changed in the last 10 years? Opportunities outside of the summer term have increased allowing pupils to learn and access cricket all-year round

Future plans It is hoped that work will continue with the Southwark Schools Learning Partnership through cricket and sport. The ACE and MCCF programme use the facilities and further links are being established to enhance those relationships Tours South Africa (2026)

DUNOTTAR SCHOOL

36 High Trees Rd, Reigate RH2 7EL

Established 1926

Number of pupils 480

Director of sport & cricket

Jack Myers

Teams Boys: 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, U15AB, U14AB, 13ABC, U12ABCD. Girls: 1st XI, U15AB, U14AB, U13AB, U12ABCD

Fixtures There are 150 matches for boys and girls. Opponents include Epsom College, St Johns Leatherhead, Kingston Grammar School , City of London Freemans, Caterham and Ardingly as school do not own a ground

Facilities Five-lane indoor facility, with use of bowling machines and other specialist equipment. Salfords CC, Merstham CC, Leigh CC, Westhumble CC, Mynthurst CC, Netherne CC used for matches

Club/county affiliation

Reigate Priory CC

Best prospect Max Wallis is an energetic left-arm spinner, who

DURHAM SCHOOL

Quarryheads Ln, Durham DH1 4SZ

Established 1414

Number of pupils 750

Master in charge Michael Fishwick

Professional Gordon Muchall (Durham)

Teams Boys: 1st XI, 2nd XI, U15, U14AB, U13, U12. Girls: 1st XI, U15AB, U14AB, U13AB, U12AB

Girls’ cricket The recently formed girls’ team played their inaugural match on the main pitch (The Playground) in 2023

Fixtures Notable matches on the card are against Woodhouse Grove, Sedbergh, St Peter’s York, Ampleforth College, RGS Newcastle, Barnard Castle, MCC, Durham Pilgrims, Newcastle School for Boys. They also play three-day festivals at 1st XI, 2nd XI, U15 & U13

Facilities An indoor sports hall with four lanes, main pitch on The Playground, a smaller second pitch on the senior site and a third pitch at Palmers Close. Chorister School has an indoor sports hall with three lanes and an astro wicket.

currently plays for Esher 1st XI and for Surrey

U18s. Advaith Bali is an attacking top-order batter who represents Reigate Priory 1st XI in the Surrey Premier League

Brief history Cricket is fully inclusive at Dunottar. All pupils are encouraged to get involved and to give it a go. The programmes provide competitive fixtures for over 60 per cent of the school on most Saturdays. Dunottar are keen that every student leaves having had a positive experience of cricket, be that in an A team playing hard ball or within a D team playing soft ball. Cricket is the buzz sport at the school and the one that every pupil looks forward to yearly

What sets the school apart?

Sporadic opportunities are offered to students to tour. There have been trips to the Kia Oval to be flag bearers for the Surrey 1st XI

Finest moment on the field

Seventy-five students toured South Africa. In 2023, the U15 Girls were County Cup finalists

Recent progress In the past 12

months four coaches have been through ECB Foundation courses and six sixth form students through Support Coach qualifications, improving the coaching provision throughout boys and girls cricket at the school What has changed in the last 10 years? Since 2017, the fixture card has increased from 25 to 150+, and the number of teams from nine to 23. Relationships with many local clubs have improved. There is immense pride in the progress of the programme in line with the growth of the school

Future plans

Dunottar are in the process of designing a new four-lane outdoor covered

facility which is hoped to be installed in 2026.

Tours South Africa (2023, 2026), Desert Springs (2024)

Pitch on the Bow site Club/county affiliation Durham CCC, Northern Diamonds Academy, Durham City CC

Best prospect Grace Thompson plays for Northern Diamonds academy and Durham’s 1st XI boys’ team. Durham academy member

George Fishwick made 165 against Barnard Castle in a school match representing the 1st XI

Cricketers of note Michael Roseberry (Middlesex, Durham), Andrew Roseberry (Leicestershire, Glamorgan), Phil Weston

(Worcestershire, Gloucestershire, Derbyshire), Robin Weston (Durham, Derbyshire, Middlesex) , Paul Muchall (Gloucestershire), Gordon Muchall (Durham), Jonny Bushnell, Daniel Hogg, Sol Bell (all Durham), Fraser Watts (Scotland U19s, Olivia Rae (Scotland)

Brief history The school has had a cricket team from at least 1847. Regular matches with other schools began in 1866 with the annual game against St. Peter’s, York. Other annual matches followed: Sedbergh in 1908; Ampleforth in

1915; Giggleswick in 1933; Barnard Castle in 1937 and St Bees in 1938

Cultural cricketers

Mike Weston (England, British and Irish Lions rugby)

Finest moment on the field Beating MCC two years in a row

Recent progress

The girls’ programme continues to develop at a pace and there is a regular supply of good young cricketers to Durham CCC

What has changed in the last 10 years? A full girls’ cricket programme has been introduced to great acclaim. There has also been a move away from block fixtures every weekend to allow matches to better complement pupils’ academic and social development

Future plans To develop the Palmers Close pitch into another senior-sized cricket venue, to add another high-class surface to the list of current venues

Tours Sri Lanka (2025)

Jack Myers Director of cricket

TOP 100 SENIOR SCHOOLS EASTBOURNE

EASTBOURNE COLLEGE

Old Wish Rd, Eastbourne BN21 4JY

Established 1867

Number of pupils 650 Director of cricket

Matilda Callaghan

Teams Boys: 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, 4th XI, U15ABC, U14ABC. Girls: 1st XI, 2nd XI, U15AB, U14AB Girls’ cricket Programme is provided all year round, with winter training and a full one-to-one training schedule. Girls now have a full ﬁxture list including a game with the MCC

Fixtures Over 200 ﬁxtures a year. MCC women were welcomed for the ﬁrst time in 2024. Saturday blocks include playing schools such as Tonbridge, Whitgift and Dulwich College. Lashings World XI are visitors for a

charity game

Facilities Five lanes indoors with access to several bowling machines. Five cricket pitches, with the 1st XI pitch in the heart of the school. Eight outdoor astro nets

Club/county a liation

Essex CCC, Sussex CCC, Kent CCC

Best prospect Ollie Kirtley is a wicket-taking seamer who plays for the 1st XI in year 11, who was a big part in cup runs at both county and national level

Cricketers of note Ed Giddins (Sussex, Warwickshire, Surrey, England), Brad Evans (Zimbabwe), Harry Finch (Sussex & Kent), Matthew Hobden, Jamie Atkins, Oli Carter, Tom Hinley, Dan Ibrahim (all Sussex), Tawanda Muyeye (Kent), Emmanuel Bawa (Zimbabwe U19s)

Brief history Cricket on College Field has been played since 1867

ELLESMERE COLLEGE

Ellesmere, Shropshire SY12 9AB

Established 1879

Number of pupils 550 Director of cricket

Gareth Owen

Professional Rod Jones

include Shrewsbury School, Bromsgrove School and Merchant Taylors’, MCC and the Shropshire Gentlemen. U15 Girls have recently faced Shrewsbury School, Repton, Scarborough and Wakeﬁeld Girls High in the Sports Magazine National Cup

with 150 years of cricket marked in 2017

What sets the school apart? Five members of the 2020 team, who sadly never played a match due to the Covid-19 pandemic restrictions, have graduated playing professional cricket. External coaches deliver 80+ one-to-one sessions with pupils

Finest moment on the ﬁeld Beating Tonbridge in the National T20 Cup, with Ollie Kirtley taking a wicket with a slower ball to win the game

Recent progress

Girls cricket is really growing, with more identifying as cricketers and committing to the programme all year round. Eastbourne run the MCC Hub for Eastbourne at the school throughout the winter

What has changed in the last 10 years? Facilities, sta and the programme have been the major developments in the last 10 years and show the college continues to

Westminster), Sir Bill Beaumont (rugby)

value and push cricket forwards and develop. They are never prepared to stand still

Future plans Year 12 pupils have become involved in a new Cricket Service programme to provide coaching sta with drills to help their practices and coaching for local schools

Tours South Africa, Dubai (both 2025)

Teams Boys: 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, U17, U15AB, U14AB, U13, U12, U11, U10, U9. Girls: U15, U14, U13 & mixed, U12, U11, U10, U9. Mixed: U13, U12, U10, U9

Girls’ cricket The ‘Cricket for Girls’ initiative drives an inclusive coaching programme, building interest, participation and skills. Players are encouraged to attend county trials and play for local clubs. Di erent formats are utilised, including pairs cricket, with 30 matches on the ﬁxture card. Winter programme begins from September Fixtures Typically play over 100 matches while opponents

Facilities Three grass squares, one artiﬁcial, 12 grass nets, six outdoor artiﬁcial nets, two indoor halls, junior and senior bowling machines, 20 sets of Kwik cricket, two gyms, swimming pool, two senior pitches used for festivals and county competitions Club/county a liation Shropshire Cricket Board, Sta ordshire Cricket Boar, North Wales

Best prospect Skye Thomas is involved with Lancashire Thunder and county sides at U15 and U18 level

What sets the school apart? Ellesmere is proud of its National Indoor Cricket History and it is considered the ‘home’ of the format. Meanwhile, they have had players feature at The Bunbury Festival and others involved in the Lancashire and Glamorgan academies. Boys and girls represent Noth Wales, Shropshire, Cheshire and Sta ordshire annually Finest moment on the ﬁeld Midlands regional champions and semi-ﬁnalists of the National

U14 ESCA/ECB 2015 National Competition. Reached the Lady Taverners National Finals in 2013 Recent progress The continued development of house/small group indoor competitions. Many of the sta have achieved cricket coaching qualiﬁcations

What has changed in the last 10 years? The development of girls cricket, the indoor cricket programme and the inclusion of di erent formats – softball and pairs cricket - are sources of pride. There is also an awards programme

Cricketers of note

Ben Gibbon (Worcestershire), Dewi Penrhyn-Jones (Glamorgan)

Cultural cricketers Hugh Grosvernor (Duke of

Future plans There are aims to continue to engage the community in the o er of Cricket Ellesmere and, in particular, hosting of events and the development of a MCC Hubs in the county

Matilda Callaghan Director of cricket

Gareth Owen Director of cricket

EMANUEL SCHOOL

Battersea Rise, London SW11 1HS

Established 1594

Number of pupils 1109

Director of cricket Wayne White Professional Adam London (Middlesex), Mark Steer (Berkshire)

Teams Boys: 1st XI, 2nd XI, U15AB, U14ABC, 13ABCD, U12ABCDEF, U11AB. Girls: 1st XI, 2nd XI, U15AB, U14ABC, 13ABCD, U12ABCDEF, U11AB

Girls’ cricket Teams completed the 2024 season with a win record of 70 per cent over 100 games. Over six players are in the Surrey county age groups above the age of 15

Fixtures A record-breaking season included 220 matches and was illuminated by a meeting with MCC Facilities Off-site playing grounds at the newly redeveloped Blagdons site where four pitches allow for multiple games, allowing 35 teams enough game time throughout the year. Blagdons now has a brand new four-lane artificial net facility Club/county affiliation A very significant partnership programme with 32 schools in Wandsworth.

MEET THE DIRECTOR OF CRICKET

As an academically-focused school in London, overseeing cricket at Emanuel School comes with specific challenges.

“We have some pupils who play cricket 24/7 and others who play it more as a social thing, and that’s a nice balance to have,” says director of cricket Wayne White.

Primary Ambitions project sees 300 primary aged pupils welcomed every Friday afternoon

Best prospect Thomas Verwey is an U13 Middlesex and Richmond CC player. His unbeaten 154 in a T20 game was one of four hundreds last season. U16 Surrey and Spencer CC player Flora Rogers recovered from back stress fractures to captain the 1st XI, taking successive four-wicket hauls during a hugely successful season

Cricketers of note Stuart Surridge (Surrey), Ian Payne (Surrey & Gloucestershire), Izzy Cannon (England), Nancy Hughes

“We do feel the pressure of the academic side. But we’ve had a good buy-in this year to the idea that some pupils can switch off to play their sport sometimes, then switch back on at examtime. That balance is always there, especially in the upper-age groups.

“We’ve moved up to training all year round.

(Middlesex)

Brief history The school’s first recorded captain Mr J Wheater was appointed in 1891. The school maintains excellent relationships with local schools such as Tiffin, Latymer and Alleyn’s Cultural cricketers Tom Smith (Scotland/British and Irish Lions), Dr Iqbal Malik (heart surgeon) What sets the school apart? The main school site is a beautiful setting with walled grounds minutes from Clapham Junction Finest moment on the field Senior Boys XI had the most successful season in their history. The Senior girls

We play across two sites, so there’s a fair amount of travel. At weekends we try to keep fixtures fairly close between similar co-ed schools.

“We’ve just brought in Sam Lavery as our director of sport. That’s a great appointment. So with Sam, myself, Adam London and Mark Stear that’s a strong portfolio of coaches. And we’re trying all the time to upskill our academic staff to help us run midweek cricket. We’re building all the time.”

White brings to his role the benefit of a 12-year professional career with Derbyshire, Leicestershire and Lancashire, plus nigh on a decade in National Counties cricket. Last season White, who has just turned 39, captained Cambridgeshire to promotion in the three-

reached the semi-final of the Surrey County Cup

Recent progress A fairly fresh faced senior XI completed the best season on record with a 9-2 record after a difficult 2023. The senior girls completed 14 fixtures up from four in 2022

What has changed in the last 10 years? Introduction of girls cricket and year on year growth resulting in full parity with the boys all the way up Future plans Sam Lavery, former director of cricket at Kingston Grammar and Surrey pathway coach, joins as director of sport from September, enhancing the offering

day Championship and won the East Anglian Premier League with Sawston & Babraham CC. White loves red-ball cricket above all, but for a time Emanuel did pare all cricket back to T20. They are gradually phasing back in a healthy diet of 30, 40 and 50-over cricket too.

One area where Emanuel have been strong is in girls’ cricket.

“We continue to put really strong girls’ sides out. We have some girls in the upper ages of Surrey pathways.

“But we need to make sure we stay ahead of the curve. We had a headstart, but it’s very competitive in this area now.

“One way we can be better is to enhance links with clubs, so that our girls play more of that are maximising their cricket savvy for those tight games.

“There’s never been a better time to be a women’s professional cricketer, and I reckon we could have few of ours knocking on that door soon.”

Wayne White Director of cricket

EPSOM COLLEGE

College Rd, Epsom KT17 4JQ

Established 1853

Number of pupils 1000

Director of cricket Damian Shirazi (Hampshire)

Teams Twenty-eight teams run in total, 17 for the boys and 11 for the girls

Girls’ cricket Number of teams is expected to grow in 2025

Fixtures The school have over 230 ﬁxtures in the diary with more cup games to come. Both the boys and girls play against the MCC and also host the SPREB festival alongside Repton, Bradﬁeld, and St Peters York Facilities Seven squares by 2025 alongside 14 net lanes and an exclusive cricket-based indoor school Club/county a liation Ashtead CC, Surrey CCC, South East Stars Academy and EPP

Best prospect Alﬁe Haxton, Nathan Farmer, Ralphie Albert, and Alex Chambers have all taken part in the Bunbury Festival. Lucy Harris and Keira Johnson are in the full South East Stars EPP

Cricketers of note Nat Sciver-

ETON

COLLEGE

Windsor SL4 6DW

Established 1440

Number of pupils 1300+

Master in charge Tim Roberts (Northamptonshire, Lancashire)

Teams Twenty ﬁve teams across seniors, U16, U15 and U14s. Thirty ﬁve junior and 35 senior house teams through the term

Fixtures There are more than 265 ﬁxtures played by the various school teams

Facilities Ten turf grounds, nine astro grounds, 16 astro nets, ﬁve cages for grass practice, four-lane indoor school

Club/county a liation Slough CC,

Brunt (England, Trent Rockets), Alice Davidson-Richards (England, South East Stars), Brandon James (Zimbabwe)

Brief history Cricket has been played at Epsom since its inception. With the main square originally being where the public golf course is now situated, cricket has been played on site for some time now

Cultural cricketers Jonny Maitland (TV presenter and playwright), Jonny Gould (broadcaster), Tony

Datchet CC, Berkshire CCC

Best prospect Batter Thinod Balage

Don averages 55, has captained the 1st XI, been selected for Essex U18s and is part of the club’s academy programme

Cricketers of note Matthew Fleming (England, Kent), Alex Loudon (England, Kent, Warwickshire), James Bruce (Hampshire), GO Allen (England, Middlesex), Henry Blofeld (Cambridge), Ivo Bligh (England, Kent)

Brief history Sport has been central to the Eton curriculum for some time – the first ever recorded inter-school fixture is an Eton v Westminster cricket match in 1796. Come 1805 the first meeting with Harrow was played at Lord’s and the famous blue caps

Fernandez (businessperson)

What sets the school apart?

Currently, 46 young players are in the Surrey county pathway while the college has helped produce two England women’s internationals Finest moment on the ﬁeld National U15 champions in 2023 and winners of The Cricketer 100 in Desert Springs in 2024

Recent progress The college has devoted plenty of hard work in increasing participation and achieving

were introduced by 1831. A ﬁrst school tour of Australia was embarked upon in 1987/88 with Eton winning the U15 Lord’s Taverners National Cup in 1994 What sets the school apart? Cricketing history and sheer amount of participation in both internal and external cricket matches Finest moment on the ﬁeld Winning on U19 Essex Cup Finals Day in 2019 hosted at Brentwood Recent progress Over 20 cricket teams are coached and guided by excellent schoolmasters who are always looking to improve their skills. Pitches and facilities continue to be upgraded by Lee Marshallsay and his grounds team which helps to provide great surfaces for boys to learn and love the game

equality between the girls’ and boys’ programmes

What has changed in the last 10 years?

The number of teams has moved from seven to 28, while introducing a successful girls programme has helped add greater access to cricket beyond the elite end. Indoor and outdoor facilities have constantly developed, and county participation has risen from small numbers to nearly four dozen. College hosts and participates in competitions at U14 and U18 level for boys and girls and has a regular touring programme

Future plans Plans remain in place to host a series of festivals for both boys and girls at the college and externally. The addition of more cricket pitches and squares will be put in place to further spread the game across pupils and the local community Tours Dubai (2024)

What has changed in the last 10 years? Cricket continues to ﬂourish at Eton as e orts are made to align huge participation rates with two other key pillars of success: enjoyment and performance. They believe in the constant improvement of teams and individuals so they can become the very best versions of themselves. Notably, there is an appreciation of the educational value that the longer form of cricket brings to a school environment Future plans There is a desire to build on local partnerships. The process to build a new sports facility is underway, and there is a sense it will increase participation over the winter Tours Sri Lanka (2023)

TOP 100 SENIOR SCHOOLS FELSTED

FELSTED SCHOOL

Felsted School, Felsted, Dunmow CM6 3LL

Established 1564

Number of pupils 550

Director of cricket Jason Gallian

Head of girls cricket Lissy Macleod

Professional Nick Lockhart

Teams Boys: 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, U15AB, U14AB. Girls: 1st XI, 2nd XI, U15, U14

Fixtures Match against MCC is the most signiﬁcant of the 96 played by the boys and girls teams

Facilities Four grass squares, 10 lane non turf nets, two non-turf pitches, ﬁve-lane indoor centre Club/county a liation Essex CCC,

Sunrisers

Best prospect Monty Cooper is part of the Essex U18s side, while Abi Camp is with Surrey U18s Cricketers of note JWHT Douglas (England and Essex), Derek Pringle (Essex and England), John Stephenson (Essex, Hampshire and England), Nick Knight (Essex, Warwickshire and England), Elliot Wilson (Worcester), Jordan Cox (Kent, Essex, England), Tim Phillips, Will Buttleman, Poppy Timson, Grace Poole (all Essex), Emma Jones (Essex and Southern Stars), Jess Olerenshaw (Essex and Sunrises)

Brief history First cricket ﬁeld was established in 1805. The main ground ‘The Front’ is the only school ground overlooked by a beer garden called The Chequers. The famous main pitch is right at the heart of the school and has been the scene of many highproﬁle matches over the centuries Cultural cricketers JHWT Douglas (boxing)

What sets the school apart? The long history of producing ﬁrst class and international cricketers. The experience of Gallian, who played for England and three ﬁrst-class

counties, and Macleod – who has represented Welsh Fire in The Hundred, give students great access to a wealth of knowledge

Finest moment on the ﬁeld Backto-back National T20 champions in 2004 and 2005, Girls U15 Indoor and Outdoor National champions in 2017 and Girls 1st XI National winners in 2019

Recent progress Boys and girls regularly frequent the East Anglia League. Girls cricket continued to develop at a pace. And the introduction of technology into the game with live streaming and online scoring

What has changed in the last 10 years? Technology has developed with the introduction of of electric scoring and live streaming of games. Equality of both programmes with girls cricket brought closer to the boys Future plans There are hopes to grow the independent school league to a number of new schools. This will hopefully create healthy competition in the area and involve a lot more girls and boys to get involved in a variety of formats

Tours Sri Lanka (2025)

TOP 100 SENIOR SCHOOLS FOREST SCHOOL

FOREST SCHOOL

Snaresbrook, London, E17 3PY

Established 1834

Number of pupils 1500

Head of cricket Tomos Fowler Professional Ranjit Bhanabhai (Derbyshire 2nd XI), Fiona Rae (Scotland), Louise Poulter (Middlesex)

Teams Boys: 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, U17A, U15AB, U14AB, 13ABC, U12ABC. Girls: 1st XI, 2nd XI, U17, U15, U14, U13, U12

Girls’ cricket Girls selected for county and district sides are invited to a two-hour pathway session once a week. Seventy players are across years seven, eight and nine in teams. Sixth form girls can book one-to-one training sessions during free periods

Fixtures Up to 120 fixtures are played each year including against MCC men and women. During cricket week, touring teams from Australia, New Zealand, South Africa and India

Facilities Five-lane indoor sports hall,

MEET THE HEAD OF CRICKET

You might call it The Battle of Epping Forest, if Genesis hadn’t written that already.

Incredibly, in an epic match at Forest School in June, a visiting Kiwi batter scored 338 and his side still somehow lost the match.

two-lane indoor cricket centre, three outdoor artificial nets, four grass nets, four cricket pitches and three roll on cages for centre wicket practices

Best prospect Areeb Rashid, Ayaan Malik and Jeevan Sing Kathuria are members of the Essex academy and

It was the first two-day game played at Forest for many years, and Xavier Bell, captain of St Peter’s School, Cambridge, New Zealand, hammered the triple-hundred in a second innings of 534, but such was Forest’s determination that they still chased down 248 to win the game by two wickets, Aiyush Aiyar leading the chase with 65.

The game, like so many at Forest, was livestreamed, and has been watched back by more than 2,000 viewers on YouTube.

each attended the 2022 Bunbury Festival. Prisha Bedi represents Essex 1st XI and is on the Sunrisers academy Cricketers of note Nasser Hussain, James Foster (both England and Essex)

Brief history Cricket is a well-

It was part of a stellar Cricket Week at Forest also involving schools from Australia and South Africa.

But it is just one strand in among considerable development going on at Forest School at the moment.

“Our main ground is still at the school, encircled by all the buildings that have gone up,” says master in charge Tomos Fowler.

“When we have 1st XI matches there, all the school come out to watch and it becomes quite a huge summer event in the entire school.

“We have a little walk through the forest to the school playing fields, to The Park, where there are three squares currently, and a new training square is being put in, and we’re having a massive £3m multi-sport pavilion put in, with lots of changing rooms,

established sport at Forest School although in recent years there has been increased focus and investment in growing cricket at the school and building the school’s reputation

What sets the school apart?

Buildings have been built around the 1st XI pitch, allowing students passing by at breaktimes or in between lessons to support the team. An outreach programme invites local state school cricketers to attend weekly three-hour cricket training sessions. Provision of CPD coaching sessions for school staff and parents to advance knowledge and coaching skills

Finest moment on the field The U15s’ record-breaking 2022 season saw them win the ESCA National Cup final

Recent progress A transition into the whole school cricket programme competing in coloured kit

What has changed in the last 10 years? Using analysis platforms such as NV play and Fulltrack AI allows quality feedback to students

Future plans the school has plans for a new state-of-the-art pavilion in the school’s park as well as the relocation of the cricket squares in order to host more fixtures on school site. Forest School are in discussion to build a new 3 lane indoor cricket centre on site with integrated with analysis software.

Tours Dubai (2022/2024), Barbados (2026)

plus a café and viewing area.

“We’re hoping it could be a really good hub and allow us to forge partnerships with neighbouring counties and clubs, to both make some additional revenue but also support local community clubs out of term-time.”

The school’s indoor cricket centre has just been resurfaced and refurbished, too.

The Under-12 boys and Under-13 girls won the Essex Cup, and the Under-17s got to the last six nationally.

Other than the core summer fixture programme, Forest has “a huge winter training programme” and the carrot of biennial tours to venues such as Dubai, Barbados, Cape Town and Sri Lanka.

Fowler adds: “Forest is a strong academic school – we just lodged the best GCSE and A Level results in the school’s history – but sport is as well supported as it can be.

“Cricket is one of our strongest pulling points compared to other schools in the area.”

Tomos Fowler Head of cricket

FRAMLINGHAM COLLEGE

College Road, Framlingham, Woodbridge IP13 9EY

Established 1864

Number of pupils 589 Head of cricket

Jack Beaumont

Teams Boys: 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, U17 Cup XI, Albert XI, Junior 1st XI, U15AB, U14AB, U13ABCD, U11ABC, U9ABC. Girls: 1st, 2nd, 3rd XI, U17, U15, U13ABC, U11AB. Mixed: U9ABCD Girls’ cricket A total of 14 girls’ teams are run in the summer term, across all levels and age groups. The U17s reached the National semi-ﬁnals against Bede’s and a number of players have representative honours for either Norfolk, Su olk, Essex and Sunrisers

Facilities Nine indoor nets (two in the Sports Halls, eight artiﬁcial

nets, 12 grass nets). Thirteen grass wicket pitches (plus various mini grounds, including Flicx) Club/county a liation

Northamptonshire CCC, Su olk CCC, Su olk Cricket Board, Easton CC & Yoxford

Cricketers of note David Larter (Northamptonshire & England), Ashley Cowan, Norman Borrett (both Essex), Robert Newton, Freddie Heldreich (Northamptonshire), Herbert Wilson (Sussex), Michael Pegg (Finland), Herbert Soar (Middlesex), Eric Rash (Egypt), Edward Inskip (Chile)

Brief history Cricket was the ﬁrst sport to be played at Framlingham College in 1865 as a team of Masters & Boys took on a Town and District XI. Su olk regularly used the College for both Championship and knock out ﬁxtures in the 1980s and 1990s and it is now a centre for several Su olk youth sides

What sets the school apart? The girls’ game has

MEET THE HEAD OF CRICKET

When considering the cricket programmes delivered by schools across the country, it is easy to be drawn in by the silverware, the history and the former players to roam the grounds and come through the system.

But for many pupils who do not go on to make a career playing the game professionally, or adorn the honours’ board, the sport has equal value.

Framlingham College head of cricket Jack Beaumont is keen to look after all students wishing to enjoy the sport, even if they do not necessarily knocking on the door for the most competitive sides. To o set a lack of external ﬁxtures for C or D-level players, he set up a Masters League - an in-house Thursday competition.

So successful it has been, there is hope it will

gathered pace and now includes several high-quality fixtures each year. They participated in all national competitions in 2024 and reached the U17 National Cup quarter-finals Finest moment on the field Winning on U19 Essex Cup Finals Day in 2019 hosted at Brentwood Recent progress The sheer number of students that want to train and play cricket annually continues to grow quickly. The David Larter End on the main square was recently unveiled What has changed in the last 10 years? The introduction of the Eagles Nest Independent Schools League

attract Eastbourne, Seaford and Stamford Colleges to join them.

“We have been trying to find fixtures for our lowerlevel teams,” Beaumont told The Cricketer. “We’ve struggled. We’ve had some external ones, but we’re limited on what other schools can o er. We can do it but not a lot of others can. We’ve created this internal Thursday Masters League where we’ve come up with some random team names, they all get put into di erent squads and every Thursday they have a fixture.

“It has actually worked really well because it has created a buzz. There has been a leaderboard, players of the week, that kind of stu . It is something we are looking to continue next year.”

Fewer than 600 students at the college means Beaumont and his team can adopt a

has improved the competitive nature around Saturday fixtures Future plans Hopes to add fixtures in the autumn, and install electronic scoreboards on all pitches which connect to play-cricket. Hosting MCCF coaching residential course for scheme graduates and involving more players in coaching junior sides. The school wishes to host cricket coaching / umpiring courses, use more video analysis, invest in new sightscreens and are looking into the possibility of playing a floodlit daynight league

Tours Netherlands (2025)

focused approach to the cricket programme, ensuring full exposure to the wealth of knowledge available.

The team includes director of sport

Chris Gange, former Italy international Andy Northcote, Rob Earl who spent 11 years at Warwickshire, Marcus Marvell who has played at National Counties level, and another Italian international, Llenia Sims.

“We’re not a big school so it means that the actual cricketers we have we can work quite closely with them,” explained Beaumont.

“Our coaching team are extremely strong, probably on a national scale. I think that stands us out from the rest.

“It is the same coaches throughout the whole system, from age six to age 18, which allows us to have that continuity the whole way through.

“In the winter it can be bespoke to those individuals that require it to get to the next level. Same numbers mean a lot more one-to-ones - the ﬁrst two terms we did 1,000 hours of one-to-ones.”

Jack Beaumont Head of cricket

A high-performance culture for boys and girls with serious ambitions.

• Only school in East Anglia to have been in the Cricketer’s Top 100 schools for cricket every year since its inception.

• Highly trained coaching staff (three ECB Level 3, one working towards Level 3 and another towards Level 4).

• Wide and varied fixture list across a variety of formats regionally, nationally and internationally.

• Play against representative sides including the MCC (both men and women sides), Cambridge University (both men and women) and the Eagles’ Nest Independent Schools League.

• Routinely host touring sides from Australia, South Africa and India.

• Regularly host county programme training, matches and we are very proud to be the regional MCC Foundation Hub.

• Host of Suffolk County Training (Both Junior Pathway & Adult Men/Women). Framlingham players are part of pathways in Sunrisers, Essex CCC, Northamptonshire CCC, Suffolk CCC, Norfolk CCC, Cambridgeshire CCC.

• Formal educational partnership with Northamptonshire County Cricket Club where pupils have a direct and clear potential pathway into professional cricket.

GEORGE WATSON’S COLLEGE // GRESHAM’S SCHOOL

GEORGE WATSON’S COLLEGE

69 Colinton Rd, Edinburgh EH10 5EG

Established 1741

Number of pupils 2300

Master in charge Neil McCallum

Professional Oli Hairs (Scotland) Teams Boys: 1st XI, 2nd XI, U15AB, U14AB, 13ABC, U12AB, U11AB. Girls: U18, U1 5, U13AB, U12AB Girls’ cricket School teams play local sides in Edinburgh, and in the National U15 and U18 Girls Scottish Cup Competitions

Fixtures MCC fixture is the standout match on the calendar

Facilities Four grass wicket squares; two artificial wickets; 10 artificial nets and four indoor nets

Club/county affiliation Plans afoot for the sixth year of the MCCF hub which will be held in the school games hall, which is attended by over 30 pupils from local state schools each winter. The college runs an Outreach Programme through a local charity called Sport Start, a charity that pays for a coach to deliver sessions in seven local schools over 10 weeks

GRESHAM’S SCHOOL

Cromer Road Holt NR25 6EA

Established 1555

Number of pupils 570

Head of cricket Grant Morgan

Professional Neil Hornbuckle (South Western Districts)

Teams Boys: 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, 4th XI, U15AB, U14ABC. Girls: 1st XI, 2nd XI, U17, U15

Fixtures Fixtures include I Zingari XI, MCC and Forty Club in timed declaration matches. Girls fixtures run similarly with a pre-season tour

to around 300 pupils. Pupils then attend a further Friday session after school and are invited to a local club’s summer camps

Best prospect Gabriella Fontela plays for the Scotland U19s. Talent left-hander batter Oli Stones is in the Scotland U17 squad Cricketers of note Neil McCallum, Dewald Nel, Ewan Chalmers, Alastair Evans, Sarah Bryce,

and they also compete in six cup competitions

Facilities Four grass cricket squares as well as one Astro cricket wicket. Twelve grass nets and six astro nets. On-site sports hall which contains two bowling machines one of which is a Merlyn

Best prospect Arthur Wilcox was nominated for Wisden Young Schools Cricketer of the year, Will Panter is in the Nottinghamshire academy, while JC Malherbe, Georgia Demitriou and Grace Hanworth-Knights have had Bunbury trials

Cricketers of note Giles Baring

Kathryn Bryce (all Scotland)

Brief history In 2015, the school won all three major Scottish sporting competitions in rugby, boys’ hockey and cricket, the first school to do so What sets the school apart?

The school benefits from excellent outdoor and indoor facilities and the calibre of coaching at the school is very high with ex internationals and professionals on the staff

(Hampshire CCC), Andrew Corran (Nottinghamshire CCC), Nicholas Taylor (Somerset CCC, Yorkshire CCC, Surrey CCC), James Lewis (National Counties)

Brief history Cricket plays a key role at Gresham’s and the 1st XI square occupies the centre and heart of the school. Often 200 pupils will watch a game as Saturday Chapel finishes and it is quite a scene. It is 10 years since the new pavilion was opened and on that day a match was staged to commemorate the significant number of boys who lost their life in the Great War, but who also played

Finest moment on the field Winning the Scottish Schools T20 Cup in 2015 and 2022 Recent progress The development of girls cricket and the numbers playing fixtures for the school. The increasing numbers playing junior and senior cricket continues to impress What has changed in the last 10 years? Weekly girls fixtures are run with other schools in Edinburgh, while more girls are playing in boys teams than 10 years ago at each age group. An annual girls cricket tour is run to the North East of England. A senior tour is embarked upon to Barbados every three years and teams are entered into National U15 and U18 Cups every summer Future plans School square at Craiglockhart is newly re-laid and will be ready for school matches in the summer of 2025

cricket to a high level

What sets the school apart? County tournaments and several one-off county matches are hosted throughout the summer. Gresham’s continue to host the Emerging Player Pathway in Norfolk and Norfolk trials Finest moment on the field Boys were U16 National Inspire Sport Champions in June 2021, while the girls were National U15 runners-up in 2023

Recent progress Coaches and staff have been upskilled, cricket timetable has been improved and more players than ever are on a county pathway, with four part of regional pathways.

What has changed in the last 10 years? Girls cricket programme has grown dramatically, with number increasing to ensure four teams can be fielded.

Future plans Second scoreboard is being built for the 1st XI main square, and there is a focus on the 2nd XI and boys U15A/U14A square where two new sightscreens will be put in as well as a new electric scoreboard and dugouts.

Tours Sri Lanka, Dubai (both 2025)

TOP 100 SENIOR SCHOOLS HABERDASHERS’ BOYS

HABERDASHERS’ BOYS SCHOOL

Butterﬂy Ln, Elstree, Radlett, Borehamwood WD6 3AF

Established 1690

Number of pupils 1,500

Director of cricket Jamie Hewitt

Professional Ben Howgego Teams Boys: 21 teams: 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, 4th XI, 5th XI; Year 10 A-C; Year 9 A-D; Year 8 A-D; Year 7 A-E Girls’ cricket They select girls from the girls school each Saturday, who then train during the week with

the boys.

Fixtures The school plays 260 ﬁxtures. They play against MCC, Haileybury, Merchant Taylors’ and Fraser Bird, among others.

Facilities There are three grass wickets, two astro wickets, six grass training wickets, nine astro nets. Club/county a liation The school has links with Middlesex CCC, Hertfordshire CCC, Middlesex Women, Radlett CC.

Best prospect Atharv Sharma, in Year 9, plays for Middlesex U14, also in the school’s 1st XI.

Cricketers of note Richard Yeabsley

(Middlesex), Gavin Baker (Northants)

Brief history Sport is an integral part of school life, with the ability to play both elite and participation. Cricket is a priority sport with over 260 ﬁxtures in place to cover the demand from the players. Cricket begins in the pre-prep and continues all the way up to the upper sixth.

Cultural cricketers Dean Wilson (Journalist), Manoj Badale (co-owner of Rajasthan Royals)

What sets the school apart? The combination of academia and elite

HABERDASHERS’ MONMOUTH SCHOOL

24 Hereford Rd, Monmouth NP25 5XT

Established 1614

Number of pupils 1,100 Director of cricket

Callum Bassett-Jones

Professionals James Boiling (Assistant Director of cricket), Steve James, Andrew Jones

Teams Boys: 1st XI, 2nd XI, U15AB, U14AB, U13ABC, 12ABC; Girls: 1st XI, U15, U13, U11

Girls’ cricket Has been running for the last six years. A number of junior girls have been selected for Cricket Wales’ junior squads this summer, ranging from Wales Under-13s to Wales

Under-15s.

Fixtures The school plays more than 130 fixtures across all age-groups during the year. The girls’ fixture list is expanding, with plans to increase the number of joint fixtures.

Facilities There are five grass squares, one artificial match wicket, five grass nets and a bay of six artificial nets, with an artificial fielding area. They also have multiple roll-on nets, fielding nets, and two indoor sports hall spaces, one with four lanes in. Club/county a liation Glamorgan CCC and local cricket clubs

Best prospect Henry Hurle signed his ﬁrst professional contract with Glamorgan. Former sixth-form pupil Sophia Smale also continues to thrive for Western Storm and the Oval Invincibles.

Current pupils Jacob Blades and Zac Williams are

and participation in school and cricket life.

Finest moment on the field In 2022, they defeated St Albans in a two-day game in the final over of the second day, Ashish Padki completing the game with match figures of 10 for 70. In 2024, against Bancrofts, they scored 279 in 20 overs, with Felix Hart scoring 105 in 50 balls. Notable matches include playing on the Nursery Ground at Lords against Merchant Taylors’. They have also played at the Test ground in Galle, Sri Lanka.

Recent progress In the last 12 months, they have continued to incorporate more girls into their training and playing programme. Over 80 boys in Year 7 and Year 8 turn out each week for cricket, and they are looking to increase the number of games the boys can play. They are also reintroducing tours into the programme.

Future plans There are plans to build a new pavilion with the development of the top ﬁeld.

Tours 1st XI to Sri Lanka (February half-term), Under 15A to Dubai (Easter), U13 to Jersey (May)

both on the Glamorgan Academy and have represented Wales Under-18s. Cricketers of note Steve James (England, Glamorgan), Henry Hurle, Reuben Spiring, Jeremy Lawlor, Andrew Jones, Huw Waters (Glamorgan)

Brief history Although the schools were founded in 1614, the ﬁrst mention of cricket was in The Monmothian magazine in 1882. Cultural cricketers Anu Mohindru QC, Eddie Butler, Richard Parks, Keith Jarrett (both rugby) What sets the school apart? They have a partnership with Glamorgan, who play second-team matches at the school.

Finest moment on the ﬁeld The U17 side won the Barclays Bank Schools Cricket Cup in 1983. Recent progress Henry Hurle signed his ﬁrst Glamorgan professional contract upon leaving school. Future plans They plan to continue building on the success of their girls’ programme. With 14 girls playing representative cricket this summer, it has been the fastest-growing sport in the school. They have increased links with local clubs and, as a result, many girls are now playing for clubs. They have added a new link with the Cricket Wales women Tours Sri Lanka (2024)

Callum Bassett-Jones Director of cricket

HAILEYBURY

Haileybury, Hertford

SG13 7NU

Established 1862

Number of pupils 925

Director of cricket

Rupes Kitzinger

Professional Izzy Collis

Rupes Kitzinger Director of cricket

Teams Boys: 20 teams from U12C upwards to 1st XI; Girls: 20 teams from U12E to 1st XI

Girls’ cricket They run an extensive and comprehensive girls’ programme run by Izzy Collis, who has played for Sussex and Worcestershire.

Fixtures The school plays more than 270 fixtures. They play a doubleheader on Speech Day with the MCC (Boys and Girls XIs both playing), with 2,500 spectators and an annual two-day fixture with Cheltenham College. The fixture list also includes Tonbridge, Dulwich, Bedford and Uppingham.

Facilities New in 2024 were two hybrid wickets. These were used by U15 and U14 girls’ teams. They also have a new bank of six high-quality nets on Hailey Field, built by Durant. This takes

their tally to 13 structured nets, six net cages, nine hybrid wickets, 10 grounds, a Merlyn bowling machine and an NV Play live stream. Club/county a liation

The school runs the County Cup for Girls and IAPS competitions for girls.

Sunrisers and Herts Women train at Haileybury all year round.

Best prospect Leo Davis is a wicketkeeper-batter on the Essex Academy. Darcey Dalwood is a 6ft 2in fast bowler in the Ireland U19 setup. Omar Shah (son of Owais) is U14 in 2025 and has scored heavily for school and Middlesex.

Cricketers of note Sam Billings (Kent, England), Michael Levitt (Netherlands)

Brief history The game between Haileybury and Cheltenham began in 1893 and was played at Lord’s every year until 1968. There have been 91 ﬁrst class cricketers from the school.

Cultural cricketers Jamie George (rugby), Oscar Piastri (F1, played for the XI in 2019), Nick Isiekwe (rugby), Clement Attlee (prime minister), Christopher Nolan (ﬁlm director)

What sets the school apart? They have a strong sporting exchange with schools in Cape Town and Sydney. Pre-season festivals are hosted for girls and boys with local counties.

Finest moment on the ﬁeld The school record for the highest batting partnership in the XI was broken in April 2024 by captain Charlie Walters (135) and Eden Scott (129*) who combined to make 277 for the

second wicket.

Recent progress They invested heavily in facilities with new nets and pitches on Terrace. They have introduced an EPP training to bridge the gap to high-performance cricketers.

Future plans They are moving closer to a six-lane bespoke indoor cricket centre.

Tours Sri Lanka and Jersey (2025)

TOP 100 SENIOR SCHOOLS HAMPTON

HAMPTON SCHOOL

Hanworth Rd, Hampton TW12 3HD

Established 1556

Number of pupils 1,230

Head of cricket

Ami Banerjee Professional Chris Harrison Teams 18 teams: 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, 4th XI; U16AB, U15ABCD, U14ABCD, U13ABC, U12ABCD Fixtures They have 200 ﬁxtures altogether. Notable ﬁxtures are Eton, Harrow, Whitgift, St Paul’s, KCS, Dulwich, Merchant Taylors’, Reeds, RGS Guildford ,

Ti n, Brighton College, Winchester College and MCC.

Facilities Hampton has six indoor nets, seven outdoor astro nets, seven grass wickets and one astro wicket, as well as three outdoor grass wickets for training with cages which cricketers use during their training sessions. The indoor facility is used throughout the year and has six nets and a space for indoor game.

Club/county a liation The school has strong links with MCC, Surrey, Middlesex and Hampshire. Best prospect 1st XI captain Naavya

Sharma is playing for Middlesex.

Cricketers of note Zafar Ansari (Surrey, England ), Toby Roland-Jones (Middlesex, England), Blake Cullen (Middlesex)

Brief history Cricket started at Hampton School in 1874 and continues to ﬂourish.

MEET THE PROFESSIONAL

In a world of boundaries, yorkers, reverse ramps and the googly, it is something easy to forget how some of the best players in the world reached a point where those skills became second nature.

Ultimately, they can be delivered thanks to mastering the fundamentals and ensuring you are technically proﬁcient.

Cultural cricketers Daniel Pemberton (Film composer), Brian May (musician), Ollie Stanhope MBE (Paralympian), Patrick Aryee (TV presenter)

What sets the school apart? The school beneﬁts from an extensive all-round coaching programme with the right technical advice for young cricketers. Coaching is based on strong basics to make sure players develop at their own pace. Finest moment on the ﬁeld

But convincing the next generation that tread those hard yards can be tricky. It is one of the challenges faced by Hampton School cricket coach Chris Harrison, who regards technique as a key element of the programme.

“We educate them on how to train and how to get better,” he tells The Cricketer

Recently they won the U12 Middlesex Cup.

Recent progress In the past 12 months, Hampton have had a massive number of boys participating at all age groups, and all cricketers are not only available to play all matches but they are also ready to work hard on their techniques in the nets during their lunch time or after school. Their dedication, determination and

“We teach them on how to train properly, what to do if without a coach there. A lot of our work will be working in pairs so they’re dependent on each other rather than a coach driving it all the time.

“So for example at the end of our programme when you see our seniors train they are very independent, they know they have to do throw-downs, they’ve got to bowl on the side and hit a target. There is not a culture of just nets here. We want them to train properly, and we teach them and improve.

“Constant messaging really: if you want to get better this is how you’re going to do it. We’re going to help you do that and we’ll engage you that way. The reward is you’ll improve, you will get better and enjoy the game, you’ll build your

discipline about this game makes them proud. The school has been able to ﬁeld four senior teams and also have four teams in all other age groups.

Future plans Hampton plan to keep providing correct technical advice to cricketers at local schools, helping them with more facilities to develop their game.

Tours Barbados (2025)

conﬁdence. We explain the importance.”

Described as one of the school’s long-serving coaches, who has rubbed shoulders with Andrew Flinto , Graeme Swann and Mark Chilton during his cricket journey, Harrison has found his outlook on lending his knowledge to others as he has developed. He now prefers a selective, hands-o approach.

“It is about not smothering them as a coach,” he explains. “If you do well in a game, it is they who have done well. If they’ve done badly, the coach tries to facilitate them improving.

“If they score a ﬁfty it is all credit to them. There is no coach sitting by the side patting themselves on the back. It is all about the players.

“We have a philosophy of if a player isn’t doing that well, they will get more coaching time than a lad who is top of his game, scoring lots of runs so we’ll look at players who are lacking the most conﬁdence. That is who we’ll spend the most time with during the season.”

Chris Harrison Professional

(see website for details) Sports Scholarships, Free Places and Assistance with Fees available.

Hampton School, Hanworth Road, Hampton TW12 3HD

www.hamptonschool.org.uk admissions@hamptonschool.org.uk

TOP 100 SENIOR SCHOOLS HARROW

HARROW SCHOOL

5 High St, Harrow HA1 3HP

Established 1572

Number of pupils 830

Master in charge Johnny Marsden

Professional Mark Ramprakash Teams 19 teams: 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, 4th XI, 5th XI, U16ABC, U15ABCDE, U14ABCDEF

HURSTPIERPOINT COLLEGE

College Ln, Hurstpierpoint, Hassocks BN6 9JS

Established 1849

Number of pupils N/A Head of cricket

Mark Nash

Professional Billy Godleman, Jonty Jenner

Teams 10 boys’ teams, six girls’ teams

Girls’ cricket Girls’ cricket is the main sport in the summer term

Fixtures They have over 150 fixtures a year across the senior school, with the 1st XI playing more than 20. They provide A-D teams that play a number of fixtures, and the school also enters National and County Cups

Fixtures The school typically provides close to 200 external fixtures.

Facilities They have nine grounds exclusively used for cricket and all served by pavilions, digital scoreboards and sightscreens. The boys train on grass squares every training session of the summer term. They have a two-lane purpose-built indoor school where they train during

the winter months, with access to BOLA and Merlyn bowling machines, Pitch Vision, QuickScore scoreboards and many other useful cricket gadgetries that improve the provision. Club/county affiliation Harrow partner with the local community in how they share facilities, and have a blend of independent and state school fixtures on their card. They also open up facilities to the MCC Foundation and ACE Academy in the summer holiday months, helping cricketers who don’t have access to training facilities develop their game. They host various feeder school cricket festivals and taster days throughout the summer term to give prospective students a chance to sample Harrow cricket before they arrive.

Cricketers of note Jafer Chohan (Yorkshire, Southern Brave), Sam Northeast (Kent, Hampshire,

Glamorgan), Nick Compton (Middlesex, Somerset, England), Gary Ballance (Derbyshire, Yorkshire, England), Robbie White (Middlesex), Robin Marlar (Sussex), Tony Pigott (Sussex, Surrey)

Brief history Cricket has long played a major part in the life of the school. From 1850 to 1939 this was largely due to the social significance of the Eton match at Lord’s, part of the ‘London Season’. The first recorded match in 1805 gained some publicity from the presence in the Harrow team of the poet, Byron.

Cultural cricketers Lord Byron, Sir Terence Rattigan (playwrights) What sets the school apart? The school cricket programme has the breadth to produce professional players but also facilitate cricket for beginners of all ages (and everything in between).

Recent progress They have improved their fixture card for 5th XI, 6th XI and U14/U15 E and F sides.

Future plans In the 2023/24 winter, they started sending coaches into local primary schools, with plans to expand that work.

Tours Cape Town (2025)

Facilities Hurstpierpoint have eight cricket grounds and six grass squares. Fifteen artificial nets and five grass practice wickets are used during the summer, with six indoor nets used in the winter

Club/county affiliation The school has an educational trust that works closely with local primary schools to deliver a sports programme and joint provision of facilities

Best prospect Henry Rogers, the first XI captain, has recently signed a contract with Sussex. He played for England U19 last summer, winning the ESCA young cricketer of the year.

Cricketers of note George Garton (Sussex, England, Southern Brave), Tom Haines (Sussex, England Lions), Jack Carson (Sussex, England Lions), Bertie Foreman (Sussex, England young Lions), Martin Speight (Sussex, Durham), Jemima Spence (South East Stars)

Brief history Although the school was founded in 1849 and it is clear

that cricket was played not only when the school was at Shoreham but also at the Mansion House, there are no written records until 1858. That season therefore is the first season for which scores survive and players names available. In recent years the school has had success, winning the Woodard Schools Festival What sets the school apart? Hurstpierpoint were once said to have the longest square in the country, so large it is now two separate grounds. Finest moment on the field Winning the National Schools T20 in 2015

Recent progress The girls’ programme continues to go from strength to strength, with more pupils than ever participating across the whole school.

Future plans They are developing links with local schools to ensure more and more children have the opportunity to be involved Tours South Africa 2025

JOHN LYON SCHOOL

Middle Rd, Harrow HA2 0HN

Established 1876

Number of pupils 850

Head of cricket Chris Peploe

Professional Chris Peploe (Middlesex)

Teams Boys: 14 teams: U12-U19.

Girls’: Five teams: U12-U14

Girls’ cricket John Lyon are hugely proud that every girl joining the school has access to playing, training and outstanding coaching. They have ﬁve teams from U12-U14 this year with regular weekly cricket training, with opportunities to play in competitive matches. Last season the school took 12 girls on a ﬁrst-ever girls’ cricket tour to Hampshire

Fixtures There are over 115 ﬁxtures including MCC during their cricket week

Facilities They have three cricket squares, one astroturf wicket and three indoor nets

Club/county a liation Their a liation with Harrow Borough, who use the facilities to play matches, provides opportunities for state

school cricket

Best prospect Rhian Chohan represents Middlesex CCC at U15s, he is a keeper-batter, who made his debut for the 1st XI as a year seven Cricketers of note Kabir Toor (Middlesex CCC & England U18), Ali Fraser (Middlesex CCC & Essex CCC)

Brief history Angus Fraser coached at the school for two years and assisted the U14s in winning the Lord Taverners. The school began touring the UK in 1990 before their ﬁrst major biennial tour to South Africa which has now spanned over 20 years What sets the school apart? They

are proud of their achievements as a relatively small school. They are not driven by results as the school’s philosophy is based on the beneﬁts of the co-existence of cricket within the educational setting

Finest moment on the ﬁeld Kesavan Gunaseelan and Kushal Sumaria both took hat-tricks this season for the 1st XI and the U13s respectively. The school was ﬁnalists in the 1st XI Middlesex Cup in 2022 after being holders in 2019 & 2021

Recent progress The number of students participating in the game and the growing opportunities not just to practice but play in and represent the school in competitive matches

What has changed in the last 10 years? The introduction of a cricket week allows the 1st XI to experience the longer format, the week has extended to include ﬁxtures for all age groups. They have also added a yearly pre-season tour

Future plans The school is in the process of renovating the sports pavilion and have invested in a new scoreboard which links up with Play-Cricket

KIMBOLTON

Kimbolton House, Kimbolton, Huntingdon PE28 0EA

Established 1600

Number of pupils 750

MEET THE PROFESSIONAL

Head of cricket Matt Gilbert

Professional Alex Tudor Teams Boys: 1st XI, 2nd XI, U15AB, U14AB, U13ABC, U12AB; Girls: 1st XI, U15AB, U14AB, U13AB, U12AB Girls’ cricket Last season, fixtures across all ages became the norm for the first time. Teams now enjoy six to eight fixtures per season. Squads at U12,U13,U14 and U15 have been representing the school in soft and hard-ball formats. Training is available for girls regularly throughout the winter season

Fixtures Kimbolton play 250 ﬁxtures

The future of Kimbolton College cricket looks Taylor made… Yes, siblings Jess and Zac Taylor are the jewels in the Cambridgeshire school’s set-up, run by former England fast bowler Alex Tudor. Jess is in Year 11, and has been selected for the London and East Region Women’s Emerging Player Programme. She has represented Cambridgeshire at under-15 and under-18 levels. She is a ﬁne batter, wicketkeeper and can bowl Mike Procter-style inswingers.

Zac is in Year 10. He opens or goes in at No.3. “He scored his ﬁrst hundred for Eaton Socon CC last summer, and I think it will be the ﬁrst of many,” says Tudor. “He is the best male batter in the school, he also keeps well, like his sister,

including against MCC and XL Club. The 1st XI also features in an annual festival with Monmouth School, Victoria College Jersey and New Hall School. Oundle School, The Leys School, The Perse School and Oakham School are examples of regular opponents across both ﬁxture cards seasonally

Facilities They have four indoor nets, eight outdoor artiﬁcial nets, two covered grass squares with pavilions, four artiﬁcial strips, four full roll-out Flix wickets and three bowling machines, one a Merlyn machine. Club/county a liation

The school has links with Northamptonshire

CCC, Cricket East and Kimbolton CC

colleges. The appointment of Jack Hobbs in the 1930s as the school’s cricket professional had a profoundly positive impact on Kimbolton School cricket. Hobbs scored his ﬁnal century in the Sta v Pupils cricket match in the late 1940s. The girls’ 1st XI played their debut ﬁxture v Stamford School in 2022

What sets the school apart? The school’s 1st XI square includes the beautiful backdrop of Kimbolton Castle

Best prospect Jess Taylor and Sam Tuke-Hastings represent Hunts County U14 squads; Elliot Cory (U15) has already earned 1st XI honours as a legspinner

Cricketers of note Tom Huggins (Northants)

Finest moment on the field Joshua Smith made a school-record 11 centuries in 2018. A five-wicket haul for Daisy Smith and 60 runs for Alex Wiper became the first honoursboard entries for the girls’ teams

Recent progress

The school now ﬁelds 11 regular representative boys’ XIs and nine girls’ XIs, the latter being a major move forward for the school, with a full girls’ ﬁxture card in place

Brief history In the early part of the 20th century, regular matches were played against University of Cambridge

and can bowl. They are both pretty talented! Their mum played badminton for England, and their dad is a good club cricketer.”

Tudor is also focusing on the school’s batting, as a whole.

“The circuit we are on is strong, with Bedford, Stowe and Oakham, but we do well. It’s not all about winning, though. It’s about developing, learning and above all enjoying it, and we tick all these boxes.

“Since I have been here, working with Mr Gilbert, the bowling and ﬁelding has been strong, but I’ve been trying to get the youngsters to bat longer. They see T20, and people like Jos Buttler doing scoops and ramps. My pupils try it too. I say to them, ‘Look, he’s played that shot 1,000 times. I don’t mind you playing it, but make sure you have runs on the board ﬁrst.’

“We’ve some good youngsters coming

Future plans

Kimbolton plan to improve facilities and the quality of playing surfaces, while continuing to establish the girls’ representative programme

Tours Netherlands (2025)

through. They look as if they want to bat longer. Cricket is their main sport. We do sessions with four or ﬁve youngsters at a time, helping them to read the length better and hit a lot of balls, against bowling machines. I’ve also been getting them to sweep. You don’t see a lot of sweeping in school cricket, but it’s a good option against spin... to rotate the strike, or as a boundary option. Hopefully it will become second nature in matches.

“I was lucky enough to play with Andy Flower at Essex. I remember him playing a one-dayer against Gloucestershire. I think he scored 130 not out. He kept sweeping, and reversesweeping, and Martyn Ball and Ian Fisher didn’t know where to bowl. Andy’s manipulation of the ﬁeld was a masterclass.”

The ﬁrst Test in Pakistan has just ﬁnished. “I’m just glad I did not have to bowl in Multan,” he jokes, after watching England rack up 800-plus. With that, ‘Tudes’ is o to take a girls’ cricket session. It’s a Friday afternoon in winter, but the weekend can wait.

Alex Tudor Professional

KING EDWARD VI SCHOOL, SOUTHAMPTON // KING EDWARD’S SCHOOL, BIRMINGHAM

KING EDWARD VI SCHOOL, SOUTHAMPTON

Wilton Rd, Southampton SO15 5UQ

Established 1553

Number of pupils 970

Head of cricket Alex Penn

Alex Penn Head of cricket

Professional Gregor McKenzie, Nancy Harman

Teams Boys: 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, U15ABC, U14ABC, U13ABC, U12ABC; Girls: 1st XI, 2nd XI, U15AB, U14AB, U13ABCD, U12ABCD

Girls’ cricket It has been running at King Edwards for five seasons. Now, 14 teams play a mixture of hard and soft-ball cricket. In 2023, the 1st XI reached the last 16 of the National Cup and both U14 and U13 sides made it through to the 2024 county final last summer. In addition, U13 and U15 teams were successful in the ECB Indoor competitions over last winter, with the U13s reaching the County Final at the Utilita Bowl Fixtures The school plays approximately 130, with games

KING EDWARD’S SCHOOL, BIRMINGHAM

Edgbaston Park Road, Birmingham, West Midlands, B15 2UA

Established 1552

Number of pupils N/A

Master in charge Lawson Rolle

Professional Nathan Round Teams 15 boys’ teams

Fixtures The school played 122 fixtures last season, against schools including Shrewsbury, Repton and Malvern College, with games also against MCC and county age-group teams.

Facilities The school has three junior grass pitches, a three-lane junior astroturf net setup, an indoor sports hall with cricket-specific flooring and lighting with four net lanes, an indoor sports hall with four lanes, a 1st XI ground with four lanes of highspecification astroturf flooring and four grass nets.

Club/county affiliation They work with local state primary and secondary foundation schools to ensure they benefit from free use of KES’s pitches and coaching expertise,

against Churchers College, MCC, Charterhouse, Canford, Seaford College, Winchester College, Blundells and Dauntsey’s Facilities The main school site has a grass square with two cage nets and four newly resurfaced outdoor all-weather nets, as well as four indoor nets

Club/county affiliation King Edward VI School is the official education partner for Hampshire CCC. County girls’ programmes and local clubs use the facilities in pre-season

Best prospect Ben Mayes is on Hampshire’s academy, where he is a top-order batter, seamer and occasional wicketkeeper Cricketers of note Joe Weatherley, Jimmy Gray (both Hampshire), Simon Francis, John Francis (both Hampshire and Somerset)

Cultural cricketers Sir Edward Penley Abraham (biochemist), Stephen Hammond MP, Iain Percy (GB Sailing), General Sir Gordon Messenger (Vice Chief of Defence Staff)

What sets the school apart? Girls

bringing cricket to close to 5,000 children. Twelve state primaries have used KES facilities in the last two years. Many of those children attend inner city Birmingham schools with limited or no playing space or coaches available. They have also developed a partnership with a partner Foundation school, King Edward VI Balaam Wood Academy, bringing in

at the school have exactly the same opportunities and access to top-class facilities, equipment, high level coaching and comprehensive fixture list as their male counterparts

Finest moment on the field

The U15 side put in a superb team performance, beating eventual national champions King’s College Taunton at home in the 2023 ESCA T20 National Cup competition Recent progress They have more than doubled participation

groups of 15 students over a threeweek period.

Best prospect Eddie Miller, a lefthanded batter and off-spinner, has attended U15 Bunbury trials.

Cricketers of note Anurag Singh (Warwickshire, Worcestershire, Nottinghamshire), Mark Wagh (Warwickshire, Nottinghamshire), Vikram Bannerjee (Gloucestershire)

throughout the summer term to include 15 boys teams and 14 girls teams in 2024. The school has also developed community links, now an MCC Southampton Hub and host of the Wicketz programmes Future plans In 2025, King Edward’s are going to be joining a new tournament with Pocklington School, Reigate Grammar School and Blundell’s School at 1st XI standard (boys and girls), as well as U15 boys and girls

Tours Sri Lanka (2024)

Brief history KES has had a cricket team since 1863, when eight matches were played. Since the late 1870s, 1st XI matches have been played at Eastern Road, which is still the 1st XI square.

Cultural cricketers JRR Tolkien (author), Lee Child (author) and Ravin Jain (f1 strategist) Finest moment on the field The school won the XL Club Trophy in 2015, were national U13 runners-up in 2015 and reached regional finals in 2021 and 2024.

Recent progress The school used its inset day in April to give a valuable insight for the 11 cricket support staff the knowledge and ability to ensure continuity between years and teams that means core themes run throughout the cricket programme. Future plans King Edward’s has established a partnership with Warwickshire County Cricket Club and the King Edward’s Foundation, which includes 14 schools spanning both independent and state sectors. This collaboration aims to enhance current facilities and introduce new initiatives across Birmingham. Tours Dubai (2026)

TOP 100 SENIOR SCHOOLS KING EDWARD’S WITLEY

U14ABC, U13ABCDE, U12A; Girls: 1st XI, U17A, U15ABC, U14ABC, U13ABC

Girls’ cricket All girls’ A teams play hardball 11-a-side cricket, with B and C teams playing softball pairs

KING EDWARD’S WITLEY

Petworth Rd, Wormley, Godalming GU8 5SG

Established 1553

Number of pupils 475

Head of cricket Rikki Clarke

Professional Rikki Clarke

Teams Boys: 1st XI, 2nd XI, U15AB,

MEET THE HEAD OF CRICKET

Rikki Clarke took nearly 600 catches as a professional cricketer, so it’s no surprise to hear that he has the youngsters at King Edward’s School, Witley, working hard on that aspect of their game.

The allrounder, who played two Tests and 20 ODIs for England, took slip catches for fun for Surrey, Derbyshire and Warwickshire from 2002–21.

Fixtures A total of 140 fixtures were booked in for 2024. Notable fixtures for the boys are cup competitions at county and national level for all age-groups. The 1st XI face MCC, XL Club and National T20 fixtures. Other fixtures of note are against Whitgift, Cranleigh, St John’s Leatherhead and the ACE Programme. Girls play in the U15 Surrey League competition, as well as entering county competitions at all age groups. Notable fixtures come against St George’s Weybridge,

“While it’s fair to say not all my team-mates enjoyed fielding, I always loved it,” he told The Cricketer. “So I do like testing the boys and girls. We get the bowling machine out, I hold the bat and we get the edges flying. I also like to see them diving and sliding. Of course, we focus on batting and bowling, but fielding is important too.”

Clarke, 43, joined the school in Godalming,

Guildford High and Kingston Grammar

Facilities King Edward’s Witley have a four-lane indoor facility with bowling machines and six outdoor astro nets with grass wickets on the square with the use of cages. They also have the option of local cricket clubs if required and currently have four fixtures booked in for Surrey Women and pathway teams Club/county affiliation The school has links with Surrey and Chiddingfold Cricket Club Best prospect Tom Harrison was recently selected for Middlesex at U15 level. A talented spin bowler, he has been playing for the 1st XI since the

Surrey, as soon as his return spell at The Oval came to an end after the 2021 season.

“Our focus has been to really build up the cricket programme. We have more teams now, 21, for boys and girls with C, D and even E sides. The girls’ A teams are playing with a hard ball. The girls’ under-14s reached the quarter-finals of the county cup, which was fantastic, and the under-13s were runners-up in the T20 softball competition.

“The girls have been a bit more successful, but the boys are progressing too. In recent years we have had 80 fixtures, this season we had 122. The boys and girls are also getting into the county set-ups. We have had two under-16 lads – Will Cook and Myles Haarhoff – training with Hampshire, and Tom Harrison spent the winter with Middlesex and then was leading

age of 13 Brief history From 1913 until it was decommissioned in 1997, the KES Witley XI played annual matches versus the crew of the Royal Yacht Britannia. The prize is rather unique in that the holders of the Cup would own ‘The Ancient Glove’. The glove itself belonged to Queen Victoria after she left it behind during one of her Royal Visits on the yacht in the 1800s. Despite the KES Witley 1st XI losing the final-ever match in 1997, the glove was gifted to the school in gratitude for the 80+ years the fixture was played. It is now housed in the pavilion

Cultural cricketers Du’aine Ladejo (Olympic 400m runner) What sets the school apart? All girls are encouraged to try hard-ball cricket when arriving at the school Recent progress Many teachers with little knowledge of cricket have progressed considerably to running sessions themselves and being part of the full cricket programme Tours Cape Town 2025

wicket-taker last summer. That is brilliant for us, because we have never been that sort of school where cricket is the main focus. We have big plans this winter too. Surrey Women also want to play here, so it’s exciting times for us.”

Clarke says he does not miss playing professionally. “I played as long as I could. I wanted to go out on a high which I think I did with a particularly good year in 2019. I wanted to play T20s, but Surrey went for the younger lads, and the 50-over game was difficult for us as we lost a lot of players to The Hundred in 2021. I was 40 and this was a tremendous opportunity. I had talked with the (PCA) players’ union about what I wanted to do, and it was always teaching, and my friends/former team-mates Chris Adams, Keith Medlycott and Martin Bicknell told me it was a good life. I still watch county cricket, though, and am proud to be an honorary life member of Surrey.”

He still plays in the Legends League in India, as well as running his Rikki Clarke Cricket Academy.

Rikki Clarke Head of cricket

TOP 100 SENIOR SCHOOLS

KING’S COLLEGE SCHOOL, WIMBLEDON

Southside, Wimbledon Common, London SW19 4TT

Established 1829

Number of pupils 1,219

Head of cricket Tom Gwynne

Professional Ian Tabor

Teams Boys: 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, 4th XI, U15ABC, U14ABCD, U13ABCDEF, U12ABCDEF

Girls’ cricket The school has a girls’ cricket group, while the top-ability girls also play in boys’ senior teams

Fixtures The school plays 262, including against MCC, Alumni XI, Free Foresters and a southernhemisphere touring side. Key school

KING’S COLLEGE TAUNTON

South Rd, Taunton TA1 3LA

Established 1880

Number of pupils 450

Head of cricket Rob Woodman

Director of Sport Pixie Foad

Professional Keith Parsons

Teams Boys: 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, 4th XI, U17, U15ABC, U14AB; Girls: 1st XI, 2nd XI, U15AB Girls’ cricket

The school’s girls’ cricket provision is growing, with four senior teams and eight in the prep school

Fixtures The school arranges 100 fixtures, including against MCC, Exeter University, Cardiff University, as well as the Army and Royal Marines

Facilities The senior school site has six grass cricket pitches, an indoor purpose-built cricket centre which is used for sessions all year round and boasts three lanes, long run ups and a state-of-the-art training facility, three bowling machines, four all weather astro-turf outdoor nets

and four portable cricket nets Club/county affiliation The school is part of the MCC Cricket Foundation programme and also has strong links with Somerset CCC. They are also involved in outreach, offering coaching and facility use to local primary schools. They enjoy

KING’S COLLEGE SCHOOL, WIMBLEDON

fixtures are against RGS Guildford, Dulwich College and Hampton

Facilities The school has 13 nets – 10 indoor, three outdoor – as well as two roll-on cages, two bowling machines, throwdown nets and three grounds Club/county affiliation The school has 22 partner schools and local clubs with whom it works

Best prospect Adam Fox is a keeperbatter on Surrey’s books Cricketers of note Charles Absolom (Kent, England), George Hillyard (Leicestershire, Middlesex), Tom Bokenham Reddick (Nottinghamshire), Donald Walker (Hampshire), Dudley Owen-Thomas (Surrey), Andrew Bredin (Sussex), Rehan Alikhan (Sussex, Surrey), Marcus Wight (Gloucestershire)

Brief history Cricket has been played at King’s since 1883 when the school, then located on the Strand in central London, leased its first pitch at Wormwood scrubs. As early as the 1830s, however, pupils began to form their own cricket clubs, playing at The Oval and Lord’s cricket ground. Following the school’s move to Wimbledon in 1897, the abundance of outdoor space allowed cricket to

a link with Taunton St Andrews Cricket Club – a mutual partnership and support of local youth cricket, sharing of facilities and equipment throughout the year

Best prospect Erin Vukusic plays for Western Storm and has captained Croatia

flourish; regular fixtures were soon held against schools such as UCS, Merchant Taylors’ and Whitgift. In the 1970s and ‘80s, the 1st XI was coached by former Hampshire professional Reginald Dare. In 1989 the school team took part in the Sir Garfield Sobers tournament in Barbados and more recently the school has run successful tours to Sri Lanka and the UAE

Cultural cricketers William Henry Preece (inventor), Marcus Mumford (musician)

Finest moment on the field The U15A team became double county champions in 2022, winning the Surrey ESCA T20 and Natwest County Cup

Recent progress The introduction of a live streaming platform has increased reach and allowed more family, friends and alumni to stay in touch with cricket at the school

Future plans A new ‘Life at 25’ initiative at the school has sparked a renewed relationship with the alumni community. Former pupils are encouraged to engage in the cricket programme and come back into school to be positive role models Tours UAE (2024)

Cricketers of note Jos Buttler (Lancashire, England), Tom Banton (Somerset, England), Neil Brand (South Africa Test captain), Will Smeed, James Rew, George Thomas, Josh Thomas (Somerset)

Brief history Cricket has always been at the forefront of King’s culture and traditions. Boys and girls from seven to 18 play cricket across the school at a variety of levels. The school has been a MCC Foundation Hub for over 10 years. It also has a long-standing relationship with Somerset County Cricket Club, with many pupils going on to play firstclass cricket

What sets the school apart? They are a national hub for cricket and also host one of the biggest cricket festivals in the UK

Finest moment on the field

The school were 2023 national champions for both the U15 and U18 T20 competitions

Recent progress The school has seen a significant increase in standard from the girls’ section in the last 12 months

Tom Gwynne Head of cricket

TOP 100 SENIOR SCHOOLS LANCING COLLEGE

summer training programmes, as well as playing matches in the summer Fixtures Boys’ teams play roughly 15 matches each, while the girls’ sides all play eight games

LANCING COLLEGE

College, Lancing BN15 0RW

Established 1848

Number of pupils 600

Director of cricket Raj Maru

Professional Michael Gould Teams Boys: 1st XI, 2nd XI, U15AB, U14AB, mixed XI; Girls: Senior Girls XI, U15, U14

Girls’ cricket Lancing run winter and

MEET THE DIRECTOR OF CRICKET

Lancing College believe they have a “responsibility” to produce professional cricketers from their programme.

The school’s director of cricket, Raj Maru, said: “We all have a responsibility as cricket coaches and schools in this country to provide our national team with cricketers.

Facilities Lancing have a four-lane indoor sports hall and six astro nets outdoors plus the hockey astro pitch, which is used in the summer for younger teams. There are four cricket squares at the school Club/county a liation Lancing College work with the Sussex Cricket Board (Chance to Shine) and host a state Primary Lancing Tournament Best prospect U15 allrounder Alex McGuinness is on Sussex’s pathway; U17 Emma Saunders is involved in the Sussex Women set-up

“In ﬁrst-class counties, 75% of professional cricketers come from the independent structure because with the facilities, the coaching structure and the ﬁxtures they play, they’re the ones who get the most opportunities to come through and play. So it is that responsibility we have to try and provide for our national team to play Test cricket.”

Cricketers of note Mason Crane (Hampshire, Glamorgan, England), Alice Capsey (Surrey, South East Stars, England), Tim Head (Sussex)

Brief history Cricket at Lancing dates back to 1857, where the earliest team was captained by G Woodard, the son of Lancing founder Nathaniel Woodard. Cricket has since become one of the most popular and successful sports at the school. They recently celebrated their 175th anniversary, and cricket is o ered as a main sport choice to both boys and girls in the summer term. In recent years, groups of Lancing

cricketers have been lucky enough to tour South Africa, playing against local teams and receiving specialist training, as well as going on safari and seeing the stunning scenery

Cultural cricketers Sir Tim Rice (lyricist)

What sets the school apart? Set in the heart of the South Downs, pupils play, practice and host matches amongst amazing surroundings. Lancing College is supported greatly by the Lancing Rovers team. The school groundsta are aided by invaluable support and advice from former Hampshire groundsman Nigel Grey

Finest moment on the ﬁeld Lancing Rovers won the Cricketer Cup in 2019

It is hard to argue with the school’s recent results as Glamorgan leg-spinner Mason Crane and England batter Alice Capsey have both graduated from Lancing’s cricket programme since Maru started at the school 16 years ago.

Both cases revealed how Lancing helps nurture and support their more talented players by exposing them to the highest level possible while they are at the school.

On Crane, Maru, said: “We used to work two to three times a week in the winter together. He then went on a cricket tour at Easter to South Africa with the seniors while still in third form (year nine) and he was our best bowler on tour.”

While Capsey came to the school on a sports scholarship via Lancing’s Prep School Academy.

Recent progress

The introduction of girls’ cricket to the programme has been a major positive. They also o er the Lancing College Prep Schools (School of Excellence) Academy

Future plans The school are looking at developing a MCC Hub programme for state schools in partnership with Sussex and Hampshire Cricket Boards Tours Barbados (2025)

“On her 1st XI debut against Ti n School, she kept wicket for the ﬁrst hour, she bowled o -spin and got three wickets for nothing and then she batted at No.4 and got 30 to win us the game,” he said.

Despite the academic pressure and Saturday school at Lancing, they maintain the traditional culture of cricket by ensuring their players are still exposed to plenty of cricket.

Maru explained: “The culture of cricket in the independent sector has been massive and the expectation was in the old days that the ﬁrst team would play all-day cricket on a Saturday and then short form midweek, followed up with festival or Cricket Week which would be four days of cricket.

“We’ve tried to carry that on with the times. It is di cult to play all-day cricket because we are still a Saturday school and with academic pressures now, it’s getting tougher and tougher to get the children to play all their cricket, but we managed to play a couple of Saturdays and we have a cricket week.”

Raj Maru Director of cricket

TOP 100 SENIOR SCHOOLS

LATYMER UPPER SCHOOL

King St, London W6 9LR

Established 1624

Number of pupils 1,400

Head of cricket

George Tidey

Head of girls’ cricket Mike Benson Professional Ben Taylor Teams 48 teams in total, from Year 3 to Year 13, including a mixture of boys’ teams, girls’ teams and mixed teams

Girls’ cricket Last season, history was made when Latymer Upper fielded their first-ever 1st XI girls’ cricket team. This has been backed up this year by extending the 1st XI girls’ fixture list. They also have a dedicated head of girls’ cricket and co-ed block fixtures on Saturdays. Fixtures The school schedules around 180 matches, including one against MCC.

Facilities The school has four outdoor astroturf nets, with one bowling machine; the ﬁve indoor nets include two more bowling machines; there are also three cage nets to be wheeled onto grass squares.

Wood Lane Playing Fields host three cricket squares.

Club/county a liation Lancing College work with the Sussex Cricket Board (Chance to Shine) and host a state Primary Lancing Tournament.

Best prospect Surrey 1st XI Women’s player and current Year 13, Charlotte Stubbs.

Cricketers of note Simon Hughes (Middlesex), Stuart Stoneman (Derbyshire, Middlesex), Molly BarbourSmith (Scotland Women’s U19 in 2023)

Brief history Cricket has been a hugely popular and integral part of Latymer’s sports programme since the school was established. Such is the love of the game amongst Latymerians, that in the 1930s alumni dug out and laid their own pitch by hand at Whitton Park playing ﬁelds.

Cultural cricketers Hugh Grant (actor), Alan Rickman (actor), Mel Smith (comedian), Dom Waldouck (rugby)

What sets the school apart? Latymer’s support for cricket goes beyond their own pupils but also to pupils at local schools in the area who take part in enrichment programmes and use the school’s facilities.

Finest moment on the ﬁeld Lancing Rovers won the Cricketer Cup in 2019.

Recent progress Over the past 12 months, they have grown their enrichment programmes, o ering cricket to more children in the local area.

Future plans Latymer have recently taken over the leasehold for their new sports ground at Chiswick (formerly the Quintin Hogg Memorial Ground) and are developing the cricket pitches at the site.

Tours Sri Lanka (2025)

LORD WANDSWORTH COLLEGE

Long Sutton, Hook RG29 1TA

Established 1923

Number of pupils 705

Head of cricket Jack Malden

Professional David Beven

Teams 23 teams in total, from U12 to U18, across boys’ and Girls’ cricket Girls’ cricket The school o ers girls’ cricket from U12 level, where softball cricket is played, all the way up to 1st XI level.

Fixtures The school plays 228 in total – 127 for boys, 101 for girls, including two 1st XI ﬁxtures (boys and girls) against MCC on the same day. They are played simultaneously to signiﬁcant support from the school.

Facilities The school has 10 grass nets, nine astro nets and four indoor nets, as well as ﬁve main grass squares, three artiﬁcial squares and two softball pitches.

Club/county a liation The school are title sponsors of Odiham and Greywell Cricket club, sponsoring and therefore funding all junior kit. Lead coaches of age-group cricket are within the sta body.

Best prospect Bella Mitchell is a seam-bowling allrounder who scored 107 against Hurstpierpoint College. She captains the girls’ 1st XI.

Cricketers of note Alec Stewart (Surrey, England), Michael Bates (Hampshire, Somerset), Keith Wheatley (Hampshire), Finty Trussler (Southern Vipers), Gemma Lane (Western Storm)

Brief history Cricket at Lord Wandsworth is epitomised by the abundant and beautiful green surroundings in which the pitches sit. Cricket is a main sport in the summer

term and sits as the jewel in the crown. Girls’ cricket has thrived since its move to a major team sport in 2017. The school has produced several Hampshire U18 players and Southern Vipers in the last decade.

What sets the school apart?

Hampshire Women play at LWC, as do representative age-group teams for Hampshire and Southern Vipers, respectively.

Finest moment on the ﬁeld Henry Wood smashed 100 in 44 balls in the quarter-ﬁnal of the Hampshire cup against Churchers College with a large proportion of the team unable to play due to a Duke of Edinburgh trip happening at the same time!

Recent progress The development of younger players has been key to the success at LWC. The addition of Michael Bates has given the school the rarity of a specialist wicketkeeping coach.

Future plans They are looking to place a dome over grass nets to allow for use all year round, thus improving the cricket facilities and allowing for better winter development.

Tours Barbados (2025/26)

George Tidey Head of cricket

MAGDALEN COLLEGE SCHOOL

Cowley Pl, Oxford OX4 1DZ

Established 1480

Number of pupils 960

Head of cricket Chris Boyle, Daniel Trick becoming head of cricket in 2024/25

Professional Alan Duncan Teams Boys: 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, U15ABC, U14ABC, U13ABC, U12ABC; Girls: Girls XI

Girls’ cricket A girls’ team is offered for those who join the school in the sixth form

Fixtures The school plays 160 fixtures per year, including against MCC

Facilities The school benefits from a five-lane indoor facility with five BOLA bowling machines and a Merlyn; outdoors, there are five grass nets. They also possess four artificial nets and three grounds, which feature six squares Club/county affiliation The school has links with Oxfordshire CCC and Sussex CCC, Aston Rowant CC, Oxford CC and Wolvercote CC

Best prospect Julian Laird and Arthur Hanson are part of the Sussex Academy. Teddy Purushothaman is currently part of Northants’ EPP Programme Cricketers of note David Ligertwood (Durham, Surrey), John Martin (Somerset), Francis Roberts (Gloucestershire), Arthur Roberts (Gloucestershire) and

MALVERN COLLEGE

College Rd, Malvern WR14 3DF

Established 1865

Number of pupils 650 Master in charge Noel Brett Professional George Rhodes Teams Boys: 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, U15ABC, U14ABC; Girls: 1st XI, U15, U14

Girls’ cricket The school’s girls’ programme is growing by the year. Fixtures Shrewsbury, Tonbridge, Harrow, Repton, Wellington, Bradfield and MCC feature on a fixture list that sees the 1st XI play approximately 20 games.

Facilities The school has an indoor facility with eight net-lanes, while they also possess six outdoor artificial nets and 10 grass nets.

Leicestershire), Ricardo Ellcock (Worcestershire, Middlesex), Josh Baker (Worcestershire), Ollie Cox (Worcestershire), Rehaan Edavalath (Worcestershire), Tommy Boorman (Gloucestershire), Archie Bailey (Gloucestershire)

Brief history The Senior Turf at Malvern is spectacular. Matches were played within 18 months of the school’s foundation in 1865. Players included the seven Foster brothers, who dominated Malvern cricket from 1889. All played for Worcestershire, but RE ‘Tip’ Foster was the most outstanding, and is still remembered for his innings of 287 for England at Sydney on the 1903/04 tour to Australia, his Test match debut. Cultural cricketers Lord MacLaurin of Knebworth (ex-ECB CEO)

(Gloucestershire, Somerset), Tom Scriven (Hampshire, Leicestershire), Ollie and Tom Price (Gloucestershire), James Coles (Sussex)

Brief history Founded in 1480 by William Waynflete, Magdalen College School was initially set up as a school of the university and quickly became established as one of the leading centres of learning in Europe. In 1894 the school acquired the playing fields now known as School Field. A unique island setting, accessed by two listed white bridges. The cricket ground is considered one of the most picturesque in England, with the backdrop of punts on the Cherwell, the Botanic Gardens, Magdalen tower and the dreaming spires beyond Cultural cricketers

Sam Mendes (film director), Jim Rosenthal (sports presenter), Nigel Starmer-Smith (rugby) What sets the school apart?

School Field being an island, makes it one of the more iconic grounds in the country, set within walking distance of the city centre

Finest moment on the field

Three pupils made their first-class debuts in the same month (August 2020) for three different counties – Hampshire, Gloucestershire and Sussex

Future plans Hybrid wickets on the main square to aid with training and high number of matches being played Tours Sri Lanka (2026)

Club/county affiliation They have close links with Worcestershire CCC, whose first team use the indoor centre at the school.

Best prospect JT Langridge, who plays for Somerset academy, played for Somerset in the One-Day Cup when he was in the lower sixth.

Cricketers of note RE ‘Tip’ Foster (Worcestershire, England), Jack Haynes (Nottinghamshire), Tom Kohler-Cadmore (Worcestershire, Yorkshire, Somerset), David Nash (England A, Middlesex), Ben Twohig (Worcestershire), Alex Milton (Worcestershire), Mark Hardinges (Gloucestershire, Essex), Roger Tolchard (England,

What sets the school apart? Old Malvernians have won the Cricketer Cup the second-most amount of times, behind Tonbridge.

Finest moment on the field 1st XI won the National T20 in 2019 and 2021. The 1st XI were unbeaten against school opposition during the 2012 season, winning 12 games in succession.

Recent progress The school has employed a new cricket professional, and female staff have been taking coaching courses to help with the increasing numbers in girls’ cricket. Future plans Cricket is at the forefront of outreach plans put in place by a new school management team. Tours UAE (2025)

Octavius Radcliffe

TOP 100 SENIOR SCHOOLS

MANCHESTER GRAMMAR SCHOOL

Old Hall Ln, Manchester M13 0XT

Established 1515

Number of pupils 1,394

Director of Sport Mike Watkinson Teams Boys: 1st XI, 2nd XI, U17, U16, U15AB, U14AB, U13ABC, U12AB, U11ABCD, U10ABCD, U9ABCD, U8ABCD, plus development teams

Fixtures Each A team plays around 30 ﬁxtures a year – most notable ﬁxtures are against Shrewsbury, Sedbergh, Trent College and an

MARLBOROUGH COLLEGE

Bath Rd, Marlborough SN8 1PA

Established 1843

Number of pupils 1,014

Master in charge Mike Bush

Professional Uzi Qureshi Teams Boys: Five U18 teams, three U16 teams, four U15 teams, ﬁve U14 Teams; four girls’ teams, U17 cup team

Girls’ cricket More than 60 girls play at the school, with a fixture schedule including Shrewsbury, Rugby, Bradfield, Cheltenham and St Edward’s. Fixtures In 2024, 198 fixtures were scheduled across all teams, including 22 matches for the boys’ XI and 16 for the girls’ XI. The two-day Marlborough/Rugby match is played in the final week of term.

Facilities The school has 11 grounds, 19 artiﬁcial nets, three cages and four bowling machines, a new covered

annual ﬁxture against MCC.

Facilities A state-of-theart, purpose-built sports hall was opened in 2015 by former pupil Michael Atherton. The hall has four nets. There are three grass spaces (1st XI, intermediate and Junior), six grass practice pictures and four outdoor artiﬁcial practice nets, two astro pitches. Extensive covering for all outdoor pictures

Club/county a liation The school has strong links with Lancashire and Cheshire, with several pupils part of the academy schemes at both counties

Best prospect The Flinto brothers,

training facility, and a sports hall with ﬁve indoor nets.

Club/county a liation The school has strong links with Marlborough CC, Burbage CC, Swindon CC and Avebury CC locally,

Best prospect Leg-spinner Henry Welch took 41 wickets at 13.15 in 2024. He also played for both Oxfordshire and Sussex’s 2nd XI.

Cricketers of note A.G. Steel (England), R.H. Spooner (England), Mike Gri th (Sussex), Billy Mead (Kent), Robbie Williams (Middlesex, Leicestershire).

Brief history

Founded in 1843, the ground was levelled out by boys in the early 1850s. The Marlborough/Rugby match was a regular ﬁxture at Lord’s between 1855 & 1972.

Cultural cricketers

Siegfried Sassoon (poet), Jack Whitehall (comedian), Hugh Pym (journalist), Christopher Martin-Jenkins (cricket journalist) What sets the school

Rocky and Corey, are both students at the school

Cricketers of note Michael Atherton (Lancashire, England), John Crawley (Lancashire, Hampshire, England), David Green (Lancashire, Gloucestershire), Mark Crawley (Lancashire, Nottinghamshire), Gary Yates (Lancashire), Mark Chilton (Lancashire), George Bell (Lancashire), Scott Richardson (Yorkshire and Leicestershire), Lee Marland (Lancashire)

Brief history Academic sta and specialist coaches have helped develop the skills of sportsmen since the school moved out from the cramped city centre to a new site in Fallowﬁeld, surrounded by pitches,

during the 1930s

Cultural cricketers Herbert Toft (rugby union), Robert Crawshaw (Olympic water polo), Douglas Lowe (Olympic athlete)

What sets the school apart?

The school does not o er any scholarships for sport, they don’t recruit or chase youngsters. Diversity of sport and opportunities for all remain the focus of their sporting programme

Finest moment on the ﬁeld The school were U15 national champions in 2015 and national ﬁnalists at U13 and U18 level in 2023

Recent progress The school is most proud of its increased participation, along with achievements of teams and individuals. Watched by his father at the Kia Oval, Rocky Flinto made his ﬁrst-class debut for Lancashire at 16, having also become the county’s youngest second-team centurion earlier in the summer. He also fell 12 runs short of a century in the One-Day Cup against Middlesex at Old Tra ord

Future plans Plans are in place for a new £10m cricket pavilion and sixth-form centre

apart? Marlborough hosts an annual Wiltshire NCCA 50-over match and the England Over-50s. It hosted the three-day Women’s Ashes warmup game between Australia and England Academy in 2019.

Finest moment on the ﬁeld They won 46 times against Rugby at Lord’s between 1862 and 2017, winning the John Harvey Cup and the two-day Rugby ﬁxture in both 2023 and 2024. Recent progress The boys’ XI won both the John Harvey Cup and the two-day match against Rugby for the second successive season. The

girls’ XI also won their match against Rugby, and the junior colts 1st XI won the U15 Clark Williams Festival for the third time in four years.

Future plans The east side of the main pavilion is being converted into a function suite that will include girls’ honours boards and a dedicated girls’ changing facility. What has changed in the last 10 years? Alongside the evolution of the girls’ programme, there has been an advancement in shorter formats and improvement of facilities.

Tours India (2025-26)

Mike Watkinson Director of sport

MERCHANT TAYLORS’ SCHOOL, NORTHWOOD

Sandy Lodge, Moor Park, Northwood, Herts HA6 2HT

Established 1561

Number of pupils 950 Director of cricket Ian McGowan

Teams Boys: 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, 4th XI, U15ABCD, U14ABCDE, U13ABC, U12AB

Fixtures The school has traditional Saturday block fixtures, fielding teams from Year 7 to Year 13 every weekend of the summer term

Facilities The school has 12 cricket squares and in the last five seasons has proudly hosted Cricket Australia, England, India, Ireland and Sri Lanka. In January, they opened a new centre of cricketing excellence, a purposebuilt, five-lane indoor cricket facility. Middlesex train regularly at the school, including in a purpose-built marquee over grass wickets that give players the opportunity to train outdoors from early March Club/county affiliation The school

MEET THE DIRECTOR OF CRICKET

Many schools can boast good links to county cricket clubs – but few would argue theirs are stronger than those shared between Merchant Taylors’ and Middlesex CCC.

is the official home of Middlesex Youth Cricket and also hosts the IAPS U11 Festival of Cricket, as well as the Lamb Trophy U10 Festival of Cricket. Best prospect Pansilu, a batting allrounder, plays for the 1st XI and U17 XI. As well as a prominent player in the Middlesex Academy, he has made several appearances for the Middlesex 2nd XI

Cricketers of note Ravi Patel (Middlesex)

Brief history The first reference to cricket at the school occurs in 1819, and in the 1840s they played matches at The Oval against rivals and neighbours St Paul’s and Charterhouse. By 1858, cricket had become permanently established as a school game. In 1933, the school moved to its present location at Sandy Lodge

Cultural cricketers Conn Iggulden

The school’s brand new Julian Hill Cricket Centre is Middlesex’s base for indoor training, giving pupils real experience of seeing the dayto-day life of a professional cricketer up close. And they’ll soon be able to count an old boy among those inspiring them too, after school 1st XI captain Aaryan Sawant became the first Merchant Taylors’ cricketer to pen a professional contract with the county since Ravi Patel more than a decade ago.

“For us, it’s a very important link,” says director of cricket Ian McGowan. “It provides young, aspiring cricketers with the opportunity to see their heroes train and the hard work that goes in as they can look up to them on a daily basis.

(novelist), Mehdi Hasan (journalist), Riz Ahmed (actor)

What sets the school apart?

The new five-lane indoor centre of cricketing excellence is a huge selling point. The school also regularly hosts professional cricket, whether that be in the Blast or County Championship for Middlesex CCC Finest moment on the field They were U17 National Cup winners in 2017 and U18 National T20 finalists in both 2017 and 2018.

Recent progress The school programme has grown by 80 pupils this summer by introducing a soft-ball cricket programme to sit alongside

“Those links we have with coaches and being the Home to Middlesex Youth Cricket really put us at the centre of the hotbed of cricketing talent in North-West London.”

And that’s translated into success on the pitch, with the 2024 season being one of the best in recent memory for the school’s 1st XI.

They won 15 of the 18 games played over the course of the season and reached the semi-finals of the National Schools T20 competition.

The cup run featured impressive victories in the London area final, with Pansilu Wijesinghe and Sawant scoring 79 and 72 respectively out of a total 214 for 3.

This performance was followed by the SouthEast regional final, where a fine team display saw Merchant Taylors’ successfully defend their score of 148 to reach the national semi-final for the third time in the last six seasons.

Good traditional Saturday fixture wins were

the hardball performance cricket side Future plans This season alone, Merchant Taylors’ have hosted over 20 primary and prep schools in the Lamb Trophy Festival and an U11 IAPS Festival of Cricket. So, they hope, through the indoor centre, to offer similar indoor opportunities this winter

What has changed in the last 10 years? The decision to move the school’s U15 tour from Spain to the UAE has afforded more pupils the opportunity of touring through cricket

Tours Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Sri Lanka (2024)

recorded on all but one weekend, showing that their focus hasn’t moved entirely to the shortened format games. In addition to the traditional competitive fixtures Merchant Taylors’ are proud that the sport continues to grow at the school with over 350 pupils playing cricket in the summer term. These numbers included a new soft ball initiative that provided the opportunity to over 70 Lower School pupils to play the sport for the very first time.

Merchant Taylors’ is now transitioning to a single entry point for pupils at 11, which McGowan believes will further benefit the cricket programme in years to come.

That will build on a solid heritage of achievement further down the age groups - the U14s won the Middlesex Cup in 2024 and now represent the school in the Lord’s Taverners’ National U15 Competition next season.

“It’s going to allow us a whole seven years of development with every pupil through the school,” says McGowan.

“We’re going to be able to offer a long-term cricketing education alongside a highly selective academic education.”

Ian McGowan Director of cricket

MILLFIELD SCHOOL

Millﬁeld, Street, Somerset BA16 0YD

Established 1935

Number of pupils 1,280

Director of cricket Mark Garaway

Professionals Henry Hunt, Tim Simmonite, Sam Braid, Ste an Jones, Lewis Hatchett

Teams 15 hardball teams; two softball teams

Girls’ cricket 60-plus girls play over the course of the year, and the school run four girls’ squads, with ﬁxtures against MCC, Somerset U15 and U18s and Wales U17

Fixtures The school’s ﬁxture list includes games against Worcestershire’s academy, Gloucestershire’s academy, MCC, Glamorgan’s academy, Wales U14-U17, Hampshire’s academy, Hampshire U14-U17, Somerset U14-U17 and Cornwall U14-U15

Facilities The school has a state-ofthe-art indoor centre with ﬁve lanes, Pitchvision technology throughout, a ﬁelding area with 4G grass, and throwing and bowling walls with

NEW HALL SCHOOL

The Avenue, Boreham, Chelmsford, Essex CM3 3HS

Established 1642

Number of pupils 1,350

Head of cricket Eddie Ballard (Bedfordshire)

Professionals Ravi Bopara, Nasser Hussain (Essex & England)

Teams Boys: 1st XI, 2nd XI, U17, U15AB, U14AB, U13AB, U12AB; Girls: U17, U15, U14, U13AB, U12A Girls’ cricket Girls’ cricket is available to all years, with the number of players always increasing. They held their ﬁrst-ever girls’ tour to Norfolk in 2024 and next year are taking them to Dubai and Abu Dhabi

Fixtures They play 180 ﬁxtures, including against MCC, a two-day game against Bedford Modern and touring Australian schools each year

Facilities New Hall has some of the most beautiful cricket facilities in the area, their main ground, Six Acres, is a fantastic place to play cricket and also hosts four artiﬁcial nets. They also have three further cricket pitches. The sports centre holds four

speed radars. There are also five grass nets and a four-bay outdoor artificial net bay Club/county a liation Millfield have associations with 27 counties, states, and national governing bodies. Best prospect Caleb Falconer is a Middlesex academy allrounder, Louie Lawrence is on Sussex’s academy, and Noah Lewis-Jones bowls leg-spin at Somerset

lanes of indoor nets to be able to o er maximum cricket through the winter Club/county a liation They have strong links with Essex CCC and maintain relationships with local clubs to help students when they are looking to further their cricket. The school also has a close charitable

Cricketers of note Ian Ward (Surrey, Sussex, England), Paul Terry (Hampshire & England), Kieron Powell (West Indies), Tom Maynard (Glamorgan, Surrey), Simon Jones (England), Craig Kieswetter (Somerset, England), Ben Hollioake (Surrey, England)

Cultural cricketers Nick Brothers (GB Hockey), Ian Haley (South Africa hockey), Pete Wilson (Olympic Gold

relationship with local primary school

Messing

Best prospect Archie Tebbutt is a promising allrounder, currently representing Essex Cricketers of note Ben Allison (Essex, Worcestershire)

Brief history Cricket at New Hall

Medallist), Henry Thomas (England rugby), JPR Williams (Wales & British Lions rugby)

What sets the school apart? The school has superb match and practice facilities – their grass pitches among some of the best in world cricket. The indoor facility o ers a variety of cricketing challenges and conditions Finest moment on the ﬁeld They completed the National Cup Triple Crowns of 2016 and 2018

Recent progress The school’s Student Coach Education Programme has developed several ECB Foundation One and core coaches over the past two years Future plans They have built relationships with both the Spin Academy (working with former England spin bowling coach Peter Such) and PaceLab (with their pace bowling coach, Ste an Jones) who will be running their programmes out of Millﬁeld

What has changed in the last 10 years? The Student Coach Education Programme has helped players of all experience levels to deepen their passion and impact within the game Tours Oman (2025)

is increasing every year, with girls’ cricket now becoming huge, allowing the school to compete across the board

What sets the school apart? Their facilities are some of the best in the county and, because of this, Essex CCC want to become more involved with the school to utilise these. Boys’ and girls’ academies run throughout the winter for certain pupils, with Nasser Hussain, Ravi Bopara and Ben Allison assisting with the programme

Finest moment on the ﬁeld In 2024, the U13 girls were runners-up at the ISA, while the U13 boys and U15 girls were ISA champions. The U14 Boys were also County Cup winners

Recent progress They have added two new indoor nets, plus the addition of two new bowling machines

Future plans They hope to increase the number of nets again in 2025; they are set to host a Community Cup for local state schools

What has changed in the last 10 years? Their biggest change has been in girls’ cricket, where they are now able to compete well against other schools

Tours Dubai, Abu Dhabi (2025)

TOP 100 SENIOR SCHOOLS

NEWCASTLEUNDER-LYME SCHOOL

Mount Pleasant, Newcastle-under-Lyme, Sta ordshire ST5 1DB

Established 1874

Number of pupils 867

1874 and the first recorded fixtures within The FireFly (the o cial school magazine) were against Silverdale CC & Whitmore CC in 1880. However, cricket fixtures must have taken place before this Cultural cricketers Roger Johnson (journalist), Dan Robson (rugby)

Master in charge Jason Brown

Professional Charles Harrison

Teams Boys: 1st XI, 2nd XI, U17, U16, U15A, U14A, U13AB, U12AB; Girls: U15A, U14A, U13AB, U12AB

Girls’ cricket Cricket is the main sport for girls in the summer term, with an extensive fixture list which involves both a mixture of hardball and soft-ball fixtures against local schools within the region. The U17 girls entered the 100-ball competition, narrowly losing to Shrewsbury in the second round. Girls have also been incorporated into the winter cricket programme, benefitting from technical sessions from both Brown and Harrison Fixtures The school plays 155 fixtures, against schools including Shrewsbury, King Edward’s Birmingham, Cheadle Hulme and King’s Macclesfield

Facilities The school has installed four new cricket lanes in the sports hall, complete with new 10-metre matting, two bowling machines and a specialised Junior BOLA machine. Outside, they have ﬁve artiﬁcial nets, three squares across two grounds and a further three junior pitches Club/county a liation The school has links with Sta ordshire County Cricket Board and Whitmore CC

What sets the school apart? The school regularly reach the latter stages of the county competitions at all age-groups and produce a number of male and female cricketers who represent Sta ordshire, Warwickshire, Derbyshire, Shropshire and Worcestershire

Finest moment on the ﬁeld The 1st XI reached the regional ﬁnal of the HMC National U19 T20 competition in 2017, only to be defeated by Shrewsbury

Recent progress In the last 12 months, there has been great development on the coaching provisions at the school. An U15 tour to Dubai was a great success Future plans The introduction of a new S&C suite has provided pupils with the framework for injury-free cricket, with a focus on improving performance What has changed in the last 10 years? The number of pupils being selected for county squads has hit an all-time high. Establishing club links has also been vitally important

NORWICH SCHOOL

71a The Close, Norwich NR1 4DD

It took 80 cartloads of soil to level the ground that is still played on today

Cultural cricketers Lord Blake, Lord Ashcroft

Established 1547

Number of pupils 930

Head of cricket Andrew Wylie Professional Alﬁe Cooper Teams Boys: 1st XI, 2nd XI, 15AB, 14ABC,13ABCD,12ABC and 10 lower school teams; Girls: 1st XI, 2nd XI, 15A, 14AB 13ABC, 12ABC and 7 lower school teams

What sets the school apart?

Best prospect Fran Callwood won the Women’s Indoor World Cup with England, while Ryan Roberts plays for Nottinghamshire at under-18 level

Cricketers of note John Ward (Derbyshire), Grace Potts (Central Sparks)

Tours Sri Lanka (2025)

Brief history Newcastle High School was formed in

Girls’ cricket There are 125 girls involved on Norwich’s cricket programme, with a thriving ﬁxture list Fixtures There are approximately 240 ﬁxtures across boys’ and girls’ teams, including against MCC Facilities They have two main cricket facilities: Lower Close is the main ground and, o -site, Redmayne Sports Fields holds six pitches and a pavilion. There are also 12 Grass nets, nine Astro nets and one Astro middle wicket, as well as a two-lane purposebuilt indoor cricket Club/county a liation The school has links with links with Norfolk Cricket Board

Best prospect Lewis Reeder is on Northants’ academy and is a Bunbury player, while India Rose-Fox is part of the Sunrisers training group Cricketers of note George Walker (Leicestershire, Derbyshire), Clive Radley (Middlesex, England)

Brief history Cricket was ﬁrst played at the Lower Close in around 1862 when the school was able to lease a meadow from the Dean and Chapter.

Norwich School is the home of the Norwich MCC Foundation Hub, providing excellent facilities, coaching and ﬁxtures for cricketers from local state schools. Joe Wells (formerly of Kent and father of HG Wells) was the cricket master from 1873-75. The school cricket team is reported to have had two very good seasons during his time there

Finest moment on the ﬁeld

Matthew Plater scored 200 not out in the ﬁnal of the 2012 U14 Norfolk Bunbury Cup T20 competition. More recently, the girls’ 1st XI reached the last eight of the National U18 competition in 2023, the U17 boys doing the same in 2024

Recent progress The number of girls playing has increased dramatically, leading to an annual ﬁxture against MCC

Future plans There are plans to use senior cricketers in taster sessions with state schools, where they o er coaching and cricket experiences to pupils not always able to access the game

What has changed in the last 10 years? Recent success for both boys and girls has ignited an interest across the school, while opportunities to travel and play opposition further aﬁeld is a prospect that the school relishes

Tours South Africa (2024)

Jason Brown Master in charge

OAKHAM SCHOOL

Chapel Close, Market Pl, Oakham LE15 6DT

Established 1584

Number of pupils 1,080

Director of cricket Patrick Latham

Professional Tom Fell

Teams Boys: 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, 4th XI, 5th XI, U15AB, U14AB; Girls: 1st XI, Academy, U15AB

Girls’ cricket Is o ered across the school, and as well as senior sides, they also ﬁeld A and B teams at under-13 level

Fixtures The school plays between 160 and 180 ﬁxtures per year

Facilities The school has four indoor nets, six home grounds (all grass), two pavilions, access to full-time S&C coaching with a new gym facility coming, 14-lane astro nets, and three Dream Netting facilities on a grass

practice square devoted to cricket Club/county a liation The school has links with Leicestershire CCC. The Rutland Learning Trust sees their coaches o er year-round coaching and matches for the U12 local primary school

Best prospect Harry Latham (U13) is involved in the Leicestershire pathway

Cricketers of note Stuart Broad (Notts, Leicestershire, England), Lyndon James (Notts), Lucy Pearson (England), Tom Fell (Worcestershire), Josh Cobb (Northamptonshire, Worcestershire Rapids, Welsh Fire), Matthew Boyce (Leicestershire), Alex Wyatt (Leicestershire), Stefan Kelly (Bermuda)

OUNDLE SCHOOL

Church St, Oundle, Peterborough PE8 4EE

Established 1556

Number of pupils 1,130

Head of cricket David Foster Professional Malcolm Roberts

Teams Boys: 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, 4th XI, 5th XI, U16ABC, U15ABCD, U14ABCD, U13ABCDE; Girls: 1st XI, U15AB, U14A, U13ABCDEF Girls’ cricket Girls have a full cricket programme, equivalent of the boys’, including winter training from October through to Easter. Girls are

Brief history The ﬁrst recorded cricket match was against local rivals Uppingham School in 1815. Oakham won the match and cricket has since gone from strength to strength with pupils regularly representing their county and country Cultural cricketers Tom

given the choice of whether to play, once they reach Year 9

Fixtures The school plays around 250 ﬁxtures per year, including against MCC

Facilities They have nine grass squares, with the ability to play eight matches all at once, 10 grass nets and 10 outdoor astro nets. Indoors, there are two sports centres, one with four indoor nets and the other with space to play two indoor matches side-byside. They have also started to utilise two of their four hockey astros for training matches, since girls’ numbers caused a boom in participation. They have three pace bowling machines

Croft (Tigers, Lions, England rugby), Matthew Macfadyen (Actor), Alex Goode (England rugby), Hamish Watson (Scotland rugby), Lewis Moody (Tigers, Lions, England rugby), Miles Jupp (Actor) What sets the school apart? Leicestershire have played Championship and one-day matches at the school

Finest moment on the ﬁeld On the ﬁeld in 2024, after defeat in the 50over game against Uppingham early in the season, the boys’ 1st XI went back to beat them in the National T20 Cup

and one Merlyn Club/county a liation They are o cial partners of Northamptonshire

CCC, hosting many of their winter sessions and matches for all age groups in the summer. They also work closely with local club Oundle Town CC

Best prospect Ralph Hayward, Bertie Case and Alﬁe Wilson are all on Northants’ EPP

Cricketers of note Greg Smith (Leicestershire, Nottinghamshire), Will Je erson (Nottinghamshire, Essex, England A)

Brief history Cricket has been a major part of Oundle since 1830 when the ﬁrst match is thought to have been played, although the oldest full scorecard on record is from a game

Recent progress Appointing Tom Fell as head of cricket development was a major step forward. The development of the Rutland Learning Trust side to help support young cricketers in local primary schools has also been key

Future plans Growing a partnership with Leicestershire Women is a priority

What has changed in the last 10 years? Through appointments and investment, Oakham has demonstrated that there is huge support for the development of cricket in the school

against Uppingham in 1855. The school’s 1st XI squads are proudly on the walls of the JM Mills Pavilion dating back to 1877

Cultural cricketers Tom Harrison (ex-ECB CEO), Shaharyar Khan (ex-PCB chairman), Dave Walder (England rugby). Tom and Ben Curry (England rugby)

What sets the school apart? The school provides year-round support for performance squads with one-toone sessions

Finest moment on the ﬁeld Ralph Hayward broke the school record, which had stood since 1923, blasting his way to 269 not out in a total innings score of 418

Recent progress On the ﬁrst weekend of the season, despite the awful weather, they hosted 10 matches at home and got nearly every single pupil playing

Future plans They hope to upgrade the second pavilion for the next academic year

What has changed in the last 10 years? The girls’ 1st XI now play the majority of their matches on the main 1st XI square Tours Sri Lanka (2025)

TOP 100 SENIOR SCHOOLS QUEEN

QUEEN ETHELBURGA’S COLLEGIATE

Thorpe Underwood Estate, York YO26 9SS

Established 1912

Number of pupils 1,310

Master in charge Ben Gibbons Professional Shrikant Wagh

Teams Boys: 1st XI, 2nd XI, U17, U16, U15, U1, U13, U12AB, U11AB, U10AB; Girls: U16, U15, U14, U13 (softball/ hardball), U12 (softball), U11AB (softball), U10AB (softball)

Girls’ cricket Girls opted for cricket on the Performance Sport Pathway for the ﬁrst time in the 2023/24 academic year

Fixtures In 2024, there were 140 scheduled ﬁxtures in a 64-day term.

The number of September ﬁxtures doubled in 2024 and included

MEET THE MASTER IN CHARGE

One of the greatest pressures schools face is when to ﬁt in high quality competitive games – especially when inclement early season weather thwarts the ﬁxture list as was the case in 2024.

This isn’t a problem at Queen Ethelburga’s, where their ﬂoodlit ground means cricketers can play into the autumn.

matches at all age groups, including North Yorkshire Cup Finals and girls’ fixtures under floodlights for the first time. Notable fixtures include MCC, the Forty Club, Yorkshire Gentlemen’s CC, Northumberland U18s, Lincolnshire U16s, Derbyshire CCC U16s and Yorkshire CCC U14s

Facilities There are two indoor cricket nets, four outdoor astroturf nets, two outdoor grass nets, two cricket squares (one ﬂoodlit), a main square that includes an astroturf wicket, one Flicx wicket, an S&C gym and a pool, sauna, steam room and ice-bath facility Club/county a liation

A cricket festival and sports and creative arts summer funday engaged several local primary schools

Best prospect Louis Wilson captains Yorkshire U15s Cricketers of note Finlay Bean, Dom Leech (both Yorkshire), Harry Crawshaw (Durham)

Brief history Queen Ethelburga’s School was formed in 1912 and the ﬁrst documented 1st XI ﬁxture was

“It’s one of our main USPs,” says lead cricket coach Ben Gibbons, whose charges also have access to a brand new pavilion too. “It’s di erent to other schools because we’ve got three months where our pupils go o and play club cricket but can then come back and get another full month out of their season.

“I ask them to embrace the opportunity. For our students who have experienced it for a few

on July 8, 1916. It was between the 1st XI and the o cers of the 2nd and 4th Battalion of Royal Norfolk – records suggest that QE won the game by 135 runs

What sets the school apart? The ability to host floodlit matches allows the cricket season to be extended with fixtures scheduled for early April and until the end of September each season Finest moment on the field The 1st XI won the inaugural U18 Regional T20 Plate Final (Yorkshire &

years it becomes natural, but I always go back to the point of how many other pupils don’t get to play ﬂoodlit cricket.

“A lot of the time we’re ﬁnding a lot of schools don’t seem to do cricket in September, whereas we’ve got competitive games against clubs and other representative sides going on right at the back end of the season.”

And that’s paid dividends too, with both the Under-14s boys and girls sides reaching North Yorkshire ﬁnals. A number of boys on the books of Yorkshire, Lancashire and Northumberland, while some girls on the programme are ﬁnding themselves in regional representative sides too - despite hardball games only having been introduced in the past year.

“With the girls, we now want to take it to the next step of thinking more about the game. They’re often really talented sportswomen

North-East Region) and the Emeriti Schools Cup in the space of three days at the end of the 2023 season

Recent progress A new cricket pavilion has been built on the main square, which provides changing rooms, an umpire’s room, honours boards and hospitality areas.

Pupils of Nigerian, Ukrainian, French, American, Russian, Fijian and Nepalese heritage have all represented the school in cricket ﬁxtures

Future plans They intend to run an ECB Foundation Coach and Core Coach Course for current pupils and any interested Old Ethelburgians What has changed in the last 10 years? The school has adapted its programme to recognise the changing shape of cricket’s formats

who excel at two or three sports, and their development is something we’re really pleased with.”

That commitment to excellence is taken seriously o the ﬁeld as well, with those on the school’s Performance Sport Programme getting access to cricket as part of their school day. Sessions are tailored to strength and conditioning, diet, matchday preparation, mental health and more.

But there’s also room for social players too, including those who don’t come from traditional cricketing nations.

“Our demographic of students in the school is a diverse international community,” says Gibbons with pride. “We’ve had a few success stories of students with Nepalese or Chinese parents who got involved through House events or other cricket activities and have now gone on to be regular cricketers in some form.

“There’s a deﬁnite end goal for every student, whether you want to play for Yorkshire or just recreationally.”

Ben Gibbons Master in charge

TOP 100 SENIOR SCHOOLS QUEEN’S COLLEGE,

QUEEN’S COLLEGE, TAUNTON

South Rd, Taunton TA1 3LA

Established 1843

Number of pupils 470

Head of cricket

Caroline Foster

Professionals

Karla Rose, Mark Davis, Piers McBride

Teams Boys: 1st XI, 2nd XI, U15A, U14A, U13A, U12A, U12/13B; Girls: 1st XI, U15A, U15B (softball), U13A, U13BC (softball) U12A, U12BC (softball)

Girls’ cricket Is thriving with a wellestablished ﬁxture card. Foster (nee Atkins) is a former World Cup winner with England, with whom she also won the Ashes. She is also currently an assistant coach for Birmingham Phoenix in the women’s Hundred Fixtures They play up to 130 ﬁxtures per year, including a match against MCC

Facilities The school has a fourlane sports hall for indoor nets, ﬁve artiﬁcial outdoor nets, two roll-on cages for grass wicket practice on one of nine cricket squares

RADLEY COLLEGE

Kennington Rd, Radley, Abingdon, Oxfordshire OX14 2HR

Established 1847

Number of pupils 770

Master in charge Simon Dalrymple Professional Andy Wagner

Teams Boys: 20 teams across four age-groups

Fixtures The 1st XI play in the John Harvey and Cowdrey Cups and big block ﬁxtures include Eton, Marlborough, Harrow and Tonbridge. Senior teams also play wandering sides including the South Oxfordshire Amateurs and the MCC

Facilities They have 10 grass squares, and train on eight box nets through the summer, in addition there are 26 astro nets outside and a ﬁve-lane net system in the sports hall

Best prospect Rory Wooster, Ben de Laszlo and Manny Lumsden are all in the Hampshire development programme. Arthur Sweeting and his younger brother

Will are in the Gloucestershire development pathway Cricketers of note Ted Dexter

Club/county a liation

Queen’s College hosts the U15 Broderick Tournament, named after former pupil

Florence Broderick, who put girls’ cricket on the map at the school over a decade ago

Best prospect Luca Slotje-Pick, Tom Pawley, Megan Clark and Leo Carpenter are all strong prospects

Cricketers of note James Langridge (England U19, Somerset), Fﬁon Hand (Ireland), Jake Lintott (Warwickshire), Matt Gitsham (Gloucestershire), Gary Palmer (Somerset)

Brief history The school’s 1st XI pictures date back to 1934 What sets the school apart? Queen’s are one of a few cricketing schools with a female head of cricket, who is a role model to both girls and boys, seeing more females lead in sport Finest moment on the ﬁeld The school were national champions of the Lord’s Taverners Colts Trophy in 1983, played at Edgbaston Recent progress They have launched a new Queen’s Cricket

Framework, as presented by Foster at the national conference for heads of cricket in schools at Lord’s in April 2024

Future plans The school are looking to expand their outreach work to enhance engagement with local primary schools by o ering coaching

visits ahead of the annual festival What has changed in the last 10 years? Facilities have been signiﬁcantly boosted. Girls’ cricket has been ﬁrmly established at Queen’s, and the pioneering festival has raised participation beyond their own population

(England), Sir Andrew Strauss (Middlesex, England), Ben Hutton (Middlesex), Robin MartinJenkins (Sussex), Jamie Dalrymple (Middlesex, England), Nick Gubbins (Middlesex, Hampshire)

Brief history Radley’s cricket tradition is a strong one. The sport was launched as an alternative for rowing in the early 1850s and the first recorded fixture was against Bradfield in 1853. Since then, there have been a number of ‘golden eras’

Cultural cricketers Peter Cook (comedian)

What sets the school apart? Wagner is

synonymous with Radley cricket and worked alongside Bert Robinson (who managed 51 consecutive seasons as cricket professional) for 30 years. They produced a string of unbeaten sides in the 1990s and

nurtured the likes of Martin-Jenkins, Strauss, Hutton and Dalrymple in that period. There was another strong crop of Gubbins, Wilf Marriott and Alex Hearne who were all selected to play for the same England Schools U15 side in 2009. After almost 40 seasons in charge of Radley cricket, ‘Wags’ will be part-time in 2024/25, before Billy Godleman replaces him Finest moment on the ﬁeld The 1999 side won nine out of 10 matches completed in timed cricket, taking 98 of a possible 100 wickets. Backto-back Cowdrey Cup triumphs in 2007/8 are the highlights of recent years

Recent progress 37 members of sta give up time to run cricket teams in the summer

Future plans They are looking into plans for a cricket-speciﬁc indoor facility and hope to work more closely with Oxfordshire cricket in the coming years

What has changed in the last 10 years? Maintaining playing numbers and the quantity and quality of block ﬁxtures has been a real achievement for the school Tours Zimbabwe (2026)

Caroline Foster Head of cricket

REED’S SCHOOL

Sandy Ln, Cobham KT11 2ES

Established 1813

Number of pupils 830

Master in charge Malcolm Dunn

Professional Keith Medlycott (Surrey)

Teams Boys: 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, 4th XI, U15ABC, U14ABCDE, U13ABCDE, U12ABCDE; Girls: 1st XI, 2nd XI

Girls’ cricket Girls only join Reed’s in the sixth form, but they played their first Old Reedonians girls’ match last summer, which demonstrated the popularity of the sport among the girls coming into the school.

Fixtures The school play approximately 220 matches, including against MCC

Facilities The school has two senior and two junior squares on site. At Bigside, the main cricket field, there is one hybrid wicket, and the ground also has a video scoreboard. The school also has a state-of-the-art indoor facility with five lanes and PitchVision analysis in all lanes, Merlyn and Trueman BOLA bowling

REIGATE GRAMMAR SCHOOL

Reigate Rd, Reigate, Surrey RH2 0QS

Established 1675

Number of pupils 1,128

Head of cricket Sophie Pout

Professional Amy Gordon

machines, plus four more bowling machines. Outdoors, there are six artificial net lanes, eight grass nets, two roll-on cages and two Flicx wickets. They also have use of two senior squares at Whiteley Village CC Club/county affiliations Rajasthan Royals Academy is linked to and based at the school

Best prospect Ben Choy is a left-arm spinner who exhibits great control of line and length

Cricketers of note Phil Salt (Sussex, Lancashire, England), Dan Douthwaite (Glamorgan), Oskar Kolk (Mashonaland Eagles)

Brief history Cricket has been played

MCC fixture

Fixtures The school plays 175 fixtures per year

at Cobham since the school arrived from Totnes just after the war. The wicket has always been a delight to bat on. The game grew in the 1960s under headmasters Bob Drayson and Rodney Exton

Cultural cricketers Tim Henman (tennis), Tom Hardy (actor), Michael Ball (singer) What sets the school apart? Surrey Women used to play home matches at Reed’s. The main ground was used by Surrey for training when the Test match was on at The Oval Finest moment on the field The 1st XI won the 50/40 League in 2014, 2015 and 2017. They have won the Surrey

Cup at U14 and U15 level for the past five seasons

Recent progress The school has appointed more coaches, with more pupils participating at the senior end of the school, meaning a comprehensive fixture list for 4th XI Future plans The school is planning a refurbishment of the grass nets and an extension of the square to provide middle practice. They also hope to redevelop the pavilion What has changed in the last 10 years? Cricket has become evermore popular, with more boys and girls playing and, therefore, more teams being fielded

Teams Boys: 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, 4th XI, U17B, U16B, U15AB, U14ABC, U13ABCD, U12ABCD; Girls hardball: 1st XI, U17A, U15A, U14A, U13AB, U12ABC; Girls softball: U15B, U14B, U13C, U12DE; Girls indoor: U15, U13 Girls’ cricket Girls have the same programme as boys and play block Saturday fixtures across eight weekends. The U15 and U18 teams compete in the School Sport Magazine T20 National Cup, while the U15A, U14A, U13A and U12A sides are in the Surrey Schools’ Cricket Association County Cups. Girls-only tours are organised for 2025 and 2028. The girls’ 1st XI face Surrey Foundation in a Friday-night T20 as their equivalent to the boys’

Facilities There are three squares at Hartswood Sports Grounds, with an astro pitch also capable of staging matches. They also host fixtures on hockey astros and Flicx wickets. There are six outdoor nets and two indoor net facilities in different sports halls Club/county affiliations The school has links with Surrey, South East Stars and Reigate CC

Best prospect Rosie Foster is a keeper-batter for South East Stars

EPP and Surrey Under-18s Cricketers of note Will Beer (Sussex)

Cultural cricketers Bill Frindall (scorer), David Walliams (comedian), Laurie Reed (Olympian), Keir Starmer (prime minister)

Finest moment on the field In September 2021, the U15A girls, having reached finals day of the National Cup, finished third having won their County Cup final earlier in the summer against a very talented Cranleigh side

Recent progress The school has continued the development of its girls’ cricket programme. The number

of participants wanting to access and experience the sport has also increased

Future plans A £12m sports centre with state-of-the-art net facilities has been approved and plans are underway at the school’s main site. The tea hut is also going to be extended

What has changed in the last 10 years? There is a buzz around cricket at Reigate Grammar School, with major facility developments planned on both sites that will offer more firstclass indoor nets to boost the already considerable facilities available.

Tours UAE, Sri Lanka (2026)

Sophie Pout Head of cricket

TOP 100 SENIOR SCHOOLS REPTON

REPTON SCHOOL

Willington Road, Repton, Derbyshire DE65 6FH

Established 1557

Number of pupils 630

MEET THE DIRECTOR OF CRICKET

For more than a decade, Martin Speight has been waking up at 5.45am, giving himself an hour to get to the sports hall and set up for another day’s coaching.

Master in charge Cameron Wake

Director of cricket Martin Speight Teams Boys: 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, U17, U15ABC, U14ABC; Girls: 1st XI, U15

Girls’ cricket The school were national 100-ball champions at U18 level in 2023 and were national T20 winners at under-15 level in the same year. Last summer, they won the under-15 national 100-ball tournament

Fixtures The school plays over 100 ﬁxtures in a year against schools including Shrewsbury, Malvern, Rugby, Stamford, Uppingham

Speight, who played professionally for Durham and Sussex, has become renowned since then as a coach. Among others, Harry Brook was under his tutelage at Sedbergh, where Speight spent 14 years.

And, while he is working now with Harry Moore, the 17-year-old named in England Lions’ winter training squad, at Repton, he insists that his greatest job satisfaction comes from the variety of ages and abilities sent his way.

“That is what I enjoy the most, watching young players develop through to whatever level they get to,” he said, “and then gradually over time

and MCC

Facilities The school has access to four grounds, ﬁve grass nets, 10 astro nets and two indoor sports halls. Club/county a liations The school has close links to Derbyshire CCC, using their indoor facilities once a week in the winter to run their Elite Player Performance Programme (EPP) training

Best prospect Harry Moore made his ﬁrst-class debut for Derbyshire last summer and has been picked on the England Lions tour of South Africa

Cricketers of note CB Fry, FSG Calthorpe, DB Carr (all England captains)

Cultural cricketers Jeremy Clarkson (journalist), Roald Dahl (author) What sets the school apart? Derbyshire’s second team play at the school. England Women used the facilities to prepare for the 2023 Ashes

Finest moment on the ﬁeld The school’s U18 girls won the 100-ball competition in 2023 and reached the national T20 ﬁnals in 2024

Brief history Repton has a rich cricketing history with three exEngland captains and 12 international players. Its most famous old boy being CB Fry who captained England at cricket, played professional football for Southampton and represented the Barbarians at rugby. In more recent years, Chris Adams won ﬁve Test caps for England. Harry Moore became the youngest-ever Derbyshire player at the age of 16 in the 2023 season and joined Yousaf Bin Naeem in signing professional deals in 2024

see them self-motivate into wanting to do more and more. If you get it right as a coach, they’ll buy into you and the sport, and once you have that, they’ll want to spend more and more time.

“My job isn’t about producing top players – they come along. My job is to inspire as many young people to want to play the game, so that when they leave school and head to university or their club, wherever they go in the world they can join a cricket club and they have a social life. If they have a social life, those cultural boundaries will dissolve because cricket is a common passion. That is my job.”

Before speaking to The Cricketer, for example, Speight had coached ﬁve pupils in Year 6 at 6.30am, with Moore coming in later that morning to get his bowling loads up ahead of three weeks in South Africa under Andrew

Recent progress They have continued to live-stream all 1st XI matches

Future plans There are plans for a new net block, with astro and grass nets, as well as plans for four hybrid pitches

What has changed in the last 10 years? The introduction of girls’ cricket in 2019 made a signiﬁcant di erence in giving Repton girls the opportunity to play competitive cricket against other schools in national competitions, and in doing so has helped their development and love of the game. Several of their girls are contracted academy players for The Blaze and Northern Diamonds Tours South Africa (2025)

Flinto ’s Lions group.

“As much as that is just talking and mentoring, it’s great because it’s not the same,” said Speight. “That diversity is what makes it fun for me, rather than being secluded in a very elite environment, where you’re trying to ﬁnd the next little minimum gain.

“When I ﬁrst saw Harry Brook, I knew he was very good on his legs and on the back foot, which for a young player are two of the key things for a batter. Everyone has been taught to hit a nice cover drive and a nice pull shot, but he was so good o his hips. Within a month of coaching him, I could see someone so committed to getting up early in the morning, putting the hours in, picking up things and translating them into improvement.

“Those little factors that you can’t deﬁne when you watch someone play is how coachable they are, how quickly they’ll pick up bits, what their ceiling is. Again, that is part of the fun of it – plenty of kids are 6ft 6in but can’t bowl like Harry Moore, but every now and then you get one that pops up.”

Martin Speight Director of cricket

TOP 100 SENIOR SCHOOLS ROYAL

ROYAL GRAMMAR SCHOOL, GUILDFORD

High St, Guildford, Surrey GU1 3BB

Established 1509

Head of cricket Richard Black

Director of cricket Matt Cussans

Teams Boys: 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, U15ABC, U14ABC, U13 ABCDEF. U12 ABCDEF

Fixtures The school plays block ﬁxtures against Trinity, Reed’s, KCS Wimbledon, Hurstpierpoint College, Abingdon, Cranleigh, St Paul’s, Hampton and St George’s Weybridge Facilities The school has 12 artiﬁcial

outdoor nets, ﬁve indoor nets and two wheel-on cages for grass practice sessions Club/county a liations The school has links with Surrey and a liations with Guildford CC and Wonersh CC. They also host the MCC Foundation. Best prospect Idris Iqbal, a promising 14-year-old left-arm seamer, is an exciting talent emerging from Surrey’s programme Cricketers of note Bob Willis (Surrey, Warwickshire, England)

Brief history The annual Royal Grammar School Festival is held on a rotational basis at all the Royal Grammar Schools in the country. Guildford have won this eight times in the last 17 years. In 2017 and 2019, the 1st XI toured Sri Lanka and in 2023 visited Dubai for the ﬁrst time Cultural cricketers Jack Cli ord (England rugby), Martin Tyler (sports commentator), Simon Bird (actor) What sets the school apart? According to historical records, it was documented in approximately 1552 that pupils were engaging in the game of cricket. This report is considered to be the earliest speciﬁc mention of the sport. Notably, David Frith,

the renowned cricket historian and writer who used to edit The Cricketer, supports this claim

Finest moment on the ﬁeld In recent times, the school won the RGS Cricket Festival in 2021

Recent progress The school’s team participation has reached unprecedented levels, ﬁelding more teams than ever. They engage in matches against girls’ schools, speciﬁcally Guildford High School and Sutton High School. Additionally, they have also participated in mixed matches alongside those same schools

Future plans They have ambitious plans to broaden o erings by establishing connections with additional local girls’ schools. By forging partnerships with those schools, they plan to forge a collaborative environment that promotes sportsmanship, skill development, and healthy competition. They also hope to continue hosting the MCC Foundation on-site

What has changed in the last 10 years? Facilities have been upgraded, and the school has increased its provision from 15 to 21 teams

Scholarships available with access to means-tested bursary funding up to 100% COMBINE YOUR PASSION FOR SPORT WITH AN

Jacob, 17, Rugby School

IT20 and ODI debuts for England Men vs Australia in September

TOP 100 SENIOR SCHOOLS RUGBY

RUGBY SCHOOL

Lawrence Sheri St, Rugby, Warwickshire CV22 5EH

Established 1567

Number of pupils 865

Master in charge Adam Pursell Director of cricket Michael Powell (Warwickshire)

Teams Boys: 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, 4th XI, 5th XI, U15ABC, U14ABC. Girls: 1st XI, 2nd XI, U15AB

Girls’ cricket There are two senior girls’ teams and two at U15 age group Fixtures There are 17 to 20 fixtures for the 1st XI, games every Saturday for all other teams and Rugby has played MCC for over 175 years, but the most notable fixture is the twoday match against Marlborough. A girls’ Marlborough fixture is also played between the two schools

Facilities Two sports centres with eight indoor lanes and bowling

MEET THE DIRECTOR OF CRICKET

machines, including one Merlyn and a Trueman, twelve grass nets, eight cricket pitches (two on the historic ‘Close’), two squares and a full practice square are stitched Club/county a liation Rugby have a “360” programme, where pupils obtain coaching qualiﬁcations and spend afternoons working with schools across the local community Best prospect Jordan Strydom (Northants CCC 2nd XI), Rory Grant (Scotland U19), Amu Surenkumar (Sunrisers Senior Women’s 1st team & England U19) & Niamh RobertsonJack (Scotland Women) Cricketers of note ER Wilson (Yorkshire & England), Plum Warner (Middlesex & England), Jacob Bethell (Warwickshire & England), Maia

The strapline “Rugby School: Birthplace of the Game, 1823” harks back to William Webb Ellis picking up the ball on The Close more than 200 years ago. But the cricket o ering at Rugby is staggering too, with eight squares available, all within 15 minutes’ walk of the school, many of them now installed with hybrid strips to aid durability both in matches and training.

It is all overseen by Michael Powell, the former Warwickshire captain. And after the core summer ﬁxture schedule for school teams, the hard work continues into the school holidays for administrators, groundsta and coaches. In 2024 Rugby hosted three of Warwickshire’s One-Day Cup matches, as well as boys’ and girls’ county age-group festivals.

“I spent years badgering Warwickshire, saying, ‘Please bring a game to us’,” said Powell.

Cultural cricketers Herbert Hayton Castens (ﬁrst South African rugby and cricket captain), Giles Clarke (fromer ECB chairman), William Yardley (dramatist), Rupert Brooke (poet)

Bouchier (England), RA Boddington (Lancashire), JL Bryan (Kent), MD Lyon, MM Walford (both Somerset), B Lyon (Gloucestershire), MA Eagar (Gloucestershire), Richard Montgomerie (Northamptonshire and Sussex)

Brief history Cricket has been played on The Close from the early 19th Century and scorebooks date back to 1831. The highlight from the 1830s to the 1850s was the Tall versus the Short. 5ft 6ins was the dividing point and records show they were competitive

“It’s been fantastic to see festival cricket played here in August, so many people sat around the boundary rope.”

Powell would also love to see Birmingham Bears play some Tier 1 women’s games on the ground in the new county era.

Even around those 2024 One-Day Cup commitments on the New Bigside pitch, Rugby put on two six-day age-group festivals in August.

“The festivals are run by Paul Greetham (Warwickshire high performance manager) and we support them, making full use of our boarding accommodation.

“We’ve hosted the boys’ festival for seven years now, barring 2020. It’s just great to see talented young players – like Rocky Flinto a few years ago – play on our grounds.

“We’re excited now to do the same for girls, with girls’ cricket at the school in a

What sets the school apart? The Rugby School XI wear ‘duck egg’ coloured shirts on the ﬁeld of play Finest moment on the ﬁeld The report from the 1979 Marlborough match read: “Rugby were left with 177 to make in 80 minutes; the captain, David Cutter, reached this target with a mighty six o the penultimate ball.” Recent progress The development of the Girls’ cricket programme has been remarkable, with over 50 girls choosing to play cricket What has changed in the last 10 years? Cricketers 10 years ago took part in squad sessions, whereas the individual programmes and coaching hours are now specialised Future plans The Primary School Sports Club engages Year 11,12 and 13s in delivering a cricket coaching club to local primary school children. For Warwickshire to host more cricket at Rugby Tours Dubai/Abu Dhabi (2025)

fantastic place.”

Rugby’s own track record of nurturing cricketers is clear from seeing Jacob Bethell and Maia Bouchier in England colours.

“Jacob was a real talent when he joined, straight from the Caribbean. We looked after him here for ﬁve years, but he put a lot of work in.

“There’s so many factors that can come in to a young person’s life after ﬁrst seeing a 12-yearold walk across the ﬁeld with his family. We’re starting to see what he’s capable of.”

Rugby continue to play Marlborough College in a two-day game stretching back in heritage to 1865 – now a ﬁxture contested by the girls too.

Powell ensures that the core skills of the game are not lost on young cricketers:

“Fundamentally, you look at any player, the foundation of their game is what allows them to go out and play T20 or 100-ball, the razzmatazz shots, all the change-ups. Jacob was a case in point. His foundations were superb.

“Those fundamentals allow bowlers to come back and bowl a third spell, for batters to learn to score hundreds and 200s.”

Michael Powell Director of cricket

SCARBOROUGH COLLEGE

Filey Rd, Scarborough, North Yorkshire YO11 3BA

Established 1898

Number of pupils 575

Head of cricket Piet Rinke (Zimbabwe)

Teams Boys: 1st XI and 2nd XI, eight Prep School and 12 boys’ teams Girls’ cricket There are nine girls’ teams

Fixtures There are 126 scheduled matches, most notably against Millﬁeld, Sedbergh and MCC. They enter eight cup competitions

Facilities There are two cricket pitches, an indoor training facility and partnerships with external clubs Club/county a liation The school have pupils in the county pathway structures, and the programme works to complement these structures. They have facilitated boys and girls to play club cricket to speed up their development by being exposed to senior cricket at an earlier age. They work with clubs, including Scarborough Cricket Club, Clifton

MEET THE HEAD OF CRICKET

While the England & Wales Cricket Board are at pains to stress the signiﬁcance of The Hundred among new fans, ticket-buyers and the TV audience, they would be wellserved giving greater attention to the impact on schools.

Alliance Cricket Club, Darlington

Railway Cricket Club, Folkton and Flixton Cricket Club, Malton Cricket Club, Wykeham Cricket Club, Ebberston Cricket Club, Brompton Cricket Club. Some coaches work at Scarborough Cricket Club, Harrogate Cricket Club and Wykeham Cricket Club

Best prospect Joe Thompson, a wicketkeeper/batter who made his debut for Yorkshire 2nd XI this year

Cricketers of note Chris Gilbert, David Byas, Simon Dennis (both Yorkshire), Richard Doughty (Gloucestershire)

Brief history As a Yorkshire school, Scarborough College has always been involved with cricket, producing some

At Scarborough College – Northern Superchargers are the nearest side – where Piet Rinke leads the delivery of cricket to pupils, there is a belief that the 100-ball competition has triggered an upturn of interest in girls’ cricket.

Launched two years ago, nine teams have exploded into life and already multiplied. And there has been immediate success, with two reaching the latter stages of the Sports Magazine National Cup.

Finest moment on the ﬁeld

Having children from noncricketing backgrounds pick up a bat and get into the sport

Recent progress

ﬁne cricketers and doing well at regional level

Cultural cricketers

Phillip Mann (author), Mark Precious (hockey), Wilf Proudfoot MP What sets the school apart? The point of di erence is that they create individuals who continue playing cricket after they leave their education journey, from recreational cricket to the professional setup but most importantly try to keep the game fun

“The fact that the girls go and watch it is the ﬁrst thing,” says Rinke, who played 18 one-day internationals for Zimbabwe. “The dynamics behind The Hundred are being short and sharp, and the appeal is that it is family orientated. You’re getting a day out where you’re watching the women followed by the men.

“Two games of cricket and whether you’re a fan of cricket or not you’re going to enjoy it and spend the three hours there at the games because of everything else that is going on around it.

“It is not just the cricket they are falling in love with. They’re watching more live cricket and they’re going to watch it more on TV. All of a sudden there is a bit more of a following behind it.”

The astronomical rise of girls’ cricket in the last two years resulted in national successes and the appointment of the school’s ﬁrst-ever director of Girls’ cricket

What has changed in the last 10 years? A Cricket Centre of Excellence was established four years ago which has propelled the school from a regional cricket school to an internationally recognised school with children from as far as Australia, the West Indies and South Africa attracted Future plans Following investment, a Multi-Use Games Area and outdoor nets facility are planned for the summer

Results on the ﬁeld are starting to mirror Scarborough’s commitment to girls cricket o it. Zoe Myler has been installed to oversee the teams, allowing a more structured environment and a greater attention to detail.

“Giving it the due care and attention that any programme whether it be boys or girls,” a proud Rinke added. “Two years ago, we decided to venture into girls’ cricket as well. This season we recently appointed a head of girls’ cricket, Zoe Myler who was fantastic. The amount of time and dedication she was able to put into it is what gets girls interested in it.

“It was a two-pronged pull. First it was giving the opportunities to participate and improve.

“And secondly I am a ﬁrm believer that The Hundred competition has been a massive driving force for getting women playing the game of cricket. They have got idols to look up to now. It is not just something we’ve been able to do ourselves.”

Piet Rinke Head of cricket

SEAFORD COLLEGE

The Drive, Petworth, West Sussex GU28 0NB

Established 1884

Number of pupils 960

Head of cricket Chris Adams (Derbyshire, Sussex, England)

Teams Boys: Seaford College have over 50 competitive teams with A-D teams from Year 5 through to Year 13. Girls: There are girls’ teams in all age groups

Girls’ cricket There is a full girls’ cricket programme as it is now one of the core summer sports. There are 10 girls currently in the county pathways

MEET THE HEAD OF CRICKET

Head of cricket Chris Adams has overseen cricket “taking o ” at Seaford College in terms of facilities and participation.

who receive specialist winter training on the Performance Programme

Fixtures The most notable ﬁxtures are against MCC Sussex Martlets

Facilities There are nine cricket grounds, two outdoor net facilities, two portable cages for grass net practice and six indoor nets. In 2024, a state-of-the-art ﬁve-lane net facility was opened which took the outdoor nets to a total of 15, the new area will be the performance centre for girls’ cricket

Club/county a liation Seaford have an a liation with Hampshire, Sussex and Surrey as well as Chichester CC, Middleton CC, Guildford CC, Petworth CC and West

Since the Championshipwinning Sussex captain took over, the school have increased their cricket pitches from three to nine which has allowed cricket at the school to keep up with the increased participation and made Seaford’s an “epic programme”.

The other improved element is the winter programme, which Adams admitted may have fallen behind other cricket-focused independent schools due to their sports hall doubling as an exam hall. The introduction of a “bespoke made” marquee has changed their winter programme.

He said: “We invested, with the school’s support, in a company to come in and bespoke

played on the 450 acres of parkland since. Old Sleafordians reminisce about playing with the mansion house in the background

Cultural cricketers Rob Andrew, Rob Henderson (both British & Irish Lions), Gareth Neame (producer), Tom Odell, Matthew Rose (singers), Toby Stephens (actor) and Anthony Buckeridge (author)

Chiltington CC

Best prospect Harry Walker and Fergus Kenyon are both fast bowlers in the Sussex Academy. Mollie Adams, a wicket-keeper batter and Lottie Curling, a bowling all-rounder, are both in the Southern Vipers Emerging Players programme Cricketers of note Jeremy Groome, Adrian Jones, Charlie Tear (all Sussex) and Luc Benkenstein (Essex)

What sets the school apart? The beautiful surroundings of Lavington Park and the inclusivity of their sporting ethos. They foster a love for learning cricket and encourage everyone to participate

Finest moment on the ﬁeld Their 1st XI were 2022 South East Regional National T20 ﬁnalists after beating St John’s, Crainleigh and Kent College before they lost to Hurstpierpoint

Brief history Seaford moved to Lavington Park in 1946 and have

build us a performance marquee.

“It’s got the height and covers the width of three of our outdoor astroturf cricket lanes. We were able to build in the correct lights so it’s an indoor performance centre that operates through the winter months from September through to the end of March.

“What I do is build a programme based on looking at the higher end of cricket talent at the school where we feel that we can make fast-track development progress for them to improve their cricket and those that are aspirational to play at the higher level can.”

In the summer term, the focus turns to participation, so more pupils are involved.

He added: “Our summer programme does change quite dramatically, and our participation levels are now very high which is great.”

There are now 54 teams representing the school which comes with its own challenges in

Recent progress The participation numbers across the boys’ and girls’ cricket programmes have continued to grow What has changed in the last 10 years?

The introduction of a full summer girls’ cricket programme from prep school to senior teams

Future plans The school hope to add a 10th cricket ground

terms of the facilities available and the school has reacted accordingly with the increase of pitches.

The girls’ programme has also received signiﬁcant investment with a state-of-theart, ﬁve-lane area which is designated to their programme only.

“I see the girls’ cricket programme being strong enough for all our girls to play in it. The concept of girls playing boys cricket will naturally come to an end because of the development of the girls’ programmes at schools such as ours.

“You want the girls having their stand-alone ﬁxture programme that’s going to satisfy every level.”

Seaford’s location is a blessing as they have a strong relationship with three counties, Hampshire, Sussex and Surrey, which are all close enough for the school to be a natural pathway.

It allows the school to have more pupils on academy contracts which, Adams believes are “everything that the professionals get without being paid” in terms of the strength and conditioning and o -ﬁeld support.

Chris Adams Head of cricket

SEDBERGH SCHOOL

Station Rd, Sedbergh LA10 5HG

Established 1525

Number of pupils 570

Head of cricket Jimmy Anyon (Sussex, Warwickshire)

Teams Boys: Eight teams. Girls: Five teams.

Girls’ cricket They look to mirror the boys’ programme with cup competitions, winter coaching and an end-of-season festival

Fixtures There were 145 ﬁxtures scheduled across boys’ and girls’ in 2024 with MCC and the BOWS festival the standout games on the calendar Facilities There are four cricket grounds, six artiﬁcial outdoor nets and six indoor nets across two sports halls Club/county a liation Cumbria Cricket use the Sedbergh indoor nets for their winter training programme

Best prospect Mahika Gaur, the leftarm seamer, has already represented England. While her control and ability to move the ball stand out, she is also extremely professional and hardworking

Cricketers of note Arthur

Lupton, Matthew Revis, George Hill (all Yorkshire), Harry Brook (Yorkshire & England), Charles Peat (Middlesex), Mandy MitchellInnes (Somerset & England), NAP Meadows (Wellington), SAB Daniels (Glamorgan), Jamie Harrison (Durham), Jordan Clark (Lancashire & Surrey), Tom Aspinwall (Lancashire), Becky Glen (Scotland), Ella Telford (Lancashire Thunder & Northern Diamonds), Mahika Gaur (Lancashire Thunder & England)

Brief history Cricket has been played at the school since the 1840s with

the picturesque Knowles Pavilion added in 1914. The biggest period of success was since the turn of the century with multiple under-18s and under-15s National T20 ﬁnals wins and appearances Cultural cricketers Will Greenwood, and Will Carling (both rugby) What sets the school apart? The 1st XI ground is one of the most beautiful in the country with the pavilion on a grass bank square with Winder Hill in the background. The surface o ers pace and bounce with Lancashire using it for a game every year

Finest moment on the ﬁeld The National T20 title win in 2017

Recent progress There were six teachers and coaches who took their ECB coaching qualiﬁcations this year which raised the standard of coaching at the prep and senior school What has changed in the last 10 years? The programme has expanded and there has been an increased uptake in girls’ cricket Future plans They are looking to host a winter house cricket competition and visit local schools to deliver sessions Tours Sri Lanka in February 2025

TOP 100 SENIOR SCHOOLS SHERBORNE

SHERBORNE SCHOOL

Abbey Rd, Sherborne, Dorset

DT9 3AP

Established 1550

Number of pupils 600

Master in charge Hugh Tatham

Professional Ryan Buckley (Durham)

Teams Boys: 13 teams, 1st XI-6th XI senior, U15 ABC, U14ABCD.

Girls: N/A

Girls’ cricket There is increased cooperation with their sister school Sherborne Girls to offer coaching and match opportunities to their best cricketers. In the last two years, girls have played in the 2nd XI and there have been competitive games against the girls

Fixtures Most teams play 10 block fixtures each against schools, including Marlborough, Millfield, Canford and King’s Taunton. There are also two declaration games against MCC and Free Foresters

MEET THE PROFESSIONAL

Sherborne School have built a cricket programme that caters for players of all abilities and believe they have struck a balance between supporting potential professionals and increasing participation across the school.

Facilities There are six grass wickets and one artificial surface, 11 grass nets, 14 astroturf nets and eight indoor nets across two sports halls

Club/county affiliation There is a longstanding link to Dorset Cricket which has been expanded in the last two years

Best prospect Fergus O’Connell, who is currently in the Sussex pathway, and JP Tatham, who is a Somerset academy bowler Cricketers of note Arthur Carr (Nottinghamshire) and David Sheppard (Sussex, both former England captains), Jimmy Adams (Hampshire), Ollie Sale (Somerset)

Brief history The first Sherborne side dates to 1846 while cricket was

The most important factor is their reshaped fixture list to ensure the opposition is big enough to provide matches at all levels.

Ryan Buckley, Sherborne’s cricket professional who played four first-class matches for Durham, said: “The biggest thing I’ve tried to change is growing that fixture card and not just taking the easy option of the local school around us.

“Keeping them in the programme because there are lots of boys’ schools in Dorset but it’s not just the first team, we’ve got 15 teams out

first played on ‘The Upper’ in 1856. The first half of the 20th century saw two future England captains, Arthur Carr and David Sheppard, in Sherborne colours

Cultural cricketers Alec Waugh and John Le Carre (both authors), John Le Mesurier (actor), Gen. David Leakey (‘Black Rod’ House of Commons), Chris Martin and Phil Harvey (Coldplay) What sets the

on a Saturday so we need schools that provide playing opportunities.”

This included bringing Millfield and King’s Taunton, two local schools with a great cricket set-up, back onto the Saturday fixture list.

school apart? The infamous match between Dorset and Cheshire when encouraged by his captain (Revd Andrew Wingfield-Digby) Dorset’s Graeme Calway bowled an over that cost 60 runs to encourage the Cheshire chase

Finest moment on the field They hosted their second Ruth Strauss Foundation cricket week last season with seven Sherborne teams involved Recent progress More pupils have recently got involved with coaching and umpiring

What has changed in the last 10 years? The huge growth in shortformat matches, often in coloured kit, has allowed them to stem the steady trickle of older boys away from cricket as public exams become ever more burdensome and time-consuming

proper cricket and we have a lot of boys who are aspiring professionals and they’ve got to see what first-class cricket looks like in terms of facilities.”

The next step for the school is having facilities that can cope with the increased playing and training opportunities. Sherborne has six grass squares and one astroturf wicket, 11 grass nets and 14 astroturf nets as well as eight indoor nets in two sports halls.

The school’s head groundsman has been in place for 18 months and his hard work has helped produce “fantastic cricket wickets”.

Buckley added: “We played a game last year where two of our boys were running in hitting the wicket hard and it was carrying through to the edge of the ring. It really did look like

The school is aware of the important part they play in a prospective professional’s young career: “We’re never going to curse somebody’s dream, we’re there to support it, guide them and nurture them on the way. We have a responsibility to ensure somebody has the chance.”

The new indoor facility has taken their offering from four indoor lanes with limited run-ups to now developing a bowlers-specific programme which combines senior and junior bowlers in the same sessions.

It is not just what happens on the pitch for Sherborne as the school looks to highlight the values of playing cricket beyond their time at school. This includes sitting opposite their opposition at lunch during their games to encourage the teams to socialise and mirror the social aspect which is more common in club cricket.

Ryan Buckley Professional

• 6-day a week programme all year round

• Performance and participation sessions that cater for cricket lovers of all abilities

• Links with Dorset, Hampshire, Somerset, Sussex and Wiltshire

• Full programme of fixtures for fourteen teams, including our Ruth Strauss Foundation Cricket Week

Sherbor ne | Dorset

admissions@sherbor ne.org | 01935 810403

TOP 100 SENIOR SCHOOLS

SHREWSBURY SCHOOL

Ashton Rd, Shrewsbury SY3 7BA

Established 1552

Number of pupils 828

Director of cricket Will Hughes Professional Adam Shantry (Northamptonshire, Warwickshire, Glamorgan)

Head of girls’ cricket

Lara Jones

Teams Boys: 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, U17, U16A, U15A, U15B, U14A, U14B. Girls: 1st XI, 2nd XI, U17, U15, U14 Girls’ cricket The girls’ 1st XI won the National 100 competition in 2021 and England seamer Issy Wong was at the school for ﬁve years

and Glamorgan

Facilities There are four cricket squares with an LED scoreboard capable of replays and two HD cameras for streaming. A state-ofthe-art four-lane indoor cricket centre, which was refurbished last year, has seven bowling machines Club/county a liation Worcestershire and Glamorgan use Shrewsbury as a base for satellite academies throughout the winter and the ECB prepare their England disability squads at the school Best prospect There are talented players in the U14 squad who represent the school development teams against U19 county opposition

Fixtures There are over 300 ﬁxtures in a full season, with festivals for boys and girls of all ages. School opposition includes Repton, Sedbergh, Millﬁeld, Eton and Malvern, while players are tested against Warwickshire, Worcestershire

Cricketers of note

Issy Wong (England, Birmingham Phoenix), James Taylor (England, Notts, Leics), Joe Leach and Ed Pollock (both Worcs), David Lloyd (Derbyshire, Glamorgan), Ed Barnard (Warks, Worcs), George Garrett (Kent, Warks), Theo Wylie (Warks &

MEET THE DIRECTOR OF CRICKET

Shrewsbury School has long been a key stop on the conveyer belt from Shropshire to Worcestershire.

This year came their latest startling success story as Year 13 Jack Home – who was primarily a batter earlier in his development – graduated from school and National Counties cricket to the Worcestershire team in the One-Day Cup. Not only that, he took 6 for 51 against Derbyshire –the best ﬁgures for Worcestershire in one-day cricket since Shoaib Akhtar in 2005.

England U19)

Brief history Shrewsbury has always been a haven for young cricketers, but the creation of the indoor centre in 2005 has been the catalyst for enormous progress

Cultural cricketers Charles Darwin (naturalist), Martin Rees (astronomer), Nick Hancock and Michael Palin (both broadcasters) What sets the school apart? The pupils are exposed to outdoor teambuilding exercises during the winter, with recent excursions including cli -jumping and canyoning Finest moment on the ﬁeld The U17 side retained the 2023 Cricket Paper Cup for the ﬁrst time in the

18-year-old. He’s a proper allrounder, even if he’s batting down the order for Worcestershire so far. His ceiling is still miles away.

“He have worked extensively with Paul Pridgeon and the Shropshire system, but also here with Adam Shantry and Dave Manning, who also worked with him in the Worcestershire academy.

“Jack was a good footballer too. I think he’s blessed with a resilient and slim physique that seems ideal for fast bowling.”

“It’s been an incredible pathway to the top,” said director of cricket Will Hughes. “Jack was more of a batter than a bowler.

“Now he’s being clocked at 90mph as an

Home and Theo Wylie of Warwickshire now take Shrewsbury’s tally to 13 ﬁrst-class cricketers in the last 16 years.

“We sat our U14 boys down the other day and said to them, ‘Five years ago to the day, Jack and Theo would have been sat in the very same spot

competition’s history

Recent progress Shrewsbury pupil Theo Wylie represented Warwickshire and England U19

What has changed in the last 10 years? The cricket provision is constantly evolving, with advances in technology, equipment, and coaching methodology all keeping pace with the changing nature of the sport, including the use of speed guns, automatic feeders, and range-hitting drills

Future plans More hybrid pitches are being planned to follow their successful introduction in 2024, while their outreach programme is still expanding Tours Cape Town 2025

as you, and they were no further ahead then than you are now. It’s all there for you if you put the work in’.”

In 2024 both 1st XIs were one win away from a Lord’s ﬁnals each: the boys lost to St Peter’s York in the HMC T20; and the girls missed out to Ipswich. The U15 boys made it to T20 ﬁnals day at Arundel.

Shrewsbury have contacts to die for, and eight coaches at Level 3 and above. The facilities now include three hybrid wickets and a resurfaced cricket centre.

“All our coaches are part of a massive e ort,” says Hughes. “We say goodbye to our head of girls’ cricket Gwen Davies after eight years. She’d like to reignite her playing career. Gwen has been a great advocate for girls’ cricket and put in untold hours organising the national 100-ball competition. She’s been replaced by Lara Jones and we’re very excited for what the future holds for girls’ cricket here.”

Will Hughes Director of cricket

Two 2024 leavers secured professional contracts

Three National Semi-Finalist Teams in 2024

National Boys’ U17 champions 2022 and 2023

National Girls’ 100 Ball Champions 2021

National Girls’ 100 Ball Runners Up 2022

14 leavers in the past 14 years have played professionally including Issy Wong and Ed Barnard

Three 2023 U19 International Representatives

Current pupils are on a variety of professional EPP and Academy pathways

TOP 100 SENIOR SCHOOLS SOLIHULL

SOLIHULL SCHOOL

793 Warwick Rd, Solihull, Warwickshire B91 3DJ

Established 1560

Number of pupils 1530

Head of cricket Darren Maddy (Leicestershire, Warwickshire, England)

Teams Boys: In 2024, there were 52 teams in National and Area Cups and

ST ALBANS SCHOOL

Abbey Mill Ln, St Albans AL3 4HB

Established 948 AD

Number of pupils 942

Master in charge Mark Ilott (Essex, England)

Teams Boys: 15 teams: 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, 4th XI, U15A, B & C, U14A, B, C & D, U13A & B, U12A & B Girls’ cricket All-boys’ school up to sixth form

Fixtures There are 180 fixtures, including MCC, Merchant Taylors’ and Forest School

Facilities The 1st XI cricket square has six grass nets plus a portable net on the main square. There is a hybrid pitch allowing pupils to play on ‘grass’ when the grass is too wet and St Albans was the first school to have this installed as the ECB pitch inspector was based at their playing fields at the time. There are four other grass squares and three astro pitches, eight grass lanes on the main pitches and eight astro lanes Club/county affiliation The school hosts a Primary School Day with 10 local U10 teams with a variety of

Leagues across a mixture of 50-over, T20 and declaration cricket. Girls: There are 26 teams across U15, U18 and U18

Girls’ cricket Has grown exponentially and the school play local schools and entered into national competitions at U15, U17 and U18 age groups across various formats Fixtures There are 200 fixtures, including against MCC, Bromsgrove, Repton, Rugby School, Magdalen

sporting activities aimed to increase participation

Best prospect

Sam Calladine is currently in the Northamptonshire

Academy pathway Cricketers of note

Josh de Caires (Middlesex) and George Scott (Middlesex & Gloucestershire)

Cultural cricketers

Tim Rice (lyricist and author)

What sets the school apart? The facilities at St Albans are outstanding and they host all the County Cup finals and Regional Club finals for U15s. They have also hosted touring West Indies U19 squads in the past

College, Denstone, Monmouth and Wellington School

Facilities There are four cricket squares with hybrid surfaces on the 1st XI square, six ECB-approved outdoor nets, four sports hall nets with a bowling machine in each and one Merlyn Club/county affiliation There is a partnership with Complete Cricket Academy and strong links with Warwickshire and local Birmingham Premier League clubs

Best prospect Isaac Maddy represents the Warwickshire pathway and captained the Midlands U15s at the Bunbury Festival, and Ben Blackmore is part of the Warwickshire U18 set-up

Cricketers of note Frank Foster (Warwickshire & England), Stuart Bevins (Worcestershire), Jamie Spiers, Richard Johnson, James Ord, Ethan Brookes, Ashish Chakrapani (all Warwickshire)

Brief history The school has a strong cricket tradition and recently employed David Hemp and Darren Maddy as cricket professionals Cultural cricketers Michael Buerk (journalist), Simon Mayo (radio

presenter), Richard Hammond (television presenter)

What sets the school apart? The line of mature trees on the fields denotes each century that was scored during a period of the school’s cricketing history

Finest moment on the field The school were boys’ U13 National Champions in 2016 and runners up at U15 level in 2016 and 2017 as well as at U17 in 2024. The girls’ U17 won the National Plate in 2023 and were finalists in 2024

Recent progress Several girls are on the Warwickshire Pathway and in the Central Sparks Academy. More female members of staff are actively involved in coaching and running the girls’ programme

What has changed in the last 10 years? The school’s programme has now extended to include boys and girls in Years 7-9. This has led to more fixtures and more staff helping to support the programme

Future plans They recently laid four hybrid pitches on the 1st XI square and are looking to make similar improvements on the 2nd XI square Tours UAE 2025, South Africa 2026

latest skills and techniques are being implemented across the cricket programme

Recent progress The school regularly sends their coaches on CPD courses so they know what to coach. The head of cricket works closely with them to ensure that the

What has changed in the last 10 years? There are more boys playing cricket at the school than ever before which means more sides are run than ever before and the facilities have improved to be able to host County

matches now

Future plans There are plans afoot to have an indoor centre built soon subject to planning at the off-site facility at Woollams. As well as the potential to put a ‘bubble’ over the grass and astro nets for use in the winter Tours India 2025

ST EDWARD’S SCHOOL, OXFORD

Woodstock Rd, Oxford OX2 7NN

Established 1863

Number of pupils 810

Head of cricket Ed Ellis

Professional Dave Simpkins (Gloucestershire)

Teams Boys: 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, 4th XI, Under 16 A, B, C Under 15 A, B, C, Under 14 A, B, C. Girls’: 1st XI, 2nd XI and Junior A & Junior B XI Girls’ cricket They have run four girls’ sides that compete against a range of schools and enter national competitions

Fixtures The school plays over 130 ﬁxtures across all year groups, which

includes notable ﬁxtures against Stowe, Rugby, Bradﬁeld and MCC for boys and girls

Facilities There are six grounds, four indoor net lanes in the Douglas Bader Sports Centre with multiple bowling machines, twelve outdoor astro and grass nets, 18 strips on 1st XI square

Club/county a liation The school have partnerships with Gecko Cricket, Oxfordshire CCC & Southern Vipers that involve sharing facilities and resources across the year

Best prospect Aimee Diab, top-order batter and seamer on Southern Vipers EPP and a regular in Oxfordshire Women’s 1st XI. Dylan Driscoll, top-order batter and opening bowler with Sussex Academy for three years Cricketers of note H Bencraft (Hampshire), EG Wynyard (Hampshire and England), FW

ST GEORGE’S COLLEGE, WEYBRIDGE

Weybridge Rd, Addlestone, Surrey

KT15 2QS

Established 1869

Number of pupils 1,000

Head of cricket David Keightley

Terry (Somerset and Canada), P Hutchinson (South Africa), AM de Labat (New Zealand), Paul Gibb (Yorkshire, Essex and England), Peter Cranmer (Warwickshire), Eric Dixon (Northamptonshire), Alan Waldron (Hampshire), CM Dickinson (Hampshire), Harrison Ward (Sussex) Ben Charlesworth, Luke Charlesworth, Miles Hammond, Richard Brooke, Tim Hancock (all Gloucestershire), Alex Horton (Glamorgan)

Brief history The earliest records of cricket results for the school’s 1st XI date from 1873. They have thrived more recently in the John Harvey Cup Cultural cricketers Kenneth Grahame (author), Douglas Bader (RAF pilot), John Woodcock (cricket

journalist)

What sets the school apart? St Edward’s 1st XI ground is less than a mile from the centre of Oxford and includes the Martyrs Pavilion, designed by award-winning architect John Pawson and completed in 2009 Finest moment on the ﬁeld The school won the John Harvey Cup four consecutive years (2013, 2014, 2015 and 2016) and Aimee Diab scored the ﬁrst 100 on Upper 1 this season

Recent progress The development of the winter programme, the increase of pupils playing during the summer and the girls’ cricket programme

What has changed in the last 10 years? The introduction of white-ball cricket and more regular national competitions

Professional Jacobi

Robinson (Bermuda) Teams Boys: 1st XI, 2nd XI, U15AB, U14ABC, U13ABC and U12ABCD. Girls’: 1XI, U17, U15AB, U14AB, U13ABC and U12ABC Girls’ cricket Has continued to grow at St George’s College with more hardball cricket than ever before with the U12s and U13 B teams playing hardball this year. Over the years they have won many Surrey Cricket titles and there are currently 12 girls representing their county Fixtures There are over 230 cricket ﬁxtures, including Epsom College, RGS Guildford, Reed’s, Trinity, KCS Wimbledon, MCC

studios often used for technical drills. Eight new retractable outdoor nets installed with longer run-ups, ﬁve cages to use for middle practice, four grass wicket cricket squares and two large astroturf wickets Club/county a liation The school have an a liation with Weybridge CC Best prospect Charlotte Lambert, who played several South-East Stars 1st XI matches last year and has remained in the Senior squad for this year. She also toured Sri Lanka this year with England U19s and plays for Surrey CCC 1st XI

Facilities They have six indoor nets with access to video analysis in a state-of-the-art Activity Centre, a gym and two large dance

Future plans Continued progression of their ‘club’ training provision, accessing more boys and girls throughout the winter to allow improvement of performance in the summer Tours Sri Lanka 2025

Cricketers of note Adam and Ben Hollioake (England and Surrey), Tim O’Gorman (Derbyshire), Matt Church (Worcestershire), Will Jacks (England and Surrey)

Cultural cricketers Major General Tony Pigott, David Crane (writer), Michael Gooley (Trailﬁnders), Philip Jansen (Chief executive BT), Richard Moore (Head of MI5), James Tindall (Olympic Hockey player) What sets the school apart? St George’s have hosted an international match between Iceland and Switzerland in 2018

Finest moment on the ﬁeld Last season 15-year-old Will Wright made his 1st XI debut and took a 5-fer Recent progress The school have introduced iPads which can be utilised for video analysis in the sessions. The teaching sta are in a group on Instagram where they can contribute technical videos or drills What has changed in the last 10 years? The facilities have developed to an elite level and girls’ cricket continued to grow when it was introduced

Future plans To establish a B team cup competition to introduce more pupils to competitive cricket

TOP 100 SENIOR SCHOOLS ST LAWRENCE

ST LAWRENCE COLLEGE

College Rd, Ramsgate, Kent CT11 7AE

Established 1879

Number of pupils 620 Head of cricket Geraint Jones (Kent, Gloucestershire, England, Papua New Guinea)

Teams Boys: 1st XI, U15AB, U14AB, U13AB, U12AB, Kirby 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, Sports Excellence XI. Girls’: 1st XI, U15A, U14A, U13AB, U12A Girls’ cricket St Lawrence play girls’ cricket in both the senior and junior school

Fixtures There are over 80 matches, including MCC, Tonbridge School, The King’s School Canterbury, Sevenoaks School, Sutton Valence School, The Canterbury Academy, Band of Brothers

Facilities There are four cricket pitches on site, one cricket pitch o -site (Broadstairs CC), six artiﬁcial cricket nets, two indoor cricket nets, two cricket cages for use on grass

MEET THE HEAD OF CRICKET

practice wickets Club/county a liation The school have a strong link with Kent as well as Sandwich Town CC, Canterbury CC, Broadstairs CC, Whitstable CC, Chestﬁeld CC

Brief history The earliest surviving cricket photograph was from 1882 and in 1886 the 1st XI cricket team had their most successful season with 15 wins, one draw and four losses. Another memorable year was 1927 when the team scored 11 centuries, including the only double-century Cultural cricketers Alfred Bellerby (Olympic long jumper), John

Geraint Jones might have comprised part of a muchfabled Ashes-winning England squad, won the T20 Blast with Kent, clinched the One-Day Cup at Gloucestershire and represented teams across more than 500 senior appearances across formats. And yet it speaks volumes of St Lawrence College that his role as head of cricket o ers equal satisfaction.

Jones has been with the college since 2017 but has been responsible for a cricket programme now serving more than two dozen teams since September 2023, and has slotted right in.

“They’re similar,” he says. “When you’re playing yourself, it is you out there scoring the runs, knowing the hard work. Those sorts of feelings

Ruddock (actor), Cli ord Dyce Sharp (journalist), Alexander Siddig (actor), The Right Honourable John Stevens (former commissioner of the Metropolitan Police)

What sets the school apart? They have hosted girls’ county and regional youth cricket matches and an annual Cricket Week for both the boys’ 1st XI and the girls’ 1st XI

Finest moment on the ﬁeld R Perfect scored the ﬁrst and only double century in the school’s history in 1927 against Hythe CC, who were led by England captain Percy Chapman

I try to get from the students that I am coaching.

“I try to help them understand that if something comes o that we’ve worked on they have that feel-good factor. It has really helped me.

“Those little boosts are great. For me it is seeing the reaction in the kids I coach and them enjoying improving and understanding. That is what I see my biggest role as, getting them to understand: what is the feel that you need to re-create? And it is about trying to recreate that over and over and when they understand that that is what I love.

“It is two of you doing it. When I was playing it was personal success. But now I’m celebrating that I’ve helped them and they’re getting the rewards as well.

“I’ve always really enjoyed the helping side of

Recent progress The continued development of girls’ cricket at the school through both the junior and senior schools, including an international player for Hong Kong U19 and five girls who play county cricket for Kent What has changed in the last 10 years? Cricket is now run for all boys and girls in games lessons and the fixture card has improved to now play Tonbridge School and the MCC Future plans During holiday time the school runs cricket camps aimed at engaging the local community and they have a fundraising project aimed at financing a new pavilion

it. Something has always been there with me, so I’ve felt that for a long time, that satisfaction with helping people. It has been a natural progression from playing.”

A popular element of the programme are the masterclass sessions delivered by several current and ex professionals who o er an alternative perspective and voice.

One of the most warmly appreciated sessions was led by Tawanda Muyeye, the Kent and Oval Invincibles batter who is deﬁned by his technically precise strokeplay.

“They loved his nature,” added Jones. “He is such a calm character and the expertise he was getting across to them. I do remember them talking about it, more so just the way he went about it. He is a classy character.

“It was great to see him have some success this year with his double hundred (in the County Championship against Worcestershire). When I was able to get him in for the school, I knew he would be a great ﬁt and the kids would love it.”

Geraint Jones Head of cricket

TOP 100 SENIOR SCHOOLS

ST PAUL’S SCHOOL

Lonsdale Road, London SW13 9JT

Established 1509

Number of pupils 1,000

Head of cricket

Dr Alexander Langley

Professional Nigel Briers (Leicestershire)

Teams Boys: 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, 4th XI, U15ABC, U14ABC, U13 ABCDEF, U11 ABCD, U10 ABCDEF. Girls’: N/A Girls’ cricket St Paul’s is a boys’ school but they work closely with sister school St Paul’s Girls’ School

Fixtures They play 10 Saturday fixtures with a variety of Surrey Cup matches and midweekfriendlies against partnership and local schools. One of their most notable fixtures is against Merchant Taylors’, one of the oldest school cricketing fixtures, with the first game dating back to the early 1800s

four ‘ﬂic strip’ wickets, three multisport pavilions, three portable cages, seven outdoor net lanes, ﬁve indoor lanes and three bowling machines Club/county a liation Barnes CC and the Old Pauline Club regularly use the indoor facilities during the winter for pre-season training. Fulham Boys’ School and other local partnership schools attend after-school coaching sessions

Facilities There are three full grass squares, three astroturf wickets,

Best prospect Fergus de Mestre, the left-arm spinner, has been part of Surrey’s age-group programme since U8 and has played County Age Group Cricket for Surrey Cricketers of note Percy Fender (Sussex, Surrey & England), Reggie Schwarz (Middlesex, Transvaal and South Africa), Edgar Killick (Middlesex and England)

Brief history The ﬁrst Duke of Marlborough, John Churchill, was at St Paul’s School in the 1660s and there is evidence cricket had already

reached London from Kent. St Paul’s, therefore, believe they are among the ﬁrst schools to take up the game. The school played at The Oval for 25 years up to 1884

Cultural cricketers John Churchill (ﬁrst Duke of Marlborough), Patrick Neate (writer), Rory Kinnear (actor), Charlie Fink (musician)

What sets the school apart? They provide a comprehensive cricket programme and are one of the most academic schools for boys in the country. They produce high-level cricketers without dedicated sports scholars and have top-level cricket facilities only a few miles from

central London

Finest moment on the ﬁeld Ned Bowman took 5 for 24 against MCC in 2023, with St Paul’s winning the match by nine wickets and Rory Walter scored 146 not out against Whitgift in 2024 as the team chased down 305 to win

Recent progress Restarting the overseas tour programme post covid What has changed in the last 10 years? The cricket facilities have seen a huge overhaul and the training programme has also been professionalised Future plans They have ongoing plans for a two-tier brand-new pavilion

Nigel Briers Professional

ST PETER’S SCHOOL, YORK

St Peter’s School, Clifton, York YO30 6AB

Established 627 AD

Number of pupils 1,200

Head of cricket Gareth Sharp

Professional Matt Milnes & Sam

STAMFORD SCHOOL

Southfields House, St Paul’s St, Stamford PE9 2BQ

Established 1532

Number of pupils 1,178

Director of cricket Tom Brett (Staffordshire)

Professional W Bates

Teams Boys: 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, 4th XI, U17A, U15ABC, U14ABC, U13ABCD, U12ABC, U11ABC, U10ABCDE, U9ABCDE, U8ABCDE. Girls’: 1st XI, 2nd XI, U15AB, U14AB, U13ABC, U12ABC, U11ABCD, U10ABC

Girls’ cricket There is an extensive girls’ cricket programme

Fixtures There are 328 fixtures including Repton School, Bedford School and Trent College

Facilities There are three grass squares, two grass strips, four astroturf wickets, 11 astroturf nets, two sports halls with four lanes in each and a small gym for skills practice Club/county affiliation The school has affiliations with The Blaze, Leicestershire CCC, Lincolnshire CCC, Northamptonshire CCC and the ACE Programme

include MCC, Yorkshire Gents, Sedbergh, Scarborough College, Durham School, Worksop College, and fixtures with Yorkshire CAG & EPP. There is a very competitive 1st XI Festival with Repton, Epsom, and Bradfield for the boys and girls

(Leicestershire)

Brief history The first recorded game of cricket played at St Peter’s was in 1853 when the school played Pocklington twice, each side winning a game

Grant (Leicestershire)

Teams Boys: U14, U15, Development XI, 4th, 3rd, 2nd and 1st XI. Girls’: U14, U15 & 1st XI

Girls’ cricket It is growing in popularity, especially in the prep school. The school are looking for a female lead for the girls’ programme from September 2024 Fixtures Most notable fixtures

Best prospect Alex Green, who recently signed a professional contract with Leicestershire and Faith Teekasingh, Year 10, is in The Blaze pathway and represents Leics Cricketers of note Shan Masood (Pakistan), Joey Evison (Kent), Zak Chappell (Derbyshire), Josh Hull (Leicestershire and England), Alex Green (Leicestershire)

Brief history Cricket was one of the first sports to be taught at Stamford School. The sport was a favourite of Dr Barnard whose tenure saw the construction of the first cricket pavilion in 1887. Cricket still remains one of Stamford School’s principal games. Several Old Stamfordians have become renowned cricketers and the cricket pavilion was constructed under funds raised by the Old Stamfordian Club. It was opened in 1938 to mark the twenty-fifth anniversary of Canon Day’s appointment as Headmaster. In 1993, the pavilion underwent a refurbishment as a memorial to Basil Deed (Headmaster, 1947-68). Finest moment on the field The U17 girls were National T20 Finalists Recent progress Following the

Facilities There are two indoor sports halls, four bowling machines, eight outdoor astro net lanes, eight grass net pitches, and four cricket grounds. They also utilise York CC’s practice facilities in the summer term and for some matches Club/county affiliation York CC and Yorkshire CCC. St Peter’s cricket staff were delivering several coaching sessions to both fee-paying and state schools in the York area this winter, upskilling and supporting their staff through CPD. St Peter’s facilities are used by MCC Hub and several local ECB Premier Clubs for winter training Best prospect Wills Bennison, a top-order batter and leg spinner for Yorkshire 2nd XI and Yorkshire Academy Cricketers of note Norman Yardley, Frank Mitchell, Jonny Bairstow (all Yorkshire & England), Stephen Coverdale (Yorkshire), David Kirby

school’s merger into co-educational learning, the boys and girls have integrated well What has changed in the last 10 years? They have introduced a Kwik Cricket festival for the local schools to engage them with the game and hosted a three-day 1st XI & under

Cultural cricketers Harry Gration (journalist), Toby Latham (author), John Barry (composer)

What sets the school apart? The Yorkshire Diamonds used the school in 2017, 2018 and 2019 as their base during the Kia Super League Finest moment on the field The U18s were crowned National T20 Champions

Recent progress The development of the girls’ cricket programme and the 1st XI boys reaching the National T20 Final against Millfield

What has changed in the last 10 years? The girls’ game has grown immeasurably and it is exciting to see the progress made in the last three to four years. Their indoor cricket winter league (IPL) generates a real buzz Future plans The new pavilion for 2024, and the Indoor Cricket Centre soon. They will also be working with more state schools delivering cricket to them

15s girls’ festival in June as well as sending the boys 1st XI & under-15s to Eastbourne for a three-day festival Future plans The biggest development for Stamford is how quickly the girls’ programme has grown in terms of training sessions and fixtures

TOP 100 SENIOR SCHOOLS STOWE

STOWE SCHOOL

Stowe, Buckinghamshire MK18 5EH

Established 1923

Number of pupils 920

Director of cricket James Knott (Surrey and Bedfordshire)

Professional Phil Arnold (Devon) Teams Boys: 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, 4th XI, 5th XI, U17A, U15ABC, U14ABCD. Girls: 1st XI, U15, U14 Girls’ cricket There are three girls’ teams who train three times and play one match per week

Fixtures 20-plus ﬁxtures per season, including matches against touring sides and MCC. Stowe contest the Silk Trophy, with Eton and Shrewsbury, and host Harrow and Malvern for a 100-ball festival

Facilities Four lanes of indoor nets, an array of bowling machines, one BOLA ﬁelding

MEET THE DIRECTOR OF CRICKET

The addition of cricket to Stowe’s calendar for the ﬁrst term of the year has a quirk of the pandemic to thank.

machine, 11 lanes of turf nets, 10 lanes of astroturf nets, seven turf squares Club/county a liation Strong links with Northamptonshire and Buckinghamshire plus Buckingham Town CC, Stony Stratford CC, and Dinton CC

Best prospect Aadi Sharma was Northamptonshire’s academy player of the year 2022 and has just earned a two-year rookie contract Cricketers of note Ben Duckett (England, Northamptonshire, and Nottinghamshire), Graeme White (Northamptonshire and Nottinghamshire), Mark Nelson, Ben Howgego, Rob White (all Northamptonshire), Sean Morris (Hampshire)

Brief history

Stowe opened with its ﬁrst 99 pupils in 1923, with the school becoming coeducational in 2003. A partnership with the National Trust has helped maintain the grounds while the 1st and 2nd XI squares sit either side of what was once the palace of the Dukes of Buckingham What sets the school apart?

Former England selector Ed Smith described it as

Contact rugby wasn’t permitted when schools returned in the autumn of 2020, which opened the door for the cricket season to belatedly take place, with outﬁelds pristine and pitches virtually unused after months of lockdown.

“None of our upper sixth had played in their ﬁnal season, the appointed captain hadn’t actually led the team,” said James Knott, son of former England wicketkeeper Alan and the school’s director of cricket.

“So, the head agreed that those who wanted could come back and play, coupled with those at the school. Within restrictions, competitive

The school has a comprehensive training programme, which focuses on individual player development and covers technique, ﬁtness, and the tactical and mental aspects of cricket Finest moment on the ﬁeld

Winning the Silk Trophy in 2021 –going into the ﬁnal day, three teams could have won the title before Stowe clinched the trophy

Recent progress In 2022/23, Stowe won the National U17 Plate

cricket was being played at that stage. We had a few games then, and it has just stayed in.”

That, in itself, was only the case during 2020, but what was initially a practical shift of goodwill has become a permanent feature of Stowe’s o ering to pupils.

“We don’t train as a squad or during sport afternoons, but we continue with our one-to-one programme and have a mini-net with a couple of bowlers, or something like that,” Knott explained.

“So, they tick over during that period. Most of those in the ﬁrst team are also county age-group cricketers, so we give them a break now until after the October half-term because they’ll have played our term, then the summer, then have this cricket. That’s particularly for the fast

including pre-season and 1:1

as well as squad sessions

Future plans Four lanes of astroturf nets and new netting for the turf nets are being installed. Plans have been drawn up for an indoor cricket centre Tours 1st XI tour every three years, most recently to Cape Town (February 2023). The U15A won a tournament in La Manga (2023), which will become an annual tour

bowlers physically, but also mentally for the others. For those who didn’t play much in the summer either for county or clubs, they have started back. By after half-term, everyone will be back in.”

Rugby remains the main sport during these months, so matches take place on Sunday at the moment. Until Christmas, training sessions are mostly on an individual basis, with sixth form students permitted to use study sessions for their cricket.

That is the case for boys and girls, with the school’s girls’ programme growing fast: this was the ﬁrst summer in which girls’ matches have been played on Saturdays, having beforehand been a midweek event.

“We’re starting to get a few girls’ cricket scholars in too, which is good,” added Knott.

“The one-to-ones are o ered to those girls too, as well as those on county pathways or where we’re fast-tracking them. It’s a big programme to facilitate.”

his favourite school ground.

trophy and David Capel Cup. Girls’ cricket has grown considerably, now

coaching

James Knott Director of cricket

We are Change Makers

Yes, we teach pupils how to excel in exams, but we also teach them how to collaborate, how to solve problems and how to think critically.

Stowe is educating a generation of Change Makers ready to transform the world. Scholarships and Bursaries are available for 13+ and 16+ Entry.

TOP 100 SENIOR SCHOOLS

TAUNTON SCHOOL

Staplegrove Rd, Taunton, Somerset TA2 6AD

Established 1847

Number of pupils 608

Director of cricket Peter Sanderson

Professionals Marcus Trescothick (Somerset) and Dave Roberts (Northamptonshire)

Teams Boys: 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, 4th XI, 14s/15s A, B and C. Girls’: 1st XI and two Junior U15s teams Girls’ cricket The girls’ programme is the fastest-increasing participation sport in the school. Girls have been able to take cricket as a games option, which has been a game changer and the standard of cricket being played is amazingly high in comparison with two years ago

Fixtures Each team, including the girls’ teams, play eight block ﬁxtures with the most notable ﬁxture against MCC

Facilities They have 12 grass and nine artiﬁcial nets, cages for grass nets. Taunton has cricket grounds but also uses ﬁve extra pitches that are not on proper squares. There are seven indoor nets in two halls and three bowling machines for indoor and outdoor use including a Merlyn spin machine Club/county a liation Taunton will

host festivals and coaching for local primary schools next year

Best prospect Kian Roberts, an allrounder and top-order batter, represented Somerset 2nd XI. Alice Robbins, an exciting wicketkeeper/ batter, is in the Western Storm Academy

Cricketers of note Tom Abell (Somerset), Jodie Dibble (England Women), Aftab Habib (England, Essex, Leicestershire, Middlesex), John Jameson (England, Warwickshire), Jack White (England, Somerset), Thomas Jameson (Warwickshire), Piran Holloway (Somerset and Warwickshire), Adam Dibble, Ricky Bartlett, Alan Marshall and Nick Pringle (all Somerset) Cultural cricketers Geo rey Cox and Jeremy Wright (attorneygenerals), Alan Gibson (cricket writer) What sets the school apart?

Current England coach Marcus Trescothick regularly coaches at the school

Finest moment on the field For the first time in their history, the first five 1st XI fixtures saw five consecutive hundreds, scored by 4 di erent players. This was backed up by a victory over MCC, which had not happened in the last decade

Recent progress After only two years of girls being able to select cricket as a games option, Taunton’s girls’ programme is ﬂourishing with teams and numbers increasing tenfold

What has changed in the last 10 years? They realised the need to take the sport seriously by appointing a director of cricket and adding other coaching sta and liaison between tennis and cricket to enable girls and boys to mix the two sports in the summer Tours Dubai 2025

THE KING’S SCHOOL, CHESTER

Wrexham Rd, Chester CH4 7QL

Established 1541

Number of pupils 1,150

Director of cricket Mark Baker

Teams Boys: 1st XI, 2nd XI, U15AB, U14AB, U13AB, U12AB. Girls’: U14, U13, U12AB

Girls’ cricket There are some ﬁxtures for four girls’ teams at the school with a mixture of soft and hardball for U12 and U13 including Saturday ﬁxtures and festivals

Fixtures There are 150 fixtures per year plus festivals and tours. There is an exciting growth of the fixture list for girls’ cricket and B teams. The most notable fixtures are 1st XI vs MCC, Forty Club and Free Foresters

Facilities There are six artificial outdoor net lanes, a wheel-on batting cage for open wicket practice out in the middle on the square, four indoor nets, three grass cricket squares, an artificial cricket pitch and a hockey astroturf, which is working well for girls’ softball cricket fixtures as an additional playing venue to host six home games at any one time Club/county a liation The school has an a liation with Cheshire Cricket Board and Cricket North Wales Best prospect

Romano Franco, the King’s School Chester’s 1st XI captain, is an impressive

allrounder who plays for Wales U17s and Glamorgan Academy

Cricketers of note Phil Salt (Lancashire & England), Kate Coppack (Middlesex & Sunrisers)

Brief history Cricket has been the main summer sport at King’s since the school moved onto its current site in the early 1960s

Cultural cricketers Martin Lewis (TV economist), Ronald Pickup and Nicholas Grace (both actors), Jonathan Samuels (journalist) What sets the school apart? They are taking a lead role in driving the development of girls’ cricket across the region

Finest moment on the ﬁeld They won the 1st XI Cricket Festival at AKS Lytham

Recent progress The U12A and U15A boys’ cricket teams reached the County Final in 2024 and there were sessions for female sta to upskill their knowledge to lead cricket sessions and girls’ cricket ﬁxtures What has changed in the last 10 years? Links with local schools, clubs, county boards and other cricket organisations have improved noticeably

Future plans The school plans to enter the Cheshire Cups for girls’ hardball cricket and host girls’ hardball festivals at King’s, and develop non-specialist sta at King’s and local state schools. They are also discussing being a host venue for Cricket North Wales ﬁxtures in 2025

Tours Sri Lanka 2025

THE

KING’S SCHOOL IN MACCLESFIELD

Alderley Rd, Prestbury, Macclesfield SK10 4SP

Established 1502

Number of pupils 1,300

Stephen Moores Head of cricket

Head of cricket Stephen Moores Professional AJ Harris (Derbyshire & Nottinghamshire)

Teams 15

Girls’ cricket There are block Saturday fixtures for Girls U12, U13, U14 and U15 and in the Junior school Fixtures The 1st XI have 16 - 20 fixtures including T20s, the notable games include Lancaster, Bolton, Manchester Grammar School and MCC

Facilities There is the newly formed Wilson Field, three grass pitches at the school’s Derby Fields and three on the Brocklehurst Field. There is a three-lane indoor cricket centre and two indoor lanes in the sports hall. There is a five-lane all-weather outdoor cricket net area and the school uses three cages for netting on

THE LEYS

The Leys School, Cambridge, CB2 7AD

Established 1875

Number of pupils 575

Head of cricket Richard Kaufman

the grass in the summer Club/county affiliation

The school have a community use agreement with the Cheshire Cricket Board, Macclesfield CC and Alderley Edge CC. The facilities are also used by Bollington, Toft, and Langley. The indoor facilities are full in the evening throughout the autumn and spring terms. Cheshire Cricket use pitches for fixtures in the summer and the school runs outreach sessions for local primary schools

Best prospect Joe Moores is in Lancashire’s Academy and has played 2nd XI cricket while still an U15. He played for the North in the U15 Bunbury Festival last season as an U14 Cricketers of note Peter Moores (Sussex), Alex Thomson (Derbyshire)

Brief history Cricket has long been the main summer sport at King’s. An early team photo from 1865 is one of the oldest cricketing photos known to exist

What sets the school apart? The MCC fixture usually sees several former pupils return to school. Pupils

(Oxfordshire, Bedfordshire)

Teams Boys: 1st, 2nd, 3rd, U15AB, U14AB, U13ABC. Girls: 1st XI, 2nd XI U15AB, U13ABC.

Girls’ cricket Girls reached the final of the National U15 School Sport Magazine T20 Competition and lost to Millfield in 2018. In 2024 the

stay in cricket for a long time after they leave and develop a real love of the game

Finest moment on the field In 2022 the school won the U13 National KO, beating Dulwich College at Oakham Recent progress The development of girls’ cricket is a real positive move

U15 Girls reached the last five in the country of the Indoor Lady Taverners and the senior girls toured Dubai in February 2024

Fixtures There are 18 fixtures including MCC, Felsted, Ipswich, Framlingham and a cricket festival to finish the season against St Paul’s, Fettes and Monkton Combe

Facilities There is a two-lane indoor school, two bowling machines, two grass cages, six outdoor artificial lanes, erected in 2018, and four grass squares Club/county affiliation The top players from the school move on to the Northants or Essex academies, while many players play for Cambridgeshire, Hertfordshire or Suffolk. The Girls’ programme is linked with Sunrisers Academy. The school also hosted Bangladesh as they prepared for their one-day series against Ireland and Sunrisers Women v South East Stars in 2023

Best prospect Reuben Thain is part of the Essex Academy Cricketers of note Noah Thain (Essex)

Brief history The Leys was

for the school

What has changed in the last 10 years? In that time, the school moved to a new site

Future plans The school has planning permission for a new pavilion

Tours UAE 2025

established in February 1875 and in its second term cricket was introduced.

The school’s most distinguished cricketer in that era was Bernard Holloway, who played for Sussex and was a member of the MCC touring party on the first tour to the West Indies

What sets the school apart?

The Leys is situated in the heart of Cambridge and the school continues to punch above its weight in cricket, with the 1st XI reaching the last eight of the HMC T20 competition in 2017 and 2019. The U18 Girls got to the last four of the nationals in 2021. The school has also hosted Cambridgeshire in senior National Counties fixtures

Finest moment on the field

The U15 girls reached the final of the School Sports T20 Competition in 2018 while the 1st XI Boys won the Regional T20 in both 2017 & 2019 Recent progress Carla Rudd, who played in the 2022 women’s Hundred final, has joined the coaching staff What has changed in the last 10 years? The introduction of a full games and touring programme for girls’ cricket

TOP 100 SENIOR SCHOOLS THE PORTSMOUTH

THE PORTSMOUTH GRAMMAR SCHOOL

1 High St, Portsmouth PO1 2LN

Established 1732

Number of pupils 1,296

Head of cricket Scott Curwood

Professional Jon Ayling (Hampshire)

Teams Boys: U12AB, U13AB, U14AB, U15AB, 1st XI & 2nd XI. Girls: U12ABC, U13ABC, U14A, U15A Girls’ cricket Offered for all age groups

Fixtures Across boys and girls, PGS play around 150 fixtures from U12 to seniors, including local schools King Edward VI Southampton and Churcher’s College and further afield Lord Wandsworth College and Dauntseys

Facilities There is an indoor sports hall with five lanes, Hilsea playing fields includes eight artificial nets and six grass nets. There are two squares at this location and the hockey pitch is used for girls and boys fixtures. On a busy Saturday, the school also use a local council ground which ensures pupils can play more inter-school

TONBRIDGE SCHOOL

High St, Tonbridge, Kent TN9 1JP

Established 1553

Number of pupils 800

fixtures

Club/county affiliation They have boys and girls going through the various Hampshire age groups and boys across age groups that represent at district level within the county. For the 2024 season, they have built a link with Hampshire Cricket as they use both squares for matches every

Master in charge Rob Stephen

Professional Ian Baldock (Kent 2nd XI) and Richie Oliver (Worcestershire)

Teams Boys: U14ABCDE, U15ABCDE, U16ABC, and five senior

A Chignell, Mike Barnard, Richard J McIlwaine, David J Rock and Jon Ayling (all Hampshire) and Andy Gorvin (Glamorgan)

Brief history Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, whose brother, Innes, attended the school, is one of the most famous batsmen to appear at the crease at Hilsea

Cultural cricketers James Clavell (author)

What sets the school apart? The large number of inter-school fixtures across all age groups for boys and girls. There is a strong feeling that pupils learn from being out in the middle thus a high number of fixtures

Finest moment on the field

Winning the U15 Lord’s Taverners Trophy in 2011 or winning the National U17 Competition

Sunday and the July holidays

Best prospect Samir Akram is a powerful top-order batter for Hampshire U14 while Simmone Hellyer is a talented all-rounder for Havant CC and Hampshire U15s Cricketers of note Wally Hammond (England), Alfred H Wood, Alfred M Byng, John Palmer Parker, Thomas

teams

Girls’ cricket An all-boys’ school Fixtures There is the Bedford two-day game, Cowdrey Cup involving Radley, Eton, Charterhouse, Wellington and Harrow, the annual cricket festival which features touring sides often from Australia, New Zealand and South Africa

Facilities There are seven grass squares, three astroturf wickets, 10 grass nets, 10 artificial nets, and five indoor nets

Club/county affiliation Kent CCC, Surrey CCC, Essex CCC, Tunbridge Wells CC, Sevenoaks Vine CC, Linden Park CC, Tonbridge CC, Southborough CC, Cowdrey CC Cricketers of note Colin and Graham Cowdrey, Roger Prideaux, Richard Ellison, Ed Smith, Zak Crawley and Marcus O’Riordan (all Kent) and Toby Pettman (Nottinghamshire)

Brief history Cricket was being played at Tonbridge School as early as 1851 while its first interschool match was against Brighton College in 1856. Since then, the school has produced many fine cricketers, including a number of

Recent progress Carla Rudd, who played in the Hundred final, has joined the coaching staff

What has changed in the last 10 years? The introduction of girls’ cricket and the continued growth of boys’ cricket.

Future plans There are plans to replace the eight artificial nets with new ones

recent internationals. The season is shaped by the Cowdrey Cup blocks which run throughout the summer, the Bedford two-day match, and a cricket festival against international teams to bring the curtain down on the school year. The position of the 1st XI pitch in the centre of the school, right beside the chapel, has helped to maintain the popularity and success of the game

Cultural cricketers Tim Rice-Oxley, Dominic Scott, Richard Hughes, Tom Chaplin (members of Keane), Andy Zaltzman (Test Match Special statistician)

What sets the school apart? The Old Tonbridgians have won The Cricketer Cup 16 times, the most of any school, and reached the final on another six occasions. They are also the only school to lift the title three years in a row – a fine demonstration of the strength of cricket at the school

Finest moment on the field The school has enjoyed recent successes in the Cowdrey Cup and Junior County and National Cups

Tours U15 pre-season tours to Abu Dhabi and Dubai

TRENT COLLEGE

Derby Rd, Long Eaton, Nottingham NG10 4AD

Established 1871

Number of pupils 800

Head of cricket Scott Boswell (Northants, Leicestershire)

Professionals Connor Marshall (Derbyshire) and Paul Johnson (Nottinghamshire)

Teams The school runs 22 teams Girls’ cricket Girls play cricket from the junior school all the way through to Year 13. There are girlsonly midweek fixtures then mixed on a Saturday with Josh Glover as a specific head of cricket

Fixtures There are over 200 fixtures throughout the season with the most notable fixtures when they face Repton and MCC

Facilities There are 11 grass nets, five squares and five indoor net lanes Club/county affiliation Trent College run a primary school initiative with 16 local primary schools

Best prospect The best prospects include Byron Hatton-Lowe, Akand Gangotra, Josh Parsons, Drew

TRINITY SCHOOL

Addiscombe Rd, Shirley Park, Croydon CR0 7LB

Established 1882

Number of pupils 1,035

Head of cricket Steven Richards Professional Ali Brown (England, Surrey & Nottinghamshire), Elliot Hooper (Kent & Sussex)

Teams Boys: 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, U15ABC, U14ABC, U13ABCD, U12ABCDE, U11ABC. Girls: 1st XI, U17A

Girls’ cricket Trinity School are co-ed in sixth-form so offer girls’ cricket to all sixth-form pupils and are currently competing in the Surrey County Cup and The Cricketer 100 competition, as well as regular fixtures with local schools

Fixtures They play 175 fixtures, most notably both boys’ and girls’ fixtures against the MCC, and visiting touring teams from the southern hemisphere

Facilities There are six grass nets, four artificial nets, two square cages, five indoor nets, and two sports halls. One site with two grass squares, and

Ottewell, Ben Macey, Spencer Sutton, Jesse Botha, James Jordison and Diya Badge

Cricketers of note Sarah Glenn (England), Fateh Landa and Freddie McCann (both Nottinghamshire), Mitch Wagstaff (Derbyshire)

Brief history Trent College boasts 22 teams across the age groups and live by the ‘3 Ps’ philosophy: participation, progression and performance. In the past, Derbyshire held several John Player League matches at the college and it remains a popular venue for Derbyshire and Notts’ 2nd XIs

What sets the school apart?

The cricket programme over the winter and summer caters not only for the performance players but also the participation through club links, scoring, coaching and umpiring courses. There is also an indoor cricket competition run by sixth formers Finest moment on the field

As a relatively small school, they consistently get deep into national competitions over the last 10 years

Recent progress Getting to a National final at U15s at Arundel Castle with a group that developed so much and worked incredibly

another two grass squares nearby Club/county affiliation This year they hosted the MCC Foundation London Regional Finals Day, which saw the best state school talent in London compete during May halfterm

Best prospect Louie James, U15 leg spinner and middle order batter involved in the Kent set-up, Kavish Patel, U12 cricketer who plays for Surrey and Sylvie Jones, 1st XI girls’

hard to improve

What has changed in the last 10 years? Cricket at the school has had to change with the times and to keep pupils interested in the game they have adapted with tours, coloured kit, music and a shorter version of the game to appeal to all abilities

Future plans They have introduced

cricket captain and Surrey Girls’ U18 allrounder

Cricketers of note Kira Chathli (Surrey, South East Stars), Mark Butcher (Surrey & England), Gary Butcher (Surrey & Glamorgan), Scott Newman and Nathan Barnwell (both Surrey & England U19s) and Josh Blake (Surrey)

Brief history The first cricket records were in the May 1908 school magazine, but cricket was likely being

the field animal band for the best fielding in the team. Different colour hats for the leading run and wicket-takers. They also have The GRIT award and next year we are introducing Fantasy Cricket Tours Dubai 2025, Spain 2026. Locally U15 festival and the York Super Eights competition

played earlier. A fixture between the school and the Old Boys (Old MidWhitgiftian Cricket Club) took place in 1908

Cultural cricketers Gavin Barwell (former chief of staff to Theresa May), William Gao and Alexander Molony (both actors) What sets the school apart? There is a fully-fledged girls’ cricket programme despite only having girls at sixth form which is unusual amongst their competitor schools Finest moment on the field In 2023, the U11 team won the ESCA U11 eight-a-side national cup

Recent progress Several members of staff have been upskilled with 26 of them taking teams, half of whom are not PE teachers and are new to cricket What has changed in the last 10 years? A new pavilion has elevated the playing and spectating experience and Sam Schofield, their previous head of cricket, instigated a rainbow laces initiative to promote LGBTQ+ awareness

Future plans There are plans to introduce a girls’ Saturday programme to continue working towards parity with boys

TOP 100 SENIOR SCHOOLS UPPINGHAM

UPPINGHAM SCHOOL

High St W, Uppingham, Oakham LE15 9QE

Established 1584

Number of pupils 850

Director of cricket

Rob Taylor (Leicestershire & Scotland)

Rob Taylor Director of cricket

Professionals Trevor Ward (Kent & Leicestershire), Ian Butcher (Gloucestershire & Leicestershire)

Teams Boys: Boys – 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, 4th XI, U15 ABC, U14 ABC. Girls: 1st XI, U15, U14 Girls’ cricket There are three competitive girls’ summer teams and some players also represent the boys’ cricket teams

Fixtures The 1st XI play between 15 and 20 fixtures per season. Notable fixtures include hosting MCC, continuing some of the longeststanding matches versus Oundle, Oakham, Repton and Haileybury and a two-day fixture against Shrewsbury. 100 cricket fixtures are currently played annually at Uppingham, and the U15 Boys finish

WELLINGTON COLLEGE

Duke’s Ride, Crowthorne, Berkshire RG45 7PU

Established 1859

Number of pupils 1,100

Director of cricket Thea Brookes Teams Boys: 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, 4th XI, U16, U15ABC, U14ABCD. Girls: 1st XI, 2nd XI, U15AB, U14AB Girls’ cricket They entered three competitions this year, U15s Softball for beginners, U15s 100-ball national competition and finished third in the U18s 100-ball national comp. Girls’ fixtures have increased from 25 to 63 Fixtures Over 100, including matches against MCC (boys and girls), the BOWS festival with Brighton, Oakham and Sedbergh, a two-day fixture against Malvern College, and the Cowdrey Cup with Eton, Harrow, Tonbridge, Radley, and Charterhouse

Facilities Nine grounds, 14 grass nets, 14 astroturf nets, and a four-lane indoor cricket centre. They stream all games played on the 1st XI pitch through Frogbox so any age group that plays there will be streamed

the season competing in the Clarke-Williams Trophy against Eton, Shrewsbury, and Marlborough

Facilities Five indoor lanes, 16 grass practice pitches, an eight-lane artiﬁcial net facility, ﬁve bowling machines, and seven cricket squares. The Upper is the school’s standalone 1st XI ground Club/county a liation

Leicestershire (the school hosts the county’s academy) and Uppingham Town CC

Best prospect Will Macdonald, who is a top order batter and o -spinner and plays for the Leicestershire U16s Cricketers of note Jonathan Agnew, James Whitaker (both England and Leicestershire), Arush Buchake (Northamptonshire)

Brief history Cricket has been a bedrock of sport at Uppingham ever since the school acquired a 1st XI ground, The Upper, in 1828. Uppingham Rovers, the school’s old boys cricket club, was established in 1863, making it one of the oldest wandering clubs in the world Cultural cricketers Stephen

Club/county a liation Strong links with Middlesex, Hampshire, Surrey and Berkshire. South Asian Cricket Association and Cricket for Character Education use the school’s facilities Best prospect Eddie Campion, an allrounder for Middlesex and Toby Barton, a wicketkeeper/batter represented Sussex 2nd XI. Zaara Norat, a right-arm o -spinner plays for Surrey CAGs and South East Stars Academy

Fry (actor, comedian and former MCC president)

What sets the school apart?

The origin of the term ‘Hat Trick’ has connections to Uppingham as H Stephenson, the cricket professional from 1872 to 1897, took three wickets in three deliveries for the All-England XI in 1858. Stephenson was presented with a hat from the proceeds of his collection

Finest moment on the ﬁeld In most

Cricketers of note Tom Hodgson (Essex), Alice Macleod (Sussex & Sunrisers), Tom Curran, Sam Curran (both England and Surrey), Ben Curran (Northamptonshire), Ajeet Singh Dale (Hampshire and Gloucestershire), Lissy MacLeod (Sunrisers)

Brief history Cricket has always been the main summer boys’ sport at Wellington, although a lack of appropriate pitches held the

recent times, the school’s 1st XI of 2017 who played 12, won nine, drew two, lost one

Recent progress Uppingham won county titles at U14 and U15 while a young 1st XI won seven of their last eight games – in all, 2023 was the best school’s best in the past ﬁve years

Future plans The historic ‘Upper’ pavilion is being renovated. Expanding the school’s outreach programme is also a priority

college back until the early 1900s. It is now a major sport for girls and the programme took another step forward with the opening of an indoor facility

Cultural cricketers Rory Bremner (impressionist), Christopher Lee (actor), Will Young (singer) What sets the school apart? Five pupils moved into professional cricket between 2014-19, highlighting Wellington’s talent pathway Finest moment on the ﬁeld Winning the Cowdrey Cup in 2014, reaching National T20 Finals Day in 2015, and two Cricketer Cup wins (1995 and 2017)

Recent progress Girls have more than doubled their ﬁxture card and have more opportunities to play on the 1st XI ground, be live-streamed and play slightly longer formats of the game

What has changed in the last 10 years? The names of the girls’ 1st XI are up in the pavilion, which was a big change

Future plans The school will work with the charity, Cricket for Character Education, in the coming months Tours South Africa 2026

TOP 100 SENIOR SCHOOLS

WELLINGTON SCHOOL

South Street, Wellington, Somerset TA21 8NT

Established 1837

Number of pupils 816

Head of cricket Paul Lawrence

Teams Boys: 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, U17, U16, U15AB, U14AB, U13AB, U12AB, U11AB, U10AB, U9, U8. Girls: 1st XI, U15AB, U14AB, U13ABC, U12ABC, U11ABC, U10ABC, U9AB, U8AB

Girls’ cricket They have 22 girls’ teams from Years 3 to 13. Girls also have the opportunity to play in boys’ ﬁxtures as well. The girls can train alongside the boys if they want to or train with girls-only groups

Fixtures There are 298, including matches against Millﬁeld, King’s College Taunton and Taunton School

Facilities Four grass pitches, 11 grass wickets, four indoor lanes with full run-ups and a high-performance gym with state-of-the-art technology and equipment Club/county a liation They have two outreach programmes with

WHITGIFT SCHOOL

Haling Park Road, South Croydon, CR2 6YT

Established 1596

Number of pupils 1,550

Head of cricket David Ward (Surrey)

Professionals Neil Kendrick (Surrey, Glamorgan), Simon Jackson (Jamaica – head of cricket academy)

Teams Boys: 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, U16, U15ABC, U14ABCDE, U13ABCDE, U12ABCDE, U11ABC. Girls’ cricket

An all-boys’ school

Fixtures There are between 220 and 240 ﬁxtures every year

Somerset and Devon to train with their pupils over the winter after Christmas for three weeks, and they invite coaches from clubs in Somerset and Devon to see how the programme runs

Best prospect Nerys Jones, an allrounder impressed for both the girls’ U15A team and girls’ 1st XI. Lucas Bell and Harry Gillam were

selected for the inaugural South West Development Cricket Camp. Clemmie Lyon Taylor made her girls’ 1st XI debut while in year seven and represents Somerset Cricketers of note Liam Naylor, Sam Elstone (both Scotland U19s), Jordan Knight (West Indies U19s and Devon), Alisa Scantlebury (Barbados)

very close links with Surrey CCC, providing facilities for their coach education programme and county age groups. There are links with Old Whitgiftians CC who use indoor nets for their juniors during the winter and squares in the summer.

Facilities Five cricket squares on site (with access to two more at the Old Boys’ sports ground), 10 grass nets, nine astroturf nets, and a purpose-built indoor centre with six lanes, full run-ups and a variety of bowling machines Club/county a liation They have

Surrey Schools host the U14 and U12 Finals at Whitgift and most recently they partnered with the AfricanCaribbean Engagement programme and hosted their residential camp Cricketers of note Raman Subba Row (Surrey, Northamptonshire & England), Jason Roy, Rory Burns, Dom Sibley, Jamie Smith (all England and Surrey), Laurie Evans (Surrey, Warwickshire and Sussex), Michael Burgess (Warwickshire, Sussex and Leicestershire), Ryan Patel (Surrey), Nick Welch (Leicestershire)

Brief history Cricket has been played at Whitgift for over 160 years, with the ﬁrst inter-school

Brief history Cricket at Wellington has gone from strength to strength over the past decade, with more teams required to cater for demand. The cricket programme has built a reputation globally, with pupils from overseas choosing Wellington for their cricketing education

What sets the school apart?

England Women played a warm-up ﬁxture against a Wellington School Select XI at Wellington School to prepare for their successful 2017 World Cup campaign. Several Rajasthan Royals and India international bowlers come over to the UK as part of the PaceLab programme

Finest moment on the ﬁeld

The boys’ 1st XI reached the regional semi-ﬁnal of the national T20 cup competition

Recent progress The school managed to several pupils through various ECB coaching qualiﬁcations

Future plans They will continue to provide more opportunities for pupils to develop their skills through practice and match play throughout the year

match against Epsom College in 1871. It wasn’t until the early 2000s that the school began to compete nationally but has since enjoyed regular success. Over the past 20 years, 12 pupils have signed professional contracts Cultural cricketers JB Gill (pop star), Elliott Daly (British & Irish Lion

and England rugby union), Danny Cipriani (England rugby union), Pip Burley (Darling Buds of May), General Sir Peter Wall (former head of British Armed Forces) What sets the school apart? The school have hosted 22 professional matches on North Field from 2000-2011 and in the past few years, three Old Whitgiftians have opened the batting for England

Finest moment on the ﬁeld Seeing the hundreds of smiling faces every Saturday morning as teams of all levels take to the ﬁeld

Recent progress The schools have increased the number of scheduled matches by over 100 and increased the number of boys participating by over 75

Future plans The school plans to develop their partnership with ACE

WINCHESTER COLLEGE

College St, Winchester SO23 9NA

Established 1382

Number of pupils 726

Master in charge James Burridge

Professional Paul Gover (Hampshire)

Teams Boys: 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, 4th XI, U16AB, U15ABC, U14ABCD.

Girls: 1st XI

Girls’ cricket The girls’ programme currently offers some softball cricket to beginners who have joined the school in sixth form

Fixtures There are approximately 130 games across the school with a historic fixture against Eton continuing to draw the eye of parents and players, whilst the 1st XI take great pride in their game with MCC

Facilities Three grass squares (each boasting hybrid wickets), four artificial pitches, two artificial net facilities, four indoor nets (which will become eight upon completion of the new sports centre)

Club/county affiliation The school hosted games with Hampshire CCC initiatives, the Hampshire State Jets

WOODHOUSE GROVE SCHOOL

Apperley Bridge, Calverley, Bradford BD10 0NR

Established 1812

Number of pupils 750

Head of cricket Gurman Randhawa (Yorkshire, Durham and England U19)

Professional Steve Bullen (Surrey & Somerset 2nd XI)

Teams Boys: 1st XI, 2nd XI, U17, U15, U14, U13AB, U12AB. Girls: 1st XI, U15, U13, U12

Girls’ cricket The girls’ programme is on the rise, with the 1st XI competing in national competitions and the U15 and U13 teams involved in the West Yorkshire Women and Girls League

Fixtures 1st XI play approximately 18 matches – MCC, Manchester GS, St Peter’s, RGS Lancaster, Durham, Gresham’s (two days), Bradford GS, QEGS Wakefield, Huddersfield New College, Pocklington & Yorkshire Cricket College

Facilities Four grass squares, one artificial pitch, four indoor cricket nets, and a state-of-the-art five-lane

and Hampshire Hawks

Best prospect Sebastian Morgan was selected to play in the England U19 World Cup in January and is a part of the Middlesex Academy. His bowling opportunities were curtailed by injury but surpassed 1,000 runs in 25 innings

Cricketers of note Douglas Jardine (England and Surrey), Mansoor Ali Khan Pataudi (India)

outdoor practice facility

Club/county affiliation Yorkshire

Cricket Broad and local MCC

Foundation hub

Best prospect Jaden Webster is in the Barbados U17 Squad and aims to be selected for the West Indies U19

World Cup squad

Cricketers of note Ajmal

Shahzad (England, Yorkshire, Notts and Sussex), Andrew Bairstow (Derbyshire), Craig Rika (Northamptonshire), Kathryn Leng

Brief history Winchester enjoys a rich cricketing history, with cricket a fixture of the summer calendar for over 150 years. First-class matches have been played at the college’s beautiful ground

Cultural cricketers Rishi Sunak (former prime minister) What sets the school apart? The focus of the cricket programme is helping pupils towards their individual

(England Women)

Brief history Cricket has been the main summer sport at Woodhouse Grove for over 150 years but in the past 30 years, the quality of the fixture list has improved massively. The school has been able to maintain a strong cricketing tradition locally but has also developed a more regional and national reputation

Cultural cricketers General Sir Nicholas Houghton, Lord Michael Walker of Aldringham (both former

goals and nurturing a love of the game which will hopefully last a lifetime. Winchester’s links with Hampshire and Southern Vipers also offer an excellent stepping stone for pupils to excel

Finest moment on the field They chased 250 to win in the U17 National Cricket Paper quarter-final in recent times

Recent progress Offered more 1-1 coaching throughout the year, allowing pupils to sustain their progress. This is thanks to a growing number of coaches, full and parttime, who work at the college What has changed in the last 10 years? A more professional approach to cricketing development and maintaining participation in the sport beyond school. The winter training programme reaches more pupils and is more intensive for those with high aspirations

Future plans Sustained investment in cricket facilities and resources is planned, and the school provide even better opportunities for pupils and increase access to facilities with local schools and through outreach programmes

chief of defence staff of British Armed Forces)

What sets the school apart? The Woodhouse Grove 1st XI pitch slopes away from the imposing façade of the main school building. From this elevated vantage point, it is possible to see five cricket matches taking place

Finest moment on the field

Winning the National Schools T20 competition at Arundel Castle in 2014 and winning all 18 completed 1st XI matches in the same season, Woodhouse Grange U14/15 teams were crowned county champions seven times in 13 seasons (2006-18) Recent progress The improvement in the quality of the fixture list alongside a high-quality coaching programme, more girls representing the school in competitive fixtures than ever before and the 1st XI boys have enjoyed their most successful season in 4-5 years

Future plans There are plans to expand the girls’ programme and invest in further coaching resources. Plans to make the outdoor netting facility fully covered for the winter months Tours Barbados and St Lucia 2025

TOP 100 SENIOR SCHOOLS WORKSOP

WORKSOP COLLEGE

Cuthbert’s Avenue, Worksop, Nottinghamshire S80 3AP

Established 1890

Number of pupils 500

Director of cricket Adam Tilcock (Nottinghamshire)

1st XI coach Ian Parkin

Professional Karanjit Bansal (Notts 2nd XI, Lincolnshire)

Teams Boys: 1st XI, 2nd XI, U15, U14, U13, U12AB. Girls: U15, U14, U13AB,

WORTH SCHOOL

Paddockhurst Road, Turners Hill, Crawley, West Sussex RH10 4SD

Established 1933

Number of pupils 650 Head of cricket

Raj Chaudhuri (Tripura)

U12ABC

Girls’ cricket

There are eight girls’ teams with six softball cricket and two hardball

Fixtures The 1st team had 23 fixtures in the 2024 season including a preseason tour to Shrewsbury and a post-season Woodard Festival. This included Derbyshire, Worcestershire, Nottinghamshire and Yorkshire Acadmies, Repton and Millfield

Facilities Four hardball pitches, four softball pitches, 12 outdoor grass nets, four indoor nets, and a specialist

Teams Boys: 1st XI, 2nd XI, U15AB, U14AB, U13AB. Girls: 1st XI, U15, U14, U13

Girls’ cricket Worth School runs four girls’ teams with more competent players encouraged to train and play with the boys

Fixtures Around 25 per season for the 1st XI, with notable matches against MCC, Sussex Martlets and touring sides. There are 10 for age group A teams and five to six for B teams

Facilities Four grounds, five grass nets, an indoor centre with five lanes and three astroturfs

Club/county affiliation Pupils from local schools are invited to come to Worth regularly to try out different sports and coaches go to different schools to do taster sessions

Best prospect George McLoughlin opens the bowling for Reigate Priory in their 1st XI in the Surrey Premier League and was in the mix for the Ireland side for the Under-19 World Cup Cricketers of note James Heywood (Cambridge MCCU), Nikki Chaudhuri (Surrey and Worcestershire Women), Claudie Cooper (South East Stars), Alice Grant (South East Stars and Kent)

Brief history Cricket is an integral part of life at Worth School. Many pupils go on to play cricket to a high standard, from ECB Premier League clubs to county pathways, 2nd XIs and women’s regional sides What sets the school apart? The winter programme based on fundamentals sets them apart. It is done in a very subcontinental way of grooving skills and making sure players can walk before they can run. They do not follow trends but rather concentrate on the long-term development of the player and their fundamentals Finest moment on the field Worth

strength and conditioning suite Club/county affiliation

Yorkshire and Nottinghamshire, supporting training and agegroup and 2nd XI fixtures, and Root Academy. The school is also the Blaze North Region EPP hub for their winter training.

Best prospect

Oscar Butcher is a Nottinghamshire EPP wicketkeeper/batter and firstteam for both hockey and rugby Cricketers of note Joe Root (England and Yorkshire), Samit Patel (England and Nottinghamshire), Phil Sharpe (England and Yorkshire), Ken Farnes (England and Essex), Richard Kettleborough (Yorkshire and Middlesex)

Brief history Worksop is a small school but its cricketing prowess is up there with the big boys. Unity and team spirit are cornerstones of

School won The International School Bangalore tournament in India Recent progress The development of McLoughlin as a cricketer who is on the verge of World Cup honours What has changed in the last 10 years? There is a lot of importance given to the shorter formats but they

the college’s philosophy and teams always aim to take the positive option during fixtures, with the opportunity to learn from the success or failure this might bring

Cultural cricketers David Coote (Premier League football referee), Craig Woodhouse (journalist)

Finest moment on the field Worksop College enjoyed an unbeaten season in 2008 and reached the last eight of the National T20 Cup in 2008, 2021 and 2023

Recent progress The school have made significant strides in enhancing the abilities of their most talented cricketers by implementing advanced training programmes

What has changed in the last 10 years? It is now a programme for any pupil who wishes to train or play cricket during their school days with the ability to provide elitelevel coaching all year round to any cricketer

Future plans Creating links with local counties to support their girls’ pathway coaching provisions and building state-of-the-art astroturf nets

Tours Sri Lanka 2025

try to balance the scenarios and make sure the players are not just T20 specialists

Future plans A new sports hall is on the horizon as is a new set of artificial wickets and their young players are regularly assigned to the three local Premier League clubs

Raj Chaudhuri Head of cricket

WREKIN COLLEGE

Sutherland Road, Wellington, Telford, Shropshire TF1 3BH

Established 1880

Number of pupils 568 Director of sport and cricket James Shaw

James Shaw Director of sport

Professional Tom Ettridge Teams Boys: 1st XI, 2nd XI, U17, U15AB, U14AB, U13AB, U12AB. Girls: 1st XI, U15, U14, U13AB, U12AB

Girls’ cricket Has grown at Wrekin as they o er a range of ﬁxtures and the National Cups for the U18s, U15s and U14s. There have been increased training hours for girls over the past academic year

Fixtures There are 130 scheduled ﬁxtures, including Shrewsbury School, Denstone College, The King’s School Chester, MCC and two touring sides from Australia and South Africa

Facilities Four cricket pitches, six astroturf nets, four indoor cricket nets with mats, and three mobile net cages Club/county a liation Wellington CC, Shifnal CC, Shrewsbury CC, Bridgnorth CC, Wolverhampton CC,

Worﬁeld CC and Shropshire County Cricket Board are located on the school site

Best prospect William Jones has been an integral member of the 1st XI since year nine and has trained with the Worcester and Shropshire Academies

Cricketers of note Dillon Pennington (Nottinghamshire), Richie Oliver (Worcestershire), Charlie Home (Shropshire and Loughborough MCCU), Matthew Lamb and Luke Thornton (both Shropshire CCC). JP Duminy, Andrew Puttick, Rory Kleinveldt (South Africa – exchange pupils)

Brief history Wrekin College has constantly produced National County players on a playing surface ﬁt for the next step. With the backdrop of the Wrekin and Shropshire hills behind, the ground has now become the ‘Home of Shropshire Cricket’

What sets the school apart? They have a committed group of sta and coaches that help develop a love of the game. The ﬁxture list has vastly altered over the past ﬁve years but continue to punch above their weight

at senior and junior level

Finest moment on the ﬁeld

This year beating Rugby School in the National Quarter-Final in the Midlands round of the HMC T20 Competition

Recent progress Close work with the Shropshire Cricket Board has seen some sta earn their Level 1 coaching badge

What has changed in the last 10

years? The ﬁxture list has almost tripled over the past decade meaning all pupils in Years 7 and 8 can represent the school in at least one ﬁxture

Future plans The school have just had a new surface laid in the sports hall. They have run morning sessions for pupils and are planning to run even more in 2024/25 Tours Dubai 2026

Wellington, Shropshire

TOP 25 STATE SCHOOLS

Jim Hindson explains why the schools guide now has a bespoke state school section

We have been covering schools in The Cricketer for more than 100 years and, for the last decade, have also published this dedicated guide open to all schools that have shown a signiﬁcant commitment to cricket in their curriculum.

town of Bingham, before moving on to sixth form at Trent College – a private school. Freddie is uniquely placed to comment on the current picture of schools’ cricket and picks up the story.

Each year, around 15 state-funded schools have been selected, including Nottingham Academy Primary – an inner-city school where more than 40 languages are spoken and cricket is the most popular sport by far.

The 2025 guide sees the creation of a separate category for state schools, which is a proud moment for me personally. I only played two matches in seven years at the state school I attended, but I was fortunate that opportunities in club and county agegroup cricket led to me becoming a professional cricketer at Nottinghamshire in the 1990s.

Rising Notts star Freddie McCann also went to my old school, Toot Hill, located in the market

While our pathways to professional cricket may not be perfect, Freddie’s story does showcase what is possible with talent and resilience – and that there is a key role for state schools and clubs to play on that journey. have commitment

BRIGHTON ALDRIDGE COMMUNITY ACADEMY

Lewes Road, Brighton BN1 9PW

Established 2010

Number of pupils 950

Director of cricket Alexia Walker (Sussex, England women’s academy)

Professional Jordan Shaw (England indoor), Yasir Arafat (Pakistan), John Spencer (Sussex)

Teams Mixed: 1st XI, 2nd XI, U15, U14, U13 Girls: U15, U13 Girls’ cricket The school’s Sir Rod

Aldridge Cricket Centre is the home of Sussex women and girls’ cricket. Girls play in the school’s senior and junior teams

Fixtures The junior programme has rapidly expanded with over 20 ﬁxtures for Junior teams entering all available county competitions, both male and female

Facilities A three-lane hall with full run ups, two BOLA machines and a BOLA Merlyn and Lobster tennis feeder. 12 grass wickets and one artiﬁcial wicket Club/county a liation Sussex CCC

“I actually played a few games at Toot Hill including a game at Repton against their 3rd XI, which we won! That said, I put my initial progress down to playing Saturday adult club cricket from the age of 12. Getting verbally abused in 3rd XI helped to build up my resilience, whereas I’d have been playing school age-group cricket if I’d gone private.

“Then when it came to sixth form, I was fortunate to be o ered a scholarship to Trent and decided to move. This allowed me to train with brilliant coaches all year around but I did retain a sharp focus on education.”

Best prospect Frankie Cripps is developing into a very exciting allrounder. He has trained with the Sussex senior teams and bowled at Steve Smith Cricketers of note Will She eld (Sussex), Tara Norris (USA, Southern Vipers), Liam O’Brien (England Physical Disability)

What sets the school apart?

Brighton Aldridge Community Academy give aspirational opportunities to young people who have traditionally believed that they do not have the chance to progress and be successful

Finest moment on the ﬁeld In 2023,

the U13s won the state school cup. In 2024, they beat Hurstpierpoint College and Brighton College in the National Schools T20. The games were played in front of several hundred sta and students

Recent progress The school now o er a variety of programmes and opportunities for children from the age of 5 through to leaving school at 18 from ECB Dynamos, the MCC Foundation Hub and the Aldridge Cricket Academy

What has changed in the last 10 years? 200 students have experienced the programme, which was only launched a year before the The Cricketer Schools Guide began.

Seventy-one students have been on an overseas tour, they have produced three professional players and won two county titles

Future plans They have formed a partnership with Arundel Cricket Foundation, The Willows CC in New Zealand as part of a unique scholarship for two sixth form students to spend six months playing and working with charities in Christchurch Tours Kenya (2025)

CHISLEHURST & SIDCUP GRAMMAR SCHOOL

Hurst Rd, Sidcup, Kent DA15 9AG

Established 1931

Number of pupils 1450

Director of cricket Richard Wallbridge Professional Matthew Stiddard (Bexley CC)

Teams Boys: 1st XI, U15, U14, U13AB, U12AB Girls: U15, U14, U13, U12 Girls’ cricket The U15 and U13 teams entered Chance to Compete winter and summer competitions, with the U13 team winning the county finals. The U15 and U13 teams also played in the county hardball 8’s completions

Fixtures Boys and girls had 95 fixtures including county softball competitions for the girls

Facilities Two grass squares (one with an artificial strip). Three outdoor artificial nets and two indoor nets

Club/county affiliation Bexley CC, Sidcup CC, Dartfordians CC, Bexleyheath CC

Best prospect Ellis Daly is a Kent U18 allrounder who bats in the top order, bowls left-arm spin and is an excellent fielder

Cricketers of note Grahame Clinton (Kent, Surrey), Mathew Brimson (Leicestershire, Kent), Ollie Robinson (England Lions, Kent, Durham),

Phoebe Franklin (Kent, South East Stars, Welsh Fire, Birmingham Phoenix, Northern Superchargers)

Brief history Cricket has always been

DR CHALLONER’S GRAMMAR SCHOOL

Chesham Rd, Amersham HP6 5HA

Established 1624

Number of pupils 1370

Director of sport John Deadman

Master in charge Jonny Carpenter

Teams Boys: 15 teams from year 7 to 1st XI, including multiple teams at U12-U15 and seniors

Girls’ cricket As an all-boys’ school with a co-educational sixth form they

don’t have enough girls for a girls’ team. However, girls have played successfully as part of senior teams for a number of years

Fixtures 96 games planned, a fitting fixture list in the school’s 400th anniversary year. The 1st XI play MCC and Incogniti, while junior years often play Berkhamsted, St Benedict’s, Shiplake and Eton

Facilities A delightful tree-lined ground with a wooden pavilion serves as a charming home venue. Practice is facilitated in four indoor nets in their

the main summer sport at the school. The 2023 season was the best ever for the boys’ cricket with the 1st XI winning the group stage of the Kent League and finishing runners-up in the Kent Cup. The boys won the North Kent Cup at U12, U13, U14 and U15 level too.

Cultural cricketers Leslie Clack (actor) What sets the school apart? The drive and commitment of all at the school to give the boys and girls an opportunity to enjoy and experience cricket and support them to be the best that they can be

Finest moment on the field 1973 1st XI Kent Lemon Cup winners

Recent progress The continued development of girls’ cricket

What’s changed in the last 10 years? They are now seeing fewer PE teachers coming in to the profession with any knowledge or experience of the game and there are fewer local schools to play against, but the school will continue to support the game and the pupils who have such an enthusiasm for the sport

Future plans Setting up a cricketspecific parents’ association Tours South Africa (2026)

commitment, ingenuity and diligence from staff, including many who are not PE teachers. The 1st XI competes on a good local circuit. Since the sixth form went co-ed in 2016 a number of girls have featured in senior teams. One of them, Hannah Davis, is now captaining Oxford University women’s side and is in the Sunrisers Academy

What sets the school apart?

They have consistently delivered a programme on the scale and quality of a large independent school with state school grounds and financial resources

sports hall

Club/county affiliation

Buckinghamshire CCC

Best prospect Yash Kochhar is part of the Northamptonshire Academy. He is a highly rated pace bowler who also plays Premier League club cricket for Amersham

Brief history The school have a programme for all those who are interested, including regular fixtures for as many as four teams in junior year groups. Operating from a state school resource base this requires

Finest moment on the field Days when they have four U12 and U13 teams playing cricket simultaneously Recent progress Taking 50 students aged 14-16 to Sri Lanka which cemented enjoyment for the game and supported their progression into the senior sides

What’s changed in the last 10 years? The successful reestablishment of the programme following the pandemic Future plans They hope to further expand their fixture list to make sure they provide cricket for all

TOP 25 STATE SCHOOLS

HUDDERSFIELD NEW COLLEGE

New Hey Road, Huddersfield, West Yorkshire HD3 4GL

Established 1839

Number of pupils 2,500

Head of academy sport Jamie Marsden

Head cricket coach Jack Hendy Teams Boys: Two squads – Academy and Development

Girls’ cricket Limited uptake but female alumni range from Hollie Armitage to cricketers playing within Yorkshire pathways

Fixtures Ten fixtures for each programme. MCC in mid-June is the most notable game

Facilities Two indoor lanes built in 2013 and four further indoor lanes in the main sports block for general hire. The cricket programmes benefit from accessing the college’s fitness suite for strength and conditioning sessions as well as the sports lab for more direct physiological testing where appropriate

Best prospect Bradley Sylvester is with Yorkshire on the academy

GEORGE ABBOT SCHOOL

Woodruff Ave, Guildford GU1 1XX

Established 1957

Number of pupils 1932

Head of cricket Ben Isherwood

Teams Boys: U18, U15, U14, U13, U12

Girls: U18, U15, U13

Fixtures Approximately six outdoor fixtures per team across the school, all midweek. These include local friendlies, SSCA competitions for boys and girls, and cup and league games with the U18s. Additionally, they play in boys’ Surrey indoor competitions and girls’ Lady Taverners indoor competitions

Facilities Astro wicket on a grass outfield, use of Guildford CC for U18s. Sports hall with six nets and indoor markings

Club/county affiliation Surrey CCC, Guildford CC, Merrow CC, Horsley & Send CC

Best prospect Ed Marsh and William Hamilton, who are both Surrey pathway players

Cricketers of note Ashley Giles (England, Warwickshire)

Brief history The school has had local success as one of the stronger

state schools in the area, and has continued to work with clubs and Surrey to develop young cricketers across the ability and age range for a number of years

What sets the school apart? The newly formed state school sixth form cricket programme, in partnership with Surrey

Finest moment on the field The new 1st XI took the field this season against King Edward’s Witley after a long hiatus of 15 years

Recent progress The development and implementation of the first full year of the school’s sixth form cricket scholar programme has had an impact on cricket across the school, while all PE staff are now confident teaching cricket in lessons

What’s changed in the last 10 years? The increase in the number of fixtures, success and profile of cricket across the school. Stronger links have also been developed with both local clubs and Surrey CCC

Future plans Taking on the delivery of the Diploma in Sporting Excellence to those in or close to the county talent pathway system. Hosting new tapeball events from winter 2024

programme and has already been selected for their 2nd XI. Finn Brookes has kept wicket for Derbyshire academy and 2nd XI

Cricketers of note Ben Cliff and Benjamin Birkhead (Yorkshire), Hollie Armitage (Yorkshire, Northern Superchargers)

Brief history The cricket programme was established in 2005 and has expanded to incorporate a

development programme that includes one-to-one coaching, qualification development and supplementary talks reflecting the holistic nature of player development

Cultural cricketers Max Morley (Love Island winner)

What sets the school apart? As a further education sector college they are one of a very small number which deliver a programme of this

nature that provides year-round training, high quality coaching and facilities with an extensive and highly competitive fixture programme

Finest moment on the field U17 National Cup Final winners in 2011. Twice becoming AoC T20 winners in 2012 and 2021

Recent progress A new enrichment programme has allowed a greater number of students from across the college to access and experience cricket and the facilities at a recreational level

What’s changed in the last 10 years? They have greatly expanded the development programme. Community work with the Taverners programme is now based at the college, running from January to April and covering ages 7-15. This now includes a women’s section Future plans The college is planning for an expansion of the fitness suite provision, with a £100k investment to expand the footprint and deliver sessions that have a greater sports science to it. This will benefit the programme based on biomechanics work and analysis

Tours Sri Lanka (2025/26)

KING EDWARD VI SCHOOL, STRATFORDUPON-AVON

Chapel Ln, Stratford-upon-Avon CV37 6BE

Established 1553

Number of pupils 767

Master in charge James Gilchriest Teams 1st XI, 2nd XI, U17s (Cup), U15AB, U14ABCD, U13ABCDE,

LANCASTER ROYAL GRAMMAR SCHOOL

East Rd, Lancaster LA1 3EF

Established 1472

Number of pupils 1,257

Head of cricket Matt Rosbottom

Teams Boys: 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, U17, U15AB, U14AB, U13ABC, U12ABC Girls: 1st XI

Girls’ cricket As a co-educational sixth form they have developed a Girls’ 1st XI. The girls are exposed to softball in the first half-term and have fixtures against local schools

Fixtures Around 100, including MCC

Facilities The school has two grounds and four fully operational grass cricket squares, plus four indoor lanes, three outdoor lanes and two portable cages to go on grass wickets

Club/county affiliation Cumbria County Cricket Board

Best prospect Charlie Parkinson is a Lancashire 2nd XI fast bowler and middle order batter

Cultural cricketers Brian Ashton (England rugby union coach)

What sets the school apart? The school had 30 boys onto the elite

U12ABCDE

Girls’ cricket Although a boys’ school from Year 7-11, 2022 saw the school introduce girls’ house cricket to the house competition. The school hopes over the coming years to be able to introduce a regular senior girls team to the programme

Fixtures More than 100 a year

Facilities Five-pitch grass square with two recently installed hybrid pitches and one artificial pitch, as well as two indoor nets and two

outdoor nets

Club/county affiliation

Stratford-upon-Avon CC

Best prospect Arjun Vadgama is U14 and plays for Kenilworth Wardens CC. He has been promoted to the elite group of the National Fast Bowling Academy after his first year in the programme, and is also a toporder batter

Brief history The first recorded games of cricket were in 1885 playing against local grammar schools and

independent schools

Cultural cricketers Rex Warneford (Victoria Cross winner), General Sir Richard Gale (Commander of the airborne landings on D-Day), Richard Spender (poet), Arthur Peake (Biblical scholar), James Roe (Olympics gold-winning rower), Tim Pigott-Smith (actor and director)

What sets the school apart? It is a forward-thinking cricketing school providing opportunities for pupils to experience the game

Finest moment on the field

Winning the Bablake T20 tournament

Recent progress The increase in the number of fixtures for the U12s and U13s

What’s changed in the last 10 years? The programme has moved on with 70 per cent of the students in a year group now representing at fixtures. This has also resulted in more members of the school community playing for local clubs in the area

Future plans The school is upgrading its pavilion and building a four-lane state of the art cricket nets facility

Tours Sri Lanka (2025)

cricket pathway in 2024 and playing representative cricket at either district or county level

Finest moment on the field

Winning the National U15 final at Trent Bridge in 1999 against Charterhouse

Recent progress Cricket is thriving

at Lancastre Royal Grammar and much of this is down to the energy and commitment of many staff who happily engage and give up hours of their own time to help develop cricketers

What’s changed in the last 10 years? As well as cricket for girls,

the school has developed U12C and U13C teams competing against local schools

Future plans The school is looking to redevelop the outdoor net facility and to extend the Douglas Cameron Cricket Pavilion

Tours Sri Lanka (2025)

TOP 25 STATE SCHOOLS

MYERSCOUGH COLLEGE

St Michael’s Rd, Preston PR3 0RY

Established 1894

Master in charge Andy Massey

Teams 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, 4th XI, U17

Girls’ cricket Girls are encouraged to join the overall set-up

Fixtures More than 40 fixtures per year against the likes of Sedbergh, Shrewsbury, Repton, representative teams and touring sides

Facilities The college is based in the indoor centre at Emirates Old Trafford, where students are able to access the facilities used by the professional sides at Lancashire Club/county affiliation Lancashire Cricket Foundation

Best prospect James Dunn and Hugo Croft are part of Lancashire’s pathway program and have represented the 2nd XI Cricketers of note Jack Morley

MEET THE MASTER IN CHARGE

Myerscough College are using their cricket programme “to challenge the stereotype that exists around the quality of private-school cricketers in comparison to those who aren’t”, according to Andy Massey.

(Lancashire, Derbyshire), Ben Gibbon (Worcestershire), Hannah Jones (Lancashire Thunder), Luke Hughes and Joel Harris (England Deaf), Jack Perry and Jordan Williams (England Learning Disability)

Brief history The centre based at Emirates Old Trafford was established 14 years ago. It attracts a variety of students, some with aspirations of professional cricket and most others wanting to play at a good standard whilst being able to achieve high grades

What sets the school apart?

Myerscough is one of only a small number of educational establishments to offer such a standard of cricket at no cost to the student and be government-funded. Students are also able to study at a Test venue

Finest moment on the field In 2022, the college reached the Schools National T20 final at Arundel for the first time in its history

Massey is centre manager for the course, which is based at Emirates Old Trafford and operates with government funding for sixth-form students.

“I think the 16-18 age-group is pivotal for the future of cricket,” he said. “It’s really important that we keep providing opportunities, keep them hungry. We’re fighting the good fight, slowly getting there.”

Massey added: “One of the barriers that we face is that there are limitations to our programme sometimes and how far we can take

Recent progress The coaches have a vast amount of experience working with a number of different county cricket teams with cricket lead Brett Pelser having played first-class cricket in South Africa

Future plans The last two years has seen the college intake double, so it

it, just purely on the money that’s available. A lot of our students come from fairly deprived backgrounds. It’s about breaking down those barriers and providing young people the opportunity to study and develop their cricket. That is what the future of the game is about.”

With that in mind, Myerscough – with help from the college’s stakeholders – are taking 42 second-year students on tour to South Africa in February.

“A big part of that was the stakeholders involved,” he stressed, “who understand what we’re about and what we’re trying to achieve. Inclusion and opportunity are at the forefront of our mindset: how do we provide a better opportunity for these guys to develop their skillsets, and how do we make cricket accessible?

will look to accommodate six boys teams and one girls team in 2025. The college aims to enhance its existing relationship with Lancashire CCC, the Cheshire Cricket Board and Lancashire Thunder Tours Cape Town (2025), Sri Lanka (2026)

“This tour has been massive for that, the fact that we’ve been able to fund it and accommodate so many students. I suppose it’s credit to the work that we’ve done.”

Myerscough will play 15 fixtures over 12 days, beginning the trip in Stellenbosch before moving into Cape Town. “We’re going to Table Mountain, doing a safari and a stadium tour,” he added.

“We’re really excited; we changed the winter programme slightly with the focus on that tour, so we’ve introduced cricket skillsets much earlier than normal because we’re seeing more and more students with stress fractures coming through.

“We used to run cricket from September, but by the time we came to April they were so disengaged with the game that we changed our programme. So, our block up to Christmas was very much S&C-focused, looking at students’ fitness levels, just to make sure that they were safe to hit the ground running come January and well prepped for the season.”

Andy Massey Master in charge

If you’re finishing school or college this year, take a look at Myerscough College’s exciting range of Cricket Studies courses at Lancashire County Cricket Club’s Indoor Centre. There’s a one-year introductory course and a two year advanced, A-Level equivalent, BTEC Level 3 Diploma (ideal for progression to university level degrees).

OPEN DAYS & EVENINGS

at Old Trafford Indoor Centre (LCCC)

Check the “What’s on” section of the website for forthcoming dates

For more information call Course Enquiries 0800 652 5592 or visit www.myerscough.ac.uk

Lancashire County Cricket Club, Emirates Old Trafford, Talbot Road, Manchester M16 0PX

TOP 25 STATE SCHOOLS

OLD SWINFORD HOSPITAL

Heath Ln, Oldswinford, Stourbridge DY8 1QX

Established 1667

Number of pupils 603

Director of cricket Daniel Bassett

Professional Daniel Hickman

Teams Boys: U18AB, U17, U15AB, U14AB, U13ABC, U12ABC Girls: U14AB, U13AB, U12AB

Girls’ cricket A-teams play hardball and B-teams play softball with the aim of progressing to hard ball the following year

Fixtures Around 160 including MCC

Facilities Three grass cricket squares, two outdoor cricket nets, a batting cage and four indoor cricket nets

Club/county affiliation Pedmore CC, Old Swinford CC Best prospect U14 allrounder James Plant, who hit 95 runs for the U15 team against Bromsgrove in the county cup semi-final. He is also a pacey bowler with excellent accuracy and rhythm to his action

OLD SWINFORD HOSPITAL //

Cricketers of note Dean Headley (England, Middlesex, Kent), Simon Green (Warwickshire), Adam Finch (Worcestershire), Jack Haynes (Worcestershire), David Banks (Warwickshire, Worcestershire)

QUEEN MARY’S GRAMMAR SCHOOL, WALSALL

Sutton Rd, Walsall WS1 2PG

Established 1554

Number of pupils 1316

Master in charge Alex Hammond (England Physical Disability)

Teams Boys: 1st XI, 2nd XI, U17 XI (Cup), U15AB, U14ABC, U13ABCD, U12ABCD

Girls’ cricket Although a boys’ school through Years 7-11, 2019 saw the introduction of a very successful sixth-form girls’ house competition which continues to develop Fixtures 110-120 per year including Wrekin College, Solihull School and RGS Worcester

Facilities Indoor sports hall with four net lanes, three-lane enclosed outdoor net facility, five BOLA bowling machines and two squares Club/county affiliation

Staffordshire CCC, Walsall CC, Aldridge CC, Bronze CC

Best prospect Manan Bhardwaj finished the season with 764 runs

averaging 58.77. He is a wicketkeeper and opening batter for Staffordshire U12 and Wolverhampton CC

Cricketers of note David Brown (England, Warwickshire)

Brief history The first recorded match at the school was in 1874 between Queen Mary’s and Walsall CC in Old Chuckery. Queen Mary’s most illustrious cricketer, David Brown, was at the forefront of the school’s success in the Walsall Knock-Out Competition in the late 1950s and early 1960s

Cultural cricketers Malvind Benning (Port Vale footballer)

What sets the school apart? Pupils get the opportunity to partake in an elite all year-round cricket programme including one-to-ones and small group sessions before the start of the school day

Finest moment on the field U15 Staffordshire Cup Winners (2015 & 2019), U14 Staffordshire Cup Winners (2023)

Recent progress The U14s won the Staffordshire Schools Cup while the U12, U13 and U15 all lost in the semi-final. They have given more C and D team fixtures for their U12 and

sport and means that all pupils receive quality coaching and opportunities to play the best game in the world. The school places great emphasis on developing cricket further now that it is a co-educational school

Cultural cricketers Ollie Lawrence (England rugby union player)

What sets the school apart? Old Swinford is a state school that not only wants to mix it with the best but is prepared to ensure they have the structure to do so. This school is proactive and wants to develop a long-lasting cricket culture for years to come

Finest moment on the field The U14s making the Worcestershire County Cup final

Recent progress Developing a first ever girls’ cricket curriculum, programme and pre-season What’s changed in the last 10 years? The school has introduced a thorough cricket pre-season and winter coaching programme that has enabled more pupils to access the sport

Future plans Ambitious plans to develop two or three cricket squares on school-owned farmland

U13 sides

What’s changed in the last 10 years? Investment in facilities means they are now recognised as a centre of excellence. An increase in midweek and Saturday fixtures has meant more pupils have been able to experience competitive cricket in their 16 teams

Future plans A £1.8m project looking at improving the school’s facilities including the cricket pitch drainage, re-setting of the top square, extending the pavilion and building a 2G floodlit AstroTurf which will be used for their C/D team softball fixtures and training

Brief history Cricket has been played at Old Swinford Hospital since the 17th century. It is the school’s summer

READING SCHOOL

Erleigh Rd, Reading RG1 5LW

Established 1125

Number of pupils 1,104

Head of cricket Andrew Robertson

Teams Boys: 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, U15AB, U14AB, U13AB, U12ABC

Girls’ cricket Reading is an all-boys’ school, but partners with the local girls’ school The Abbey, playing fixtures against them on a regular basis and hosting mixed tournaments

Fixtures More than 75, including MCC

Facilities New modern cricket nets (two lanes), a 13-pitch grass wicket, astroturf wicket and a modern pavilion with catering facilities Club/county affiliation Berkshire Cricket Foundation

Best prospect Abdullah Abid, who is currently involved with the Hampshire set-up. He is an opening batter, who has taken Reading teams to the next level, scoring multiple hundreds for the 1st XI and yeargroup sides

Cricketers of note Tom Dollery (England, Warwickshire), Norman Harding (Kent), Tom Burrows

SHENFIELD HIGH SCHOOL

Alexander Ln, Shenfield, Brentwood CM15 8RY

Established 1962

Number of pupils 1,530

Director of sport Garry Sapsford

Teams Boys: U18, U17, U15, U14, U13, U12 Girls: U17, U15, U13, U12

Girls’ cricket Shenfield enter the Mid Essex and Essex Cup competitions

Fixtures 65 fixtures across the 10 teams, including MCC

Facilities Two outdoor astro nets, two indoor nets, and an astro match wicket. They also use Hutton CC and Shenfield CC for matches

Club/county affiliation Essex CCC, Hutton CC, Shenfield CC

Best prospect Sam Bear was selected to travel with the Essex first team squad for their pre-season tour to Abu Dhabi

Cricketers of note Mady Villiers (England Women, Sunrisers, Oval Invincibles), Matt Salisbury (Leicestershire, Essex, Durham)

Brief history The Shenfield Cricket Academy programme started in 2013 and with the support of

(Hampshire)

Brief history Cricket has been played at the school for at least 200 years. In the school’s early games, the team was strengthened by staff as the student body only consisted of around a hundred. The Old Redigensian Cricket Club was formed in 1923, and played at a nearby ground in Sonning. The school still has links to the ground’s current owners, Rams RFC What sets the school apart? The

commitment and desire for cricket around the school means Reading regularly beat local private schools thanks to the commitment to school cricket from all year groups

Finest moment on the field

Inaugural Toby Radford Trophy Cup final winners 2023

Recent progress Building brandnew state-of-the-art nets has allowed pupils to have more opportunities within lessons and after school

internationally recognised Level 3

coach Cath Dalton over the last 11 years, they have become one of the outstanding state schools for cricket in the country

Cultural cricketers Philip Hammond

(Ex-Chancellor of the Exchequer), Ross Kemp (actor), Richard Madeley (TV presenter), Chris Whelpdale, Frankie Kent and Lawrie Wilson (professional footballers) What sets the school apart?

What’s changed in the last 10 years? Reading pupils have a love and a passion for the game which has transitioned into more fixtures – meaning the number of teams they are putting out has increased dramatically

Future plans A new sports hall which includes indoor cricket nets. Continued mentoring and coaching within local primary schools

Tours South Africa (2025)

Shenfield were one of the first state schools to be recognised with an annual fixture against MCC Finest moment on the field

Winning two national Chance to Shine cricket titles (2015 & 2017 for U15 girls). Reaching the U17 National Schools Cup semi-final in 2017, beating Bedford School in the quarter-final before losing a nailbiting semi-final to Millfield

Recent progress They are proud to be one of the only state schools regularly competing in the U18 National T20 and U17 National cricket competitions

What’s changed in the last 10 years? In 2014 Shenfield High School had a smaller intake and had just started their Cricket Academy programme. Since then they have run annual pre-season tours (outside of Covid era) and biennial overseas tours. Girls’ cricket has become increasingly popular with more than 30 girls regularly attending the training sessions that Shenfield run before school and after school

Tours Cape Town, South Africa (2025)

TOP 25 STATE SCHOOLS SIMON

SIMON LANGTON GRAMMAR SCHOOL FOR BOYS

Langton Ln, Nackington Rd, Canterbury CT4 7AS

Established 1881

Number of pupils 1,250

Director of sport Paul Lyttle 1st XI coach Jack Gooding Teams Boys: 1st XI, 2nd XI, U17, U15, U14, U13AB, U12AB

Girls’ cricket There are girls in the sixth form who excel at cricket, playing in the cricket academy and school ﬁxtures

Fixtures 60 on average, including MCC

Facilities Two cricket pitches: one grass and one astro wicket. A cage net and two astro nets which are situated on the ﬁeld. In addition, there are four indoor nets in the sports hall.

Best prospect Ollie Curtiss, a current Kent academy player. He is captain of the Kent U18 side and has made multiple appearances this year for Kent 2nd XI

SOUTH DARTMOOR COMMUNITY COLLEGE

Established 1965

Number of pupils 876

Head of cricket Rob Pryke

Teams Boys: 1st XI, U15, U13 Girls: U15, U13

sports at South Dartmoor, built on a culture of practice and dedication throughout autumn and spring terms which readies them for a summer of competition and success. The college has won three national titles and has several students representing the county

Cultural cricketers Ollie Watkins (England footballer), Josh Widdicombe (comedian)

Cricketers of note Simon Cusden (Kent, Derbyshire), Steve Goldsmith (Kent, Derbyshire)

Brief history Cricket is and always will be a massive part of Langton sport in the summer terms and the school has worked hard on developing facilities each year to best allow the pupils to develop

What sets the school apart? The pupils’ willingness to play and to strive to better. At any given moment the pupils are playing cricket – at break, at lunch, one-hand-one-bounce games – any opportunity to play, they will Finest moment on the ﬁeld Playing Westminster School at home in the last 8 of the National Plate

Recent progress The new nets that have been installed add to the professionalism of Langton cricket What’s changed in the last 10 years? Embracing developments in the game such as coloured kits and shorter formats, as well as supporting more aggressive and creative styles of batting

Future plans Live-streaming of matches and running indoor games during the winter

Girls’ cricket O ered to all year groups. The school enter competitions for both U13 and U15 age groups and are also the current Devon U15 Girls Chance to Shine champions

Fixtures Fixtures against local private and state schools, as well as MCC at Bovey Tracey CC

Facilities Four outdoor nets, four indoor nets and the use of Ashburton CC and Bovey Tracey CC Club/county a liation Ashburton CC, Bovey Tracey CC, Ipplepen CC

Best prospect Albie Bradley represents Devon at U14. A right-arm fast bowler and opening batter, who scored 74 not out against Somerset U14. Gethin Williams represents Devon at U15 level. A rightarm fast bowler who took 3-32 against Somerset. Owen Williams represents Devon at U12 level. A left-arm fast bowler and top order batter

What sets the school apart?

Cricket at South Dartmoor has become a thriving sport welcome to every student, with a dedicated coaching sta led by Rob Pryke and supported by Kallan Malone. Students at the school play high-level matches against top opposition, including MCC – an honour usually reserved for public schools

Brief history Cricket is one of the strongest

Finest moment on the ﬁeld South Dartmoor have won the national Chance to Shine indoor and outdoor competitions on there occasions for both boys and girls, and are also the current Devon U15 Girls Chance to Shine champions

Recent progress

Being able to engage young people with the sport, with 50 regulars at each session

What’s changed in the last 10 years? Now engaging more pupils than ever before and continue to support local clubs with players from the school

Future plans Taking pupils to Taunton to watch Somerset county games

Balland Ln, Ashburton, Newton Abbot TQ13 7EW

ST BARTHOLOMEW’S SCHOOL, NEWBURY

Andover Road, Newbury RG14 6JP

Established 1466

Number of pupils 1,900

1st XI convenor Richard Clayton

Deputy head of PE David Bateman

Teams Boys: 1st XI, U15, U14, U13, U12

Girls: U15, U14, U13, U12

Girls’ cricket Organised as part of

THE BISHOP’S STORTFORD HIGH SCHOOL

London Rd, Bishop’s Stortford CM23 3LU

Established 1950

Number of pupils 1,200

Head of cricket

Matthew Hale

Teams Boys: 1st XI, 2nd XI, U15AB, U14AB, U13AB, U12ABC

Girls’ cricket The school is limited as a state boys’ school until sixth form. Their ﬁrst female pupil played senior cricket this year

Fixtures 70, including MCC

Facilities Four-lane indoor nets, while o -site there is a separate sports facility at Jobber’s Wood which has a large modern pavilion, grass square and two artiﬁcial pitches

Club/county a liation

Essex CCC

Best prospect Harry Wren is a Year 8 top order batsman and right-arm medium pace bowler

Brief history Sport became a

the local schools’ West Berkshire league (timed overs format)

Fixtures Eight games at senior level per season, while younger years will have four league games plus the knockout county cup

Facilities Two artiﬁcial wickets and a sports hall with a bowling machine and four cricket lanes which, unusually for a state school, are of su cient length to be fully enclosed Club/county a liation Berkshire CCC

focus in the early 1980s. A sports hall with four net lanes opened in 1985, along with a pavilion. In 2001 the school opened a purpose-built osite sports facility at Jobber’s Wood, which has contributed to increased participation

Best prospect Seb Chapman in Year 12 and Poppy Camplin (also Y12) is in the Southern Vipers’ Emerging Players Programme

Cricketers of note Lauren Bell (England, Southern Vipers), Toby Radford (Middlesex, Sussex)

Brief history A non-selective, co-ed comprehensive since 1975, St Bart’s hosted six-day cricket weeks until the early 1990s - largely under the auspices of Mike Hart, who takes a keen interest in cricket’s fortunes at the school. In 2022, on the initiative of a group of Y12s, led by the inspirational Elliot Crouch, the school revived the 1st XI and will in 2024 play their 20th game at that level since the reboot

What sets the school apart?

Pioneering the Toby Radford Trophy for state schools at 1st XI level is bucking the trend in the sector Finest moment on the ﬁeld In 2022, Levi Butler snatched the game away from Reading School with 104 not out. This year, Leo Clark and Soorya Anbumurasoli put on 78 in six overs to defeat Reading School, while Leo Clark and Seb Chapman scored ﬁfties against Abingdon School 1st XI in the National T20 Cup

Recent progress The quality of the Y10s playing for the 1st XI and the calm authority of Seb Chapman’s captaincy, as well as his Michael Vaughan-like driving and pulling

Cultural cricketers

Lord Simon Stevens (former CEO of the NHS), Lucy Worsley (TV historian), Jack Thorne (dramatist), Robert Newton (actor)

Cultural cricketers Greg James (BBC Radio 1 DJ and host of the Tailenders cricket podcast) What sets the school apart? The vast majority of boys have never played the game before coming to the school. They have drawn heavily on

What’s changed in the last 10 years? A rebirth in cricket at school level and the enthusiasm and quality of the current Y10s bode well for the near future

Future plans To maintain the quality provision for cricket as a state school

former pupils who have been trained within the school and now work in a range of non-teaching roles while gaining additional qualiﬁcations in the sector

Finest moment on the ﬁeld Victory against the Prince of Wales College U19s in Sri Lanka in 2023

Recent progress To have had their ﬁrst senior female cricketer represent the school, and the continued growth of junior cricket, with more than 150 Year 7, 8 and 9 boys attending sessions before school

What’s changed in the last 10 years? Introducing an annual tour to Guernsey for U14 pupils each year. With increased playing numbers, they have now started senior touring again

Future plans The school relocated in the summer of 2024 so are starting fundraising with the view of installing outdoor nets to complement a new indoor facility

Tours Sri Lanka (2025), Guernsey (annual)

TOP 25 STATE SCHOOLS THE CANTERBURY

THE CANTERBURY ACADEMY

Knight Ave, Canterbury CT2 8QA

Established 2010

Number of pupils 1,833

Director of sport Phil Relf Teams Five

Girls’ cricket A junior side play the softball version of the game

Fixtures The 1st and 2nd XI play around 30 games with the addition of an overseas tour, this number has stretched to about 40 fixtures. The 1st XI play Whitgift School in pre-season and were invited into the Tonbridge School Festival this summer

Facilities Canterbury have no bespoke cricket facilities. Home fixtures are played at Polo Farm Sports Club and St Lawrence & Highland Court CC. The sixth form academy train at Polo Farm and Kent CCC Best prospect They have a number of young players in the county age group programme at Kent Cricket including 1st XI captain, Harry Fulton, a top order batter and off-spinner Cricketers of note Ryan Davies (Kent, Somerset, Durham), Alexa

THE JUDD SCHOOL

Brook St, Tonbridge TN9 2PN

Established 1888

Number of pupils 1,400

Head of cricket Chris Dobson

Stonehouse (South East Stars), Darcey Carter (Scotland), Jaydn Denly (Kent)

Brief history Cricket has flourished in the last three years, with the pinnacle being the under-17 team reaching The Cricket Paper National Final in 2022

What sets the school apart?

They are providing players with a genuine alternative to a private school cricket experience by enabling them to train daily and play regularly Finest moment on the field Beating Epsom College in the 2022 U17 regional final by one run

Recent progress Jaydn Denly earning a professional contract with Kent. Jaydn has been at the school since Year 7 and has progressed every year. He made his List A debut as a Year 12 student in 2023

Teams Boys: 1st XI and 2nd XI, U15ABC, U14ABC, U13ABC, U12ABC Girls’ cricket Offered in seniors (due to girls entering school in Y12). Any girls are welcome to train and join in the 1st and 2nd XI Fixtures 120 in total in 2024, including

What’s changed in the last 10 years? Cricket is now being played regularly across the summer term by the school’s senior sides. They did not have a team in 2014 and now run two senior teams so this represents an incredible shift.

MCC. Their busiest Saturday fixtures are against Reigate Grammar and Sutton Valence, along with blocks against Sevenoaks, Skinners’, St Olave’s and Tonbridge

Facilities An artificial pitch on their lower field for juniors, eight artificial nets and four-lane indoor nets in the sports hall for winter training. At their playing fields, Vizards, they have two grass squares (one with an artificial pitch) as well as a separate artificial pitch. There are also five artificial nets and roll out artificial pitch to use on their 3G facility

Best prospect Ekansh Singh, who made his Kent debut in 2024

Cricketers of note

David Fulton and Julian Thompson (both Kent) Brief history Cricket has been played at the school since it was established in 1888

Cultural cricketers Lord Terence Lewin (chief

They played their first alumni fixture this summer

Future plans They need to install purpose-built net facilities at the school to introduce more players to hardball cricket

Tours Sri Lanka (2026)

of the defence staff), Cecil Powell (Nobel laureate)

What sets the school apart?

Running a successful cricket programme alongside athletics in the summer is testament to the staff and those who commit to weekdays and Saturdays

Finest moment on the field Making the semi-final of the U13 National ESCA David English Cup in 2010

Recent progress The school entered B teams into the Kent Cup competition. which shows the strength in depth of the age groups. The Judd Premier League competition has enabled many pupils not involved in A-C fixtures to participate in competitive cricket in the summer, while the school also hope that new net facilities at school will allow for a rise in participation What’s changed in the last 10 years? Moving to new playing fields and being able to host four home matches on any given day greatly increased the school’s cricket potential. Dozens of pupils have represented the district and higher levels throughout their time at school Tours Barbados (2025)

THE SKINNERS’ SCHOOL

St John’s Rd, Tunbridge Wells TN4 9PG

Established 1887

Number of pupils 1,167

Director of sport

Will Burrows

Teams Boys: 1st XI, U15ABC, U14ABC, U13ABC, U12ABCD

Fixtures Over 100 matches are played across the summer including Tonbridge and MCC

Facilities A sports hall that allows five indoor nets, with access to two BOLA bowling machines.

Alongside HD cameras on tripods, they have the use of iPads that allow pupils to carry out peer video analysis during sessions. The main cricket square consists of nine match pitches and a block of five practice pitches, plus two artificial wickets used by younger age groups. Five retractable nets also allow pupils to take part in school indoor games and fielding

TIFFIN SCHOOL

Queen Elizabeth Rd, Kingston upon Thames KT2 6RL

Established 1638

Number of pupils 1,200

Master in charge Martin Williams

Professional Kapilan Balasubramaniam

Teams Boys: 19 in total Fixtures Upwards of 200, including MCC, Hampton and Reed’s Facilities No grass nets but eight

practise

Club/county affiliation Tunbridge Wells CC, Southborough CC

Best prospect U17 Ben Dawkins. A wicketkeeper/batter who has played for Kent 2nd XI

Cricketers of note Bob Woolmer (England, Kent)

Brief history Cricket at Skinners’ has been played for well over 100 years

outdoor artificial net surfaces plus four indoor nets. Four cricket squares regularly in use and the option of a couple of Flicx wickets

Club/county affiliation Surrey CCC Best prospect Otarvo Rao, who plays and captains the U13 side. With five half-centuries under his belt last year, he is a great prospect. He also bowls and keeps wicket Cricketers of note Alec Stewart England, Surrey), Gregor Kennis (Surrey. Somerset), Arun Harinath (Surrey), David Ottley (Middlesex),

What sets the school apart? The time and energy that academic staff put into the programme allows pupils the opportunity to play huge amounts of cricket. Their 1st XI play their highprofile games at the Nevill Ground in Tunbridge Wells, which hosts Kent games and is where Kapil Dev scored 175 in the 1983 World Cup against Zimbabwe

Chris Aworth (Surrey)

Brief history The school has existed for centuries but it was until the purchase of the beautiful grounds near Hampton Court in the 1960s that cricket really began to take off. The interest in the game is terrific and the coaching that takes place is relentless

Cultural cricketers Chris HeatonHarris (Former Northern Ireland secretary)

What sets the school apart? Tiffin just love playing cricket. In addition

Finest moment on the field U12A team making the Kent Cup final Recent progress The progress that the playing fields, Southfields, have made. The school are now producing excellent pitches and have invested heavily on improving the quality of the outfield too What’s changed in the last 10 years? They have moved from being a state school who focus on rugby and play a little bit of cricket, to a school that have successful programmes in both sports which has allowed them to get three teams at each age group. The school have invested heavily in their playing fields and two years ago built a £180,000 five-lane net facility

Future plans They are hopeful that the success of Y12 Sports Leaders running cricket initiatives for pupils lower down the school will only grow in the coming years

Tours UAE (2025)

to the regular school fixtures, there is an occasional Sunday Tercels XI and an Invitation Touring XI that takes to Devon at the end of every summer term. This is principally for staff and an increasing number of old boys Finest moment on the field Taking on and beating adult sides like Incogniti and MCC

Recent progress

The introduction of 7am nets for all age groups from Monday to Friday has generated enormous interest and allows Tiffin to field up to six age-group XIs What’s changed in the last 10 years?

While junior cricket has grown, senior cricket is suffering at the hands of examinations, parental pressure and the blight of T20 cricket. There is nothing wrong with the latter per se, but the declaration game has all but disappeared from 1st XI cricket. All-day cricket is almost a thing of the past Future plans There has been talk of a complete redevelopment of the ground, its squares and facilities for a number of years. They are still hopeful but the cash is wanting and local residents have scotched some of the more exciting plans

Tours Dubai (2025), Sri Lanka (2025)

TOP 25 STATE SCHOOLS

WALLINGTON COUNTY GRAMMAR SCHOOL

Croydon Rd, Wallington SM6 7PH

Established 1927 Number of pupils 1102 Master in charge Joe Henderson Teams Boys: 11 Fixtures 87, including an annual

WATFORD GRAMMAR SCHOOL FOR BOYS

Rickmansworth Rd, Watford WD18 7JF

Established 1704

Number of pupils 1400

Master in charge George Moore Professional Callum Taylor (Glamorgan)

Teams Boys: 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, U16, U15 ABCD, U14 ABCD, U13 ABCD, U12 ABCD

Fixtures 140 including St Albans, Haberdashers’ Boys, RGS High Wycombe and QE Barnet, plus MCC Facilities Recently renovated sixlane outdoor artiﬁcial nets to go along with a four-lane indoor net facility, three grass squares containing a total of 26 strips, two artiﬁcial strips, two grass practice strips and two pavilions Club/county a liation West Herts CC

Best prospect Leg-spinning allrounder Nikhil Nair is involved at Middlesex. He has averaged an impressive 97 with the bat for the 1st XI and nine with the ball Cricketers of note Will Jones

cricket week which includes senior ﬁxtures against the Forty Club, Wilson’s School, a Sta XI and an Alumnus XI

Facilities Three new outdoor astroturf nets installed this year, kindly funded by the PTFA, wlong with four indoor astroturf nets in their sports hall. House cricket competitions take place at Beddington CC, with home

(Middlesex), Andy Needham (Middlesex & Surrey)

Brief history Cricket has been played at Watford Grammar School for more than 130 years and continues to be the main summer sport at the school. Every boy participates in cricket in some form. The Ernest Household Pavilion is named a former 1st XI

ﬁxtures at the school and Walcountians Sports Club Club/county a liation The school have worked with external coaches from First Ball Academy, and in July hosted an exhibition ﬁxture where a mixed team of WCGS XI and First Ball Academy took on the British Army Royal Electrical & Mechanical Engineers

Recent progress The commitment and performances of senior cricketers, with 40-50 players regularly attending training and ﬁxtures, despite the challenges of navigating GCSE and A Level exam season What’s changed in the last 10 years?

Best prospect Sixth form student Ralph Dennis, who opens the bowling and bats at No.3

What sets the school apart? The school have struck a balance between playing for fun and engagement, with being extremely competitive Finest moment on the ﬁeld Last season, they were awarded the MJ Edwards Award for being the best performing state school in SSCA competitions

a of now on the card regularly Future a invitational sides like the Tours

The growth of cricket at Wallington County Grammar School over that period. In particular, the number of ﬁxtures now on the card compared to a decade or so ago with more B team matches. They are also pitted against more challenging opposition, more

Future plans They were very excited to host a British Army cricket ﬁxture in July this year, and look forward to playing matches against more invitational sides like the Forty Club Sri Lanka (2025)

captain who died in World War One Cultural cricketers Rugby union players Alex Lozowski (England & Saracens) Josh Lewsey (British Lions, England & Wasps) Tobias Elliott (England U20s & Saracens) What sets the school apart? The school regularly ﬁelding between six and 10 sides every Saturday and

in midweek against independent schools in Hertfordshire. The school has won seven titles in the past nine years. The commitment of sta provides the boys with the opportunity to play the game that they are passionate about Recent progress The increase in participatory cricket alongside a high performance pathway. Close ties with West Herts CC has allowed the school to utilise the expertise of Callum Taylor. A full winter programme across all age groups was greatly appreciated by the boys What’s changed in the last 10 years? Participation in the last 10 years has continued to grow and grow. They have seen the number of C and D team ﬁxtures almost triple and numbers involved in trainings are signiﬁcant. The school continues to invest in the programme, allowing access to new net facilities and the ability to employ top-quality coaches Future plans The school would like to introduce live-streaming in 2025 and plans are afoot to develop boys who are passionate about cricket o ciating Tours India (2025)

WILSON’S SCHOOL

Mollison Dr, Wallington SM6 9JW

Established 1815

Number of pupils 1312

Head of cricket John Fry

Teams Boys: 17 - 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, U17, U16, U15AB, U14AB, U13ABCD, U12ABCD

Fixtures 176. Notable ﬁxtures 1st XI matches against MCC and The Forty Club

Facilities Two indoor nets, ﬁve outdoor artiﬁcial nets, one grass square and one non-turf pitch Club/county a liation Sutton CC, Banstead CC

Best prospect Hard-hitting opener U17 Ansh Bansal, who also bowls legspin was selected for the Surrey CCC academy squad that toured Sri Lanka during the February half-term Cricketers of note Neil Kendrick (Surrey, Glamorgan)

Brief history Cricket has a longstanding tradition at Wilson’s School. The walls of the foundation building showcase team photos from previous decades and centuries when the school was originally located in Camberwell. The school maintain a strong link with the Old Wilsonians and many former pupils play a high standard in the Surrey Championship Cultural cricketers Sir Michael Caine (actor), John Galliano (fashion designer), Pascal Anson

(artist and designer)

What sets the school apart?

Wilson’s are extremely proud of the cricket provision they provide for state school pupils with extensive training and ﬁxtures across the full range of ages and abilities. Their programme produces high levels of participation and performance

Finest moment on the ﬁeld Victory over MCC in 2015 and a ﬁrst ever victory over Whitgift School, by 16 runs, in the 2021 National Cup

Recent progress The school has entered into the Surrey Cricket Foundation Indoor tournaments. Both the U13 and U15 sides got to Finals Day, with the U13 team winning the competition

What’s changed in the last 10 years? Participation levels have increased with the introduction of C and D teams. The construction of a ﬁve-lane outdoor net facility has given all boys more opportunity to practise during lunchtime and after-school sessions. They have fully qualiﬁed ECB Level 2 and 3 coaches who deliver cricket coaching to the boys in their games lessons and games afternoons all-year-round

Future plans They have entered B teams into the state school league organised by the Surrey Schools Cricket Association. This is a new initiative for B teams to play against state school A-team opposition

Tours Sri Lanka (2025)

WYMONDHAM COLLEGE

Golf Links Rd, Wymondham NR18 9SZ

Established 1951

Number of pupils 1,435 (565 boarders)

Director of cricket Richard Grove Teams Boys 1st XI, 2nd XI, U15AB, U14AB, U13AB, U12A Girls: 1st XI, U15, U14, U13AB

Girls’ cricket The girls’ cricket teams played their ﬁrst matches in 2017 and the 1st XI girls’ team played their ﬁrst match in 2022

Fixtures 70 – including MCC men and women

Facilities Three grass cricket squares, four indoor nets and six outside astro nets

Club/county a liation Great Melton CC, Swardeston CC, Rocklands CC, Great Ellingham CC, Brooke CC

Best prospect Niamh Rushton has represented all Norfolk CCC age group squads since Under 11 and also plays for Norfolk Women

Brief history Wymondham College was founded in 1951 in the buildings of a World War Two US army hospital. In 2010 the 1st XI boys played MCC for the ﬁrst time while the corresponding women’s ﬁxture was held for the

ﬁrst time in 2023

Cultural cricketers Rugby union players Will Evans (Harlequins) and George Worth (Leicester Tigers) What sets the school apart? They are the only state school in Norfolk to run a full Saturday fixture programme for all age groups from Year 7 to sixth form against local independent schools. 1st XI Boys’ and 1st XI Girls’ captains are siblings Corey and Niamh Rushton, while both senior teams designed their own T20 kits Finest moment on the field In 2022, the 1st XI girls in the last 16 of the National T20 competition, in their first season. They beat MCC the following season and made the Eclipse U17 National Plate semi-finals in 2024. In 2023, 1st XI boys made last 32 of the National U17 Cup and, in 2024, the T20 National Plate regional semi-finals

Recent progress Sixty girls have played this year and three female sta have taken their ﬁrst cricket matches, attending coaching and umpiring courses. They hosted the school’s ﬁrst 1st XI Girls Wymondham Cup T20 Tournament, which they won What’s changed in the last 10 years?

The biggest development has to be the progress and participation of girls’ cricket Future plans They hope to host more softball tournaments for local state schools and development of a fourth cricket square

TOP 25 STATE SCHOOLS YORKSHIRE

YORKSHIRE CRICKET COLLEGE

Headingley Stadium, St Michael’s Ln, Leeds LS6 3BR

Established 2017

Number of pupils 86 Director of cricket Matt Green Head of cricket David Wainwright Teams They currently have five teams. Four are mixed gender teams, based on ability, and one girls’ team Girls’ cricket There are currently 11 girls at the college. All the groups are a mix of boys and girls, but the girls have their own fixtures to go alongside the bulk of the fixture list

Fixtures Around 30 fixtures each summer including Myerscough College, Worksop College, Scarborough College, Northern Diamonds and Yorkshire CCC U17

Facilities Students train at the indoor centre at Headingley, which is used by Yorkshire and visiting international teams. They use local grounds for fixtures and training, mainly Kirkstall Educational CC. Students occasionally get the chance to train on the main pitch at Headingley

Club/county affiliation Yorkshire CCC

Best prospect Currently they have both Jawad Alam and Josh Hen

Boisen, who are both representing Yorkshire’s 2nd XI

Cricketers of note Sam Wisniewski (Yorkshire), Erin Thomas, Phoebe Turner, Jess Woolston, Grace Hall (Northern Diamonds), Curtis Sugden (Yorkshire Physical Disability)

Brief history The college started in 2017 with a cohort only large enough for one team. Since then the college has grown to 86 students, currently

offering both boys’ and girls’ teams

What sets the school apart?

Headingley is the venue for the Yorkshire Cricket College. As such, students regularly rub shoulders with Yorkshire players. Some have been selected to bowl against Yorkshire professionals in the nets

Finest moment on the field

Progressing to the regional finals of the U17 cup in 2023

Recent progress This is the first year where the college has been able to offer a full female team. This looks set

to grow into the next academic year with another 10-12 girls set to join

What’s changed in the last 10 years? Increase in students from 16 to 85 since 2017. There is now a new gym on site, specifically for the students

Future plans To expand its educational offer for 2024/25 with a BTEC business programme being implemented. This has allowed the college to offer more places than ever before, with around 60 joining the 24/25 intake

Tours South Africa (2025)

TOP 20 ALL-GIRLS SCHOOLS

MCG Test and domestic changes herald bright 2025 for women and girls

Despite a year of mixed fortunes at international level, former England international Lydia Greenway believes there is much to be excited about in the coming 12 months

It’s felt like a bit of a bittersweet year in 2024, but there’s so much to be proud of in women’s and girls’ cricket at the moment.

England’s failure to get out of the group stages at the T20 World Cup was a real disappointment, especially after such a brilliant summer of cricket at home.

The most disappointing thing was that there was a lot of belief, not just within the England side but externally too, that they could have gone on to do big things because they’ve performed really well in the last 18 months.

It was really tight and it did come right down to the wire with net run rate, but I’m sure they’ll take a lot of learnings from it now to build on in the future.

The summer was great. England were dominant and also tried to give opportunities to different players, as well as mixing things up a bit with Heather Knight not captaining the side on occasion and head coach Jon Lewis asking someone else to stand up at games too.

In terms of the broader picture, we’re seeing consistently big crowds watching women play. As someone who came from amateur level to semi-professional, and then professional, in front of less good crowds, seeing that is what really excites me the most at the moment.

This winter’s multi-format Ashes in Australia will also feature the Test match being played at the historic Melbourne Cricket Ground, where we could potentially get 40,000 people in to

watch a women’s game. That would be a phenomenal achievement.

It’s great that the Australians have been so ambitious with picking that venue and it shows the importance of boldness among decision makers within cricket. If they’re keen to support the women’s game then amazing things can be done.

The way the multi-format series is done is brilliant and the points system is much better now compared to how it used to be, whereby a victory in the Test match pretty much guaranteed a series victory. You get to play different formats in a relatively short space of time and I used to love that as a player because it was a real test for you.

The novelty of the Test match being at the MCG is nice, but sadly the question still remains as to how sustainable that format is in the women’s game.

The biggest change on the domestic front is the end of the regional era and the women’s game now being aligned with county cricket at the top level, which is a really good step in the right direction.

I was part of the project with the ECB to chat through the best way to move the women’s game forward and they’ve done a really good job of getting to the point where the game can grow even more.

The women’s domestic structure being on its own connected well to existing supporters of the women’s game, but being able to feed into the existing men’s structure gives us a great opportunity to convert county fans to follow their sides. If the teams are aligned well then it can bring a really good experience to both players and fans. I’m optimistic about it and hopefully it’ll only get bigger, although it’s disappointing for the counties who have missed out on tier one status despite having done so much

ABOVE

Lydia Greenway made 225 appearances for England across formats in a 13‑year international career

for their women’s teams. Hopefully in a few years they’ll be rewarded in the way they deserve.

The greater alignment with counties is also good news for young players. I do a lot of work with schools and clubs.

When I’m training teachers, it can get a bit confusing explaining the old system to them. Now it’s a lot clearer because it’s just county cricket, whether they’re dealing with boys or girls.

It’s really great that teachers will get that clarity, given the enthusiasm I’ve seen in schools and the changing attitude towards girls’ cricket since I started delivering teacher training courses in 2016.

The summer sport they used to care the most about was rounders and, come summer, the four posts would be out on the field. But now, I see how much has changed because they talk to me how their pupils have been playing softball cricket and they want them to progress into playing hardball games. They’re really enthusiastic and want to play their part in their pupils’ cricket journey, which is absolutely fantastic to see.

TOP 20 GIRLS SCHOOLS

CHELTENHAM LADIES’ COLLEGE

Bayshill Road, Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, GL50 3EP

Established 1853

Number of pupils 855

Head of cricket Fiona Najim Teams U12–U15AB, 1st XI

Brief history Cricket has always been an integral part of sport and physical activity at CLC. There are records dating back to 1809 when the then principal at the time wrote in her diary: “We have secured a playing field to supplement the garden attached to the houses, and have introduced, besides lawn-tennis, rounders, and even cricket.” This is now more commonly known as ‘Field’ and is the hub of the school’s sporting calendar

Facilities A 6-lane square on the main field, with junior fixtures on the Field; 3-lane indoor nets

Fixtures A standout fixture was hosting Woldingham College, who were on tour in Cheltenham, for an U15 T20 game; and the U13s welcomed Cheltenham Cricket club for a hardball pairs game

DENMARK ROAD HIGH SCHOOL

Denmark Road, Gloucester GL1 3JN

Established 1883

Number of pupils 981

Head of cricket James Schofield Fixtures Most notable is against King’s School, Gloucester Teams 4: U12, U13, U14 and U15. The state school also tries to enter an U18 hardball team into the School Sports Magazine National T20 competition Brief history Cricket at Denmark Road is all about giving the girls of all levels a chance to play as much cricket as possible. The more talented players play in the National T20 competitions, while the school also enters the Lady Taverners national indoor competition at under-13 and U15, the School Sports Magazine outdoor hardball competition at U15 (and U18 when possible), as well as other softball participation-based events

Facilities The school uses a variety of spaces to practise cricket: a small sports hall, the tennis courts, and a grass field

LADIES’

Club/county affiliation An established partnership with Gloucestershire County Cricket Club, and Cheltenham CC, who use the school’s facilities for winter training and summer matches

What sets the school apart? The driving force behind the programme at Cheltenham Ladies’ College is girls having positive experiences within sport. The school is fully committed to ensuring that every girl can find a sport or activity that they can do for

Future plans To provide extra training after school at the local indoor cricket school (part-run by one the school’s sports teachers)

life. A number of girls are involved with the GCB pathway and playing integral roles within the local club scene

Finest moment on the field The best moment was playing T20 hardball cricket in Barbados against their U19 national team

Recent progress Cricket participation continues to rise and the pupils have an innate desire to learn. The school predominantly plays softball for Under-12s but introducing

to allow keen club hardball players further opportunity to develop Club/county affiliation A partnership with Kingsholm CC

and developing hardball from U13 upwards

Future plans Continuing to engage pupils, giving them opportunities to challenge themselves, extending their cricket knowledge and gaining exposure to the hardball game

Tours After a successful trip to Barbados with netball and cricket teams, the school is looking forward to planning the next one and intent on running a cricket tour every four years

Best prospect Flossie Parsons (U13) an excellent allrounder who is in the Gloucestershire junior pathway. Former student Katie Jones made her debuts for the Western Storm senior team, and the England Under-19 team on their tour to Sri Lanka in April

What sets the school apart? Team spirit and the way the teams often have players from several year groups playing together; the older girls make the younger ones feel at ease

Finest moment on the field

Coming third in the country and being the only state school to make the National Finals at Lord’s in the Lady Taverners indoor softball cricket competition in May 2019

Recent progress The arrival of two other excellent club players on the teaching staff has allowed the school to be able to offer better quality coaching. In the past 10 years, the numbers of girls getting involved in cricket has grown massively. The school has gone from having one indoor and two outdoor teams to having four indoor and four outdoor teams playing softball and hardball competitions

DOWNE HOUSE SCHOOL

Hermitage Road, Cold Ash, Thatcham, RG18 9JJ

Established 1907

Number of pupils 600

Head of cricket Tash Dixon

Teams U12AB, U13AB, U14AB, U15AB, Senior XI

Brief history Cricket was established as a major summer sport four years ago, and has continued to go from strength to strength. Hardball is now played in every year group, with more participants in matches and practices than ever before

Fixtures All hardball ﬁxtures throughout the summer term, anywhere between 16–20. Most notable are local rivals St Swithun’s of Winchester

Facilities The school has a Flicx wicket in the absence of a full cricket strip. There is an outdoor net that is mobile. The school also has one additional grass wicket strip that is prepared each season – this is not a speciﬁc cricket wicket but is a good playing surface for younger year groups. There are also 2 new indoor

GODOLPHIN AND LATYMER SCHOOL

I ey Road, London W6 OPG

Established 1905

Number of pupils 800

Head of cricket Ellen Elﬁck

External coaches Mark Mason, Buddy Mason, Ian Tabor, Richard Zotov and Briony Brock Teams Softball – U12ABC, U13ABC, U14B, Hard ball – U12/13 combined, U14/15 combined, U18

Brief history The school’s extracurricular cricket club launched in 2005 with 30 girls and one coach, and now has more than 100 girls attending each week, with ﬁve coaches. The school also has an elite academy for gifted players. In 2017 cricket was introduced into the summer term curriculum replacing one unit of rounders, and now it is all cricket. The school has won the Lady Taverners U13 indoor competition in

nets, ideal for winter training

Future plans To build more indoor nets, and at least 2 outdoor cricket nets and for those to be permanent structures Club/county a liation A partnership with Chieveley CC, which the school has been using as its home ground

Best prospects Flora Hay and Charlotte Benson – both are Falkland CC players. Flora has also recently been selected for the Berkshire Girls Talent pathway What sets the school apart? Passion from the PE department

to drive cricket forwards. Far more girls are participating than ever before. More facilities have been built, with more money invested from the school and department Finest moment on the ﬁeld Scoring 202 for 3 against LWC in a T20, with fantastic innings from Benson and Hay Cricketing progress More people in the department teaching cricket than ever. Two new cricket nets indoors that mean girls can access winter nets for the ﬁrst time

Future plans To build links with Berkshire Talent Pathway, with more students being nominated. Build outdoor nets for girls and sta to use during lessons. This would allow for better preparation and quality sessions in lessons

2011, were runners-up in 2017, and for the last nine years it has represented Middlesex at the regional ﬁnals.

Hardball training is now a weekly feature with more than 30 girls. The U15s have hard-ball ﬁxtures only, and the amount of hard-ball matches for the U13s has been upped Fixtures 62 – 55 softball, 7 hardball.

Most notable the Lady Taverners indoor national competition and School Sports Magazine T20 competition

Facilities 4 nets in a sports hall, 3 astro pitches for softball, 1 indoor pitch onsite, a junior BOLA bowling machine

Future plans Encouraging any girl who wishes to develop the chance to train weekly in school. Alongside the club run by external coaches, a summer time only club for those girls who wish to try it out

Club/county a liation

Richmond CC, Spencer CC and Shepherd’s Bush CC. Mark and Buddy Mason run

the MCC girls’ section which gives many of the girls the opportunity to play competitive hard-ball cricket, and train indoors at Lord’s through the winter. A number of girls play county cricket, and also have great representation within the Hammersmith & Fulham London Youth Games squad

Best prospect An U14 who is part of the Sunrisers U18 emerging player programme

Cultural cricketers Gayatri Gole (Sunrisers) and Shimako Kato

(Japanese Women’s team)

What sets the school apart? The large number of girls who thrive playing cricket each week

Finest moment on the ﬁeld Being crowned national champions of the Lady Taverners indoor national ﬁnals 2024 with U15 and in 2011 with U13, while being runners-up in 2017

Cricketing progress More sta teaching cricket. The hard-ball programme, which was non-existent 10 years ago, now has 40–50 girls training in and outside of school

TOP 20 GIRLS SCHOOLS GUILDFORD

GUILDFORD HIGH SCHOOL

London Road, Guildford, SGU1 1SJ

Established 1888

Number of pupils 1000

Coaches Ben Collins (PE teacher/ cricket lead), Keely Harper (director of senior school sport) and Georgie Bell (director of junior sport) Teams U8ABCDEF softball, U9ABCDEF, U10ABCDEF, U11ABCDEF (all softball); U12ABCDE, U13ABCDE, U14ABCD, U15ABC (all softball and hardball)

Brief history Cricket has been an extra-curricular club for 9 years and from 2019 it has been a main curriculum sport. The school has grown from having 1 extra-curricular team to 39

Fixtures 6 softball pairs fixtures per year group; hosting U11 Surrey round against 2 local schools. Senior School: Weekly after-school fixtures plus U13 and U15s teams enter the Surrey Hardball Cups, and U15 the National Cup. The school runs an internal ‘festival’ every summer for each year group

Facilities 4 indoor and 2 outdoor artificial nets, one cage, 2 squares and a bowling machine

Future plans U11A and B teams may be given an opportunity to play hardball during curriculum lessons in 2025. All students from Years 7-10 are given option of hardball or softball Club/county affiliation Cricket for Girls – Lydia Greenway runs a yearly course for senior students. Also

hosted a Cricket for Girls Teachers

Inset. Surrey CCC take extracurricular practices during winter nets. Blackheath, Esher, Guildford, Horsley and Send, Merrow CCs. Hosting invitational tournaments for U10 & U11 local schools, state and private Best prospects Daisy Sutton (Year 8, left-arm swing bowler, plays for Surrey CCC U13s, Guildford); Zara Iqbal (Year 9, seamer, top-order bat, Esher); Sadie Hyner (Year 10, swing bowler, reliable batter, Blackheath CC); Liv Tufts (Year 11, allrounder, plays for Surrey CCC U16s and bowls fast, Weybridge CC)

Finest moment on the field In the junior school, giving students (160) the opportunity to play in matches against opposing schools. In the senior school, offering an extensive and ambitious programme to all pupils across Y7-Y10 to allow girls to prosper and develop skills

Recent progress Yearly CPD sessions for teaching staff, led by Lydia Greenway and her team; weekly CPD sessions led by Ben Collins. Teaching striking and fielding fundamentals in reception, Y1 and 2.

From Y3–Y10, delivering structured lessons and extra-curricular sessions during summer and winter

Future plans Continuing to develop partnerships with clubs and running taster sessions. Organising opportunity for junior girls to watch a senior fixture. Organising a school trip to watch a women’s pro T20

Tours Hampshire in 2024; La Manga or Desert Springs in 2025

KING EDWARD VI HIGH SCHOOL FOR GIRLS

Edgbaston Park Rd, Birmingham B15 2UB

Established 1883

Number of pupils 662

Director of sport Sarah Blanks

Head of cricket Joe Staite

Teams 6: U12AB, U13AB, U14, U15

Brief history Cricket has featured in the PE curriculum since 2014. Since 2021, cricket has become increasingly prominent, replacing rounders. The first hardball match was played in 2022. Cricket is now played all year round, leading to county and regional indoor success and a thriving fixture list across hard and softball cricket

Fixtures 50: 40 softball and 10 hardball

Facilities One grass pitch and fourlane indoor nets

Future plans Saturday matches to move to T20 hardball, to allow more pupils the opportunity to participate in hardball cricket competitively. Host a hardball festival for secondary schools in the area and introduce cricket into the sixth-form PE curriculum

Club/county affiliation Partnered with Warwickshire CCC to deliver participation programmes to local primary schools. Exploring how to expand the reach of cricket into the King Edward VI Foundation’s secondary schools. The Foundation educates one in 10 of Birmingham’s secondary-aged pupils. Local clubs and receiving University of

Birmingham coaching support

Best prospects Indira Singh: an allrounder, in February 2024 she toured Sri Lanka with the Warwickshire U15s and averaged 51 runs last summer. Most recently she had her first call up to the Warwickshire women’s 1st XI. Younger sister Anusha Singh (Warwickshire U13)

What sets the school apart? The school welcomes many girls each year who have not played cricket before, and seeing them develop a love for the game is a source of pride. The teams are representative of the diverse city that surrounds them Finest moment on the field U13s finished joint third in the ECB Indoor National Finals

Cricketing progress The refurbishment of the sports hall to include 4 indoor nets, which have supported the introduction of hardball matches for all teams, from U12–U15. Professional coaches, including Ian and Jonathan Trott, have taken co-curricular training sessions. In the 2024 season the school had a 163 per cent increase in the number of fixtures played compared to two years ago, with more participation in the sport at co-curricular level, as well as the development of the hardball game Future plans Discussions regarding the installation of an astro wicket and a sightscreen to be added to the playing square, and conversations around hosting a softball festival for local primary schools next summer Tours India in April 2026

LADY ELEANOR HOLLES SCHOOL

Hanworth Rd, Hampton TW12 3HF

Established 1710

Number of pupils 1,010

Head of cricket Chris Summers

Teams 7: U14A, U13ABC, U12AB. A teams are hardball and B & C softball

Brief history Cricket at LEH is in its fourth year. With the successes of the England women’s team since the World Cup win in 2017, there was a rise in pupils coming to the school who were playing club cricket. The school set about introducing softball and hardball fixtures, with a gradual progression of more students participating in the latter

Fixtures A minimum of five hardball fixtures per A team and five softball per B team

Facilities 4 pitches prepared, two moveable nets and a grass nets area

Future plans To engage an external coach to provide the higher-level

coaching for the hardball players and give more depth of knowledge for the students to draw upon. Entering more competitions to test the girls against new opposition

Club/county affiliation Bushy Park and Richmond CCs

Best prospects Several outstanding cricketers who represent Surrey, Middlesex, Berkshire and Rajasthan Royal Academy

What sets the school apart? It provides the opportunity for girls to learn, participate and compete in cricket. It has created a platform for students at different levels to engage in cricket and be challenged

Finest moment on the field

Setting a school record total of 178, and winning the Middlesex SCAM quarter-final

Recent progress The staff are picking up the game and working to improve their knowledge

Future plans Entering more competitions and more hardball B fixtures. Investing in equipment

LOUGHBOROUGH HIGH SCHOOL

Burton Walks, Loughborough LE11 2DU

Established 1850

Number of pupils 526

Head of cricket Alice Quemby Teams 7: U12AB, U13AB, U14A, U15A, Senior

Brief history Cricket at Loughborough High has developed greatly in the last few years, with all girls now having the opportunity to play during their games lessons. The extra-curricular club programme starts in the winter months and this year there has been focus on building up the fixture programme, but also offering both hardball and softball opportunities in the summer Fixtures 16 softball, 26 hardball

Facilities Indoor sports halls, indoor nets, outdoor nets, 5 pitches at the Quorn site, and 1st XI pitch on campus. Training at Loughborough Town CC

Future plans Continuing to offer both hardball and softball options in games lessons, and also upskilling new members of staff through internal and external CPD courses. Also plans to run a Girls’ Schools Association softball tournament next year Club/county affiliation Loughborough Town CC and Leicestershire CCC

Best prospects Prisha Thanawala (Year 12 offspinning allrounder) and Olivia Baker (Year 13 right-arm medium-fast bowler) are both in The Blaze Academy What sets the school apart? The passion and enthusiasm of the girls, playing with a desire to win but also with commendable sportsmanship and positivity. The cricket programme is inclusive and allows girls to progress at a suitable level with opportunities to be challenged

Finest moment on the field U13A team retaining the Team Leicestershire County Cup. U13 and U15 teams making the regional indoor finals, with the former finishing 4th

Recent progress Cricket started to come into the curriculum a few years ago and the momentum has built from there. All students from Years 7-13 have the opportunity to play cricket in games lessons. As part of the Loughborough Schools Foundation, the school has access to more facilities than ever before. The quality of the cricket is also increasing, with girls coming up from the prep school (Fairfield) having already played lots of cricket and some playing hardball Future plans The introduction of sports scholarships which will hopefully attract new players. Continuing to build links with local clubs

Tours A short-haul tour in the UK

TOP 20 GIRLS SCHOOLS

MALVERN ST JAMES GIRLS’ SCHOOL

15 Avenue Rd, Malvern WR14 3BA

Established 1893

Number of pupils 380 Head of cricket Hannah Leathart Teams U8, U9, U10AB, U11AB, U13ABC, U15AB, U18. Indoor U13 & U15

Brief history In recent years there were softball clubs, but in 2022 the decision was made that cricket would be the major summer game. Now it is the driving force of the summer term curriculum, and the extra-curricular clubs programme. Every pupil across the school participates in cricket and has the chance to represent the school

Fixtures 50, with nearly half hardball. Annual ﬁxture against Malvern College notable. Others against private and state schools

Facilities A Flicx wicket, and grounds team have cut and rolled additional strips on the playing ﬁelds

Future plans Next season all girls in Year 6 upwards will have the opportunity to play hardball while retaining softball cricket for all year groups

Club/county a liation The school has introduced a cricket outreach event for local primary schools. Next

MAYFIELD GIRLS SCHOOL

The Old Palace, High Street, Mayﬁeld TN20 6PH

Established 1872

Number of pupils 404

year girls’ cricket camps during the school holidays

Best prospect Emma Bowyer (Worcestershire CC U10 allrounder), Sophia Dix (Worcestershire CC U13 legspinner)

Cultural cricketers Cally Barlow (née Reece, 1956) is president of the Cheltenham Cricket Society, and used to score for Gloucestershire CCC

What sets the school apart?

Every girl at the school is involved in school cricket regardless of their starting point or level of ability

Finest moment on the field The U13s taking to the field for the first time to play a hardball T20 fixture, a special moment

Recent progress The introduction of hardball cricket for U11–U14 girls. All teachers involved in the delivery of cricket have had a full day of coaching development with Cricket for Girls. The school is in new equipment, upskilling sta and making the best of its facilities

Future plans Continuing to give girls as many opportunities as possible to play cricket. Investing in more hardball equipment. Developing links with other schools and clubs to facilitate the use of nets while the school awaits its own Tours Weekend trips around the UK

Head of cricket Jordan Walser Teams Lower school (Years 7/8) 4. Year 9 AB. Year 10 A. Seniors (Years 11–13) Up to 2 in each

Brief history Since being introduced in 2016, the cricket at Mayﬁeld has gone from strength to strength with more girls getting involved in ﬁxtures and training

Fixtures Around 20 hardball, plus a growing number of softball. Includes visit of MCC

Facilities 2 outdoor nets on astro, 1 artiﬁcial strip

Future plans To further develop hardball and softball programmes

Club/county a liation Bells Yew Green CC; the school sponsors the club, and in return can use their pitches and nets. The school also runs prep school and primary school tournaments to engage with the local community

Best prospect Florence York (a 13-year-old legspinner who represents Kent in her age bracket) What sets the school apart? The depth of the school’s programme, with girls playing hardball from under-12 all the way through to sixth form, in most cases putting out A and B teams across all year groups

Finest moment on the ﬁeld Every year the school hosts MCC

Recent progress The number of pupils participating is growing year on year. Most of the sta have been trained to score or umpire. As of last year, the school now has 2 nets on the astro which allow for more practice. The school now has an electric scoreboard on site along with a new boundary rope. The school has also bought new hardball equipment and kit

Future plans Working closely with local club and/ or county coaches.

To create player proﬁles for the more talented cricketers

Tours Dubai at alternate Easters, the next in 2025

JAMES

NOTTING HILL & EALING HIGH SCHOOL

2 Cleveland Rd, London W13 8AX

Established 1873

Number of pupils 905

Professional Juan Henri (head coach of Supreme Sports Coaching)

Director of sport Andy Bennett Teams 8 – U15, U14AB, U13AB,

PORTSMOUTH HIGH SCHOOL

25 Kent Road, Southsea, Portsmouth PO5 3EQ

Established 1882

Number of pupils 550 (senior and prep)

Head of cricket Rebecca VaughanWoods (Senior) & Louise Hall (Prep) Teams U8AB, U9AB, U10AB, U11ABCD, U12AB, U13ABC, U14, U15AB, 1st XI

Fixtures 60 including King Edward’s Southampton

Facilities Sports hall, a small, enclosed astroturf pitch at the prep school used for all aspects of cricket training

Club/county affiliation Train at Portsmouth CC and many girls are members there. Some pupils are also members at Havant CC, Portsmouth & Southsea CC and St Cross CC. The school hope to run a cricket outreach event in 2025

Best prospect Darcey Clarke (St Cross CC, Hampshire U18s Women and Hampshire Women). Opening batter averaging 40. Opening bowler,

U12AB, U11

Fixtures 32 fixtures in 2023/24

Facilities Indoor nets, two recently installed Club/county affiliation

Partnerships with quality local coaches and clubs, including Trailfinders Sports Club, that enable the school to run an extensive year-round coaching programme. A close collaboration with Supreme Sports Coaching. Some senior girls

also contribute to local cricket clubs as part of Duke of Edinburgh Award requirements

Best prospects Allrounder Lilly Bachir (U15 Middlesex team & Ealing CC). Middlesex junior age group players Joanna Dizayee, Hannah Dizayee, Manpreet Gill, Lana Gandhi, Nishka Patel, Suhana Chahal, and Zaineb Ferozuddin Cricketers of note Jenny Dawson left in 2022 and is now playing for Middlesex U20 women

Brief history In 1887, fearless 13-yearold Georgina Walrond convinced the headmistress to allow girls to play cricket. The first team won their debut match against Princess Helena College. In 2017, cricket re-started at NHEHS with eight trailblazing girls. By 2019, participation had grown, and pupils had one weekly after-school session in autumn and spring, and three in summer. The U12s and U13s won the Lady Taverners’ Cricket Tournament in 2022/23 and came third and second respectively in 2023/24

What sets the school apart? It is not uncommon for the strongest U12 and U13 players to participate in U15

hardball cricket matches

Finest moment on the field

Qualifying for the U13 Middlesex Schools Hardball finals this year. In recent years, success at the U12, U13, and U15 Lady Taverners’ Indoor Cricket tournaments, consistently finishing in the top 3. Winning the U15 Lady Taverners’ Indoor Cricket Tournament

Recent progress Transitioning from softball to hardball cricket. Many have also joined local cricket clubs. To support this growth, coaching induction days to enhance the cricket delivery skills of the sports staff. Three sixth formers have enrolled in Level 1 coaching and coach support workers courses, demonstrating a commitment to developing coaching expertise within the community

What has changed in the last 10 years? Since cricket was re-started in 2017, participation has grown from a handful of girls to approximately 70 practising hardball and softball across five weekly sessions. They have also included hardball training in Year 7-9 PE lessons

Future plans A greater focus on hardball cricket

medium-fast inswinger

Brief history The prep school started including cricket in their curriculum in 2019 while competitive cricket was started in 2022. The fixture programme has grown significantly with cricket featuring throughout the PE curriculum

What sets the school apart?

The school run what is now an annual trip to the Utilita Bowl to expose pupils to high-level cricket. The most successful players are part of the GDST Select XI, made up of the best U18 players from the 25 schools in the Trust

Finest moment on the field

Progressing to the second round of the U18 School Sports Magazine National Cup, winning the first-round game against KES in the last ball of the final over

Recent progress The level of engagement from the lower end of the senior school and the sheer number of playing opportunities What has changed in the last 10 years? In both prep and senior school they have been increasing the number of teams and competition entries Future plans Keen to install nets in

the sports hall. From U8 through to U11 the focus is mostly on softball pairs games. This season they entered a U13 team into the Hampshire cup and next season expect to enter two teams in the U15 cup and one into the U13 cup. They have increased the number of hardball friendly games so every age group from U13 to senior has at least one hardball fixture in the season. They hope to add a U12C, U14B and 2nd XI in the next couple of seasons. These teams will play either soft or hardball depending on their experience and interest

Tours Dubai in October 2025

TOP 20 GIRLS SCHOOLS

PUTNEY HIGH SCHOOL

35 Putney Hill, London SW15 6BH

Established 1893

Number of pupils 740 in senior school, 1,060 including junior school and Sixth Form

Head of cricket Emile Ellston

Professional Alastair Fraser (Middlesex, Essex), Joe Allen (former ﬁrst-team coach at Millﬁeld) is a maths teacher who helps run the cricket programme Teams 12 softball: U12ABCD,

U13ABCD, U14ABCD; 6 hardball: U12AB, U13AB, U14, U15, U18

Fixtures Girls choose whether to follow a hardball or softball pathway and can play both if they want to. Nets start for all hardball cricketers in October and the school transition students from softball to hardball in beginner hardball nets. They have a busy ﬁxture list for all years and levels entering all Surrey hardball and softball competitions and the School Sports Magazine Cups for U19 and U15

PUTNEY HIGH SCHOOL // ROEDEAN SCHOOL

Facilities 2 indoor nets allowing for hardball cricket to be played year-round Club/county a liation Access to local facilities, working around London school limitations. Have used Barn Elms, Roehampton Playing Fields and Wimbledon CC. The opportunity to use the ﬁrst-team hybrid pitch at Wimbledon CC for cup matches. To get as many pupils playing as possible, improving conﬁdence for them to transition on to hardball but also facilitating softball. A good winter hardball programme

Best prospect

An increasing number of girls in Surrey and Middlesex programmes

Brief history

Competitive cricket replaced rounders at the school six years ago, with all pupils

ROEDEAN SCHOOL

Roedean Way, Brighton, East Sussex BN2 5RQ

Established 1885

Number of pupils 700

Head of cricket Mike Smethurst (Lancashire)

Professional Umar Amin (Pakistan) Teams 18: 1st XI, 2nd XI, U15ABC,

U14ABC, U13ABCDE, U12ABCDE. For training, 31 squads play cricket during their Games or PE lessons

Fixtures 40 hardball ﬁxtures, 26 softball. Notable ﬁxtures are the 1st XI v MCC and Sussex Martlets

Facilities For training, 3 indoor nets, 2 outdoor astro wickets with cages, 6 grass nets, 1 grass square. For ﬁxtures, 2 astro wickets, 1 grass square plus softball ﬁxtures on the hockey astro.

now playing cricket as one of the major summer term sports

Finest moment on the field In 2024 took part in the ECB Schools Indoor Cricket competition for the first time. They successfully got two teams to the regional finals

Recent progress The school ran a very successful winter net programme which has led to increased participation rates for the summer term What has changed in the last 10 years? Putney run full hardball and softball programmes for all year groups, and run many clubs before, during and after-school

Future plans Looking forward to the future with plans to run cricket pre-seasons in the Easter holidays. This will give girls a chance to brush up on their skills heading into the summer term. They are increasing the publicity of cricket ﬁxtures at the Wimbledon club as the matches are now being live streamed and externally umpired for a professional feel. This gives those who cannot attend the match a chance to watch online

Summer 2024 saw the installation of an 8 metrehigh net along the southern edge of the cricket pitch which allows hosting of U12 and U13 hardball ﬁxtures for the ﬁrst time in years Club/county a liation Informal partnership with Rottingdean CC to use their ground. Discussions underway about opening up facilities to local clubs for use out of term-time

Best prospect Maria Veness (Year 13), a hardhitting top order batter and wicketkeeper, very strong against the short ball Cricketers of note

Celia Robinson coached cricket at Roedean between 1949 and 1981 and toured Australia with the England women’s team in 1963/64

Brief history Records of cricket exist from 1889

What sets the school apart?

A strong history with Sussex women’s cricket. It was previously the venue for squad trials and ﬁxtures as the women’s game was beginning

to develop

Finest moment on the field The once-annual Lords v Commons fixture, where MPs and Lords would come to Roedean to play each other Recent progress Several very close fixtures, being won or lost by less than 10 runs

What has changed in the last 10 years? Roedean have progressed to having 10 hardball teams and 8 softball teams playing almost 70 ﬁxtures between them. They have an additional 13 groups playing softball cricket socially, out of choice. Hardball and softball kit and equipment has been purchased for all, along with coaching equipment to support players and coaches. They have installed 6 grass nets and 2 astroturf wickets, purchased 2 batting cages and erected an 8m-high net to allow more ﬁxtures

Future plans Finding enough hardball ﬁxtures at U12B and U13B team level is important to develop early experience. All Roedean B teams train hardball, but not all schools can currently accommodate hardball U12 and U13B team ﬁxtures Tours Very likely in future years

SHERBORNE GIRLS’ SCHOOL

players). A winter net programme year-round with strong links to local clubs

SOUTH HAMPSTEAD HIGH SCHOOL

3 Maresﬁeld Gardens, London NW3 5SS

Established 1876

Number of pupils 965 (junior 265, senior 700)

Bradford Road, Sherborne, Dorset DT9 3QN

Established 1899

Number of pupils 492

Head of cricket James Bell Teams 9 Teams: 2 senior, U15, U14B, U13AB, U12AB, plus softball matches and indoor

Fixtures 65-plus across the term across the 9 teams, three of those playing 8 softball ﬁxtures. Most notable would be Ryde’s of the Isle of Wight

Facilities 2 grass net cages set up with county dividers, 4 cricket pitches, 2 indoor net batting cages, 1 BOLA machine, 2 feed buddies, 2 Flicx wickets and a warm-up batting divider net

Club/county a liation Linked with the local club where several senior girls use their own free time to lead sessions for U8-U14s. They also play ﬁxtures with lots of the junior state schools to encourage girls ﬁxtures

Best prospect Emma Phillipson –wicketkeeper/batter for Western Storm EPP and Somerset women. She is currently playing for boys’ schools teams

Brief history Cricket has been played at Sherborne Girls’ School since 2019. Competing in T20 and 100-ball format ﬁxtures as well as developing hardball introduction to cricket ﬁxtures (adaptive formats for new

What sets the school apart? The cricket programme is specifically tailored to girls. They have strength and conditioning for all players and have purchased bats to allow for lighter weights but still with a solid middle. The clothing has been picked out by the girls moving away from white bottoms to tailored blue Finest moment on the field Getting to the third round of the T20 U18 cricket cup with most players in Year 10. Finishing 3rd in Dorset indoor county finals

Recent progress The school have just had cricket nets ﬁtted to the sports hall. This has allowed for greater contact year-round as well as encouraging girls to play shots. Alongside this they have introduced 3 new members of sta within the department with varied cricket knowledge, but built them up throughout the year to lead year groups

What has changed in the last 10 years? In 5 years they have built a programme from scratch to 9-10 teams. With girls training year-round, playing in teams with the local boys’ school

Future plans The school are identifying a section of space to develop and build 4 artiﬁcial batting cages to allow for more external netting to take place. Work with the local schools to develop a junior festival

Head of cricket Dominic Learoyd Professional Mubasher Hassan (Hampstead CC)

Teams Junior school: two teams in Year 4; four teams in Year 5 and 6. Senior School: two teams in Year 7; two softball teams and a hardball team in Year 8 (who competed in the Middlesex competition); two softball teams, plus several play in the U15 hardball team; two softball teams and a hardball team in Year 10 Fixtures 48 hardball and softball ﬁxtures including Wellington College and Kingston Grammar Facilities A Premier League pitch with a fantastic wicket and three nets. On the senior school site, an indoor sports hall and MUGA for year-round training sessions

Club/county a liation A strong partnership with Hampstead CC, who have hosted a junior cricket day and provided coaching. Many senior school pupils play for local clubs, including Hampstead and Primrose Hill

squad); Alice (North Middlesex, Middlesex U15 and U18, Sunrisers)

Cricketers of note Netta Rheinberg (England Women)

Brief history In the 1990s, the school purchased the grounds of Hampstead CC. They now have U13 and U15 hardball teams competing in matches; a number of players playing at county level; a newly appointed head of cricket; and year-round clubs to support development

What sets the school apart? A long legacy of championing women’s cricket and continuing to inspire the next generation. In 2020, the school established a new Sports Scholarship programme and have appointed several cricket scholars

Finest moment on the field In 2024 the U15s reached the Sports Magazine quarter-finals, the 100-ball national cup last 16, and they qualified for the GDST national cricket finals in July, unbeaten in the London group stage

Best prospect Dia (Hampstead CC, Middlesex U15 and U18, Sunrisers development

Recent progress The head of cricket coached the GDST U18 Select XI against the MCC in 2023 and 2024

What has changed in the last 10 years? Six years ago cricket once again became a core summer sport at the school, plus indoor ﬁxtures run all year. They currently have four players in the Middlesex set up. Top cricketers across the GDST trial for the select squad to play against their icons at MCC Women

Future plans Preparing younger pupils for hardball cricket in the senior school. Build a hardball team for each senior year group

TOP 20 GIRLS SCHOOLS ST CATHERINE’S SCHOOL,

ST HELEN & ST KATHARINE SCHOOL

Faringdon Rd, Abingdon, Oxfordshire OX14 1BE

Established 1938

Number of pupils 717

Head of cricket Sam Herbert Teams 15 – U18A, U17A, U15A, U14AB, U13ABC, U12ABC, U11ABC, U10AB

Fixtures 53, including the annual Saturday block with Haileybury Facilities Built nets in their sports hall in April 2022, used three mornings per week

Club/county affiliation The school run a programme with the OX14 Partnership, where teachers (from multiple sports) go out to local primary schools and provide a six-week block of PE. They hosted a cricket skills festival day with the Manor Prep School (next door), organised by SHSK staff, an Oxfordshire half-term skills workshop in October 2023, and Oxfordshire’s women and girls’ pathway sessions through the whole winter. Oxon GU18, GU15, GU13 and GU12 had

BRAMLEY

ST CATHERINE’S SCHOOL, BRAMLEY

Station Road, Bramley, Guildford, Surrey GU5 0DF

Established 1885

Number of pupils 900

Head of cricket Tamsyn White Teams U12-14 A-F softball, U12-U15 hardball

Fixtures U15 Hardball SSMC entry

Facilities At St Catherine’s itself, 4 grass pitches used for both training and fixture purposes. They are fortunate enough to use the facilities at Bramley CC in addition

Club/county affiliation The school facilitates Blackheath CC indoor nets each Friday evening. Many girls train and play with the club

Brief history St Catherine’s started cricket in 2020. Since then the sport has developed tremendously and the school now offer softball and hardball teams at each year group. As a school they enter the Surrey Schools Cricket Association leagues with both softball and hardball and this year for the first time entered the U15 School Sport Magazine Cup in hardball

Finest moment on the field U15 Hardball entry into the SSMC. This is the first time entering this event and the team (made of Years 7, 8, 9 & 10) progressed to the third round

Recent progress The development of hardball teams, particularly from Year 7 upwards

What has changed in the last 10 years? More girls playing cricket than ever before, and more representing Surrey too Future plans Development plans include the potential to invest in nets to further develop cricket skills, in particular hardball bowling and batting

exclusive use of new nets

Best prospect Sophia Hanson (Year 11), currently playing for Jersey Women, a seam-bowling allrounder debuted for Oxfordshire Women in 2023

Brief history Cricket has grown hugely over the last four years. St Helen & St Katharine now have multiple players playing at regional and one at national level, with huge numbers in Oxfordshire’s pathway What sets the school apart?

Pioneering girls cricket in the county, taking a lead on developing a successful cricket programme in girlsonly schools. This year the school hosted a masterclass afternoon with

Dani Gibson. Gibson and Lauren Bell attended SHSK Sports Awards

Evening and were interviewed by a panel of sports captains and scholars

Finest moment on the field Last year they won both U13 and U15 ECB

Schools Indoor competitions and this year progressed into a National U17 Cup quarter-final

Recent progress Growth in both participation and performance across the school, putting more teams out.

The school now have multiple staff confident in running hardball fixtures, and running curriculum lessons

What has changed in the last 10 years? From cricket not existing then,

they have 15 teams, indoor nets, links with local clubs and schools and a dedicated head of cricket

Future plans To install two hybrid squares at the Church Farm site across the road. They have introduced hardball aspects (mostly fielding) into the PE curriculum. The softball programme is mostly targeted at B and C teams. Continue to grow relationships with local primary schools, hosting festivals and events as well as offering more cricket programmes as part of OX14 partnership

Tours 2024 – Bradfield U15 tour, plus Sri Lanka

ST SWITHUN’S SCHOOL, WINCHESTER

Alresford Road, Winchester, Hampshire SO21 1HA

Established 1884

Number of pupils 552 (senior), 220 (prep)

Head of cricket Sara He ernan Teams 1st XI, U15AB, U14ABC, U13AB, U12AB

THE MARY ERSKINE SCHOOL

Ravelston Dykes Road, Edinburgh, Scotland EH4 3NT

Established 1694

Number of pupils Around 750

Head of cricket Caroline Heron

Professionals Hannah Short (head coach), Tom McBratney (assistant coach), Kari Carswell (assistant coach, also Scotland U19

Fixtures Block friendly fixtures every weekend and friendly fixtures for B teams to help hardball development. Touring matches against Guildford and Blundell’s Schools and also teamed up with Winchester to play a fixture against their boys’ teams. Notable fixtures include Epsom, King Edward’s Southampton, Lord Wandsworth, Downe House, Twyford Facilities Another artificial pitch added, giving St Swithun’s two cricket

women’s coach)

Teams U18, U15, U14AB, U13AB, U12AB, U11AB, U10

Fixtures 39 across all year groups, excluding Scottish Cup ties for U18 and U15 seniors

Facilities An excellent indoor facility with 6 batting nets. The school host softball matches on the 2 astro turf pitches. They also purchased a Flicx wicket laid at the school site over the summer months. A hardball festival hosted for the second year in a row on

pitches on the front fields. A three-lane outdoor net just finished Club/county a liation Hampshire and Southern Vipers. The school ran three teacher inset training sessions. Pupils benefited enormously from coaching sessions with visiting Vipers players Best prospect Eliza Bristowe – an extremely promising allrounder who is part of the Southern Vipers EPP. They now have 11 pupils across five age groups involved in the Hampshire set-up – an increase of 120 per cent in one year Cricketers of note Lucia Kendall played England representative cricket before going on to sign a professional football contract with Southampton FC. She has since played for England U23s. Former pupil Emma Phillipson now plays for Somerset Women Brief history Cricket was introduced to the school in 1912. Learie Constantine visited in the 1930s to coach some pupils What sets the school apart? St

the main square

Club/county a liation Stewart’s Melville CC play an integral part to Mary Erskine’s success. Hannah Short delivers all sessions from U10-U18 in the summer term. The SMCC also support a local primary school which some pupils have been invited to help with the running of their sessions

Best prospect Emily Duguid (age 15) plays for SMCC women’s team and Scotland U19

Cricketers of note Katherine Fraser and Hannah Rainey, part of the Scotland team who qualiﬁed for the Women’s T20 World Cup for the ﬁrst time

Brief history The Mary Erskine cricket programme was set up in 2015 by PE teacher, Pippa Johnson, with the support of Cricket Scotland and coaches from Stewart’s Melville CC, headed up by former pupil David Gibson

What sets the school apart? An excellent pathway for softball and for those who would like to progress to hardball. 90 girls are playing from U10-U12; 60 from U13-U18

Finest moment on the ﬁeld Both U15 and U18 teams making it to the

Swithun’s believe they have the best cricket facilities of any girls’ school in the region. At break and lunchtimes the sports hall is full of girls coming along to practise and games are regularly being played outside Finest moment on the field Qualified for the ECB Indoor Schools competition national finals twice, finishing as runners-up in 2019 Recent progress This year they introduced U18 training on a Monday evening for the top players in the school. Developing B-team hardball teams and ensuring they have had fixtures. Up-skilled sta with inset training sessions from Vipers players and director of women’s cricket in the South Central region, Adam Carty What has changed in the last 10 years? Cricket now embedded into the heart of the school, the number of teams always growing Future plans Looking to develop a 2nd XI senior team. The addition of outdoor nets will further improve hardball provision. Exploring options for an indoor sporting dome on-site Tours Invited to 2025 Epsom invitational U18 tournament, run over three days

Scottish Cup Finals Day. In 2023 the school hosted their ﬁrst ever hardball festival on the main wicket at Inverleith

Recent progress Attracting Kari Carswell to take up a coaching role at the school. The sta have learned huge amounts from her. Many senior pupils support the programme in the younger years, attaining coaching qualiﬁcations which will further enhance their ability to deliver engaging and fun sessions

What has changed in the last 10 years? From zero ﬁxtures to many across di erent age and ability groups, hard and softball

Future plans

To support local schools in the area to start a club of their own Tours Made their ﬁrst tour to Newcastle to play RGS, a ﬁxture they wish to continue

TOP 50 PREP/JUNIOR SCHOOLS

A teacher at prep school can inspire a lifelong love of something.

Graeme Riley did that for me at Woodbridge, in Su olk. He was an accurate, canny seam bowler, a good club cricketer. As well as playing cricket in games lessons with us, he also sacriﬁced the mugs of tea, smoke and tittle-tattle of the sta room to play bat and ball with us in his morning and lunchbreaks.

I’d played a bit, with my friend in the garden. This was the ﬁrst time with a hard ball, though. Mr Riley taught us how to buckle our pads, what to look for in a good bat, how to play a solid forwarddefence, how to catch (none of us will forget those terrifying games of ‘Chicken’), and how to bowl… Looking out of the window in double maths and hearing the mower power up was a joyous feeling. At the end of the season, Riley presented

us with a sheet of lovingly crafted averages, which I still have to this day (below). That thing of beauty has inspired me to produce something similar for most of the teams I have played in since.

A beautifully drawn grid had space for total runs, innings, highest (score), not outs, number of completed knocks, and average. The second sheet had similarly detailed stats for bowling.

U10AB, U9ABC, U8ABC

Lombard Street, Goldalming,

Surrey GU8 6AS

Established 1877

Number of pupils 240

Director of sport Guy Drayton

Teams Boys: 1st XI–5th XI, U11ABC,

Girls’ cricket Yes, throughout the school: U12AB, U11AB, U10AB, U9AB, U8A

Fixtures 1st XI played 13 plus one cancelled last season

Facilities 3 indoor nets, 6 outdoor, 2 squares, 2 Flicx wickets, 3 o -site venues

I am sure many of you have similar stories to tell. Take my hero, Graham Gooch. He talks about Douglas Kemp and Laurie Hall at Cann Hall Mixed Junior in Leytonstone, East London. The former England captain never forgot the duo’s passion for cricket, and the teaching of it. He sent a ruby wedding anniversary card to the latter in 1985, signed by the Ashes-winning England team.

Such happy days. I hope you have a Mr Riley, Mr Kemp or Mr Hall at your junior school.

Huw Turbervill

Club/county a liation Aldro has ties with Shackleford CC, Elstead CC, Peper Harow CC & Farncombe CC. Many boys involved with Surrey & Hampshire CCC pathway programmes

Best prospects

Henry Evans (wicketkeeper/ bat, plays for Hampshire); Monty Plaistowe (allrounder, plays for Surrey)

Brief history Aldro has had a rich history of prep school cricket. Set in the quintessential English village of Shackleford in the heart of Surrey, Aldro has been hosting schoolboy cricket matches on its beautiful venues since 1940. The unique grounds developed around a lake, which hosts plenty of wildlife as well as sailing and rowing,

provides the idyllic setting for cricket. The Aldro Cricket Academy began in 2016, to provide pupils with specialist coaching during the winter. Boys and girls at Aldro play cricket every day of the week maintaining a traditional love of the sport. The school develops young cricketers and hosts regular inter-school ﬁxtures on a strong prep school circuit in Surrey. The school feeds to Charterhouse, Tonbridge, Wellington, Harrow, Eton, Sherborne and many others

Cultural cricketers

Norman Wisdom was a father at Aldro and played in the annual father/sons match

Finest moment on the ﬁeld Surrey Cup U13 winners; Surrey Cup U11 winners

Recent progress Girls’ cricket moved to hardball in the 2024 season. The 1st XI beat Cranleigh 1st XI for the ﬁrst time since before Covid

Future plans Hardball cricket across the board for girls

Tours 1st XI toured Kent in June playing Tonbridge U14s, Sutton Valence Prep & Wellesley House; they won all 3 games. 1st XI tour to Cape Town in February

AYSGARTH SCHOOL

Bedale, North Yorkshire DL8 1TF

Founded 1877

Number of pupils 220

Head of cricket James Alderson

Professionals Paul Grayson (Yorkshire, Essex & England), James Alderson, John Clouston (director of Sport, ECB Level 2, Under 11A), Olivia Metcalfe (ECB Level 2)

Teams 21 mixed from U8-U13 –U8ABCDE, U9ABCD, U10, U11, U12, U13 all ABCD

Girls’ cricket Yes. 2025 will be the first season the school is fully co-educational where girls are in the prep school and will play in mixed team matches. In the pre-prep school core skills’ coaching is offered to girls in the pre-prep years 1-3. The girls have regular fixtures as part of the U8 mixed team matches and have at least 2 coaching sessions a week in the summer term

Fixtures More than 100, including RGS Newcastle and Sedbergh

Facilities 4 indoor nets with bowling machines and multi-purpose floor; 7 outdoor grass nets, 5 outdoor pitches

BEAUDESERT PARK PREP SCHOOL

Minchinhampton, Stroud GL6 9AF

Established 1908

Number of pupils 450

Director of sport Johnny Griffiths Professional Will Naish (Gloucestershire CCC). Stuart Houghton (Level 4 coach) oversees cricket development throughout the school

Teams 32 (U8-U13 boys and girls)

Girls’ cricket Yes – the better players are now starting to use a hard ball and some of the girls have been selected for county age-group sides

Fixtures 230 including Clifton, Pinewood and Cheltenham College

Facilities 2 indoor nets, 4 new outdoor all-weather nets, 2 grass nets, 4 squares & space for 11 matches at one time

Club/county affiliation Frocester, Stroud and Cirencester cricket clubs. Strong links with the Gloucestershire Cricket Board, and the school hosts the annual Gloucestershire Cricket Board U10 district festival (a weeklong festival for U10s)

and squares

Club/county affiliation The Aysgarth community took part in a sponsored walk for Yorkshire Vikings

Visually Impaired CC. Empowering individuals like pupil Hugo to thrive in sports despite visual impairment. To date, the school has raised £13,000. Masham CC use the nets throughout the winter at no cost

Best prospect The school achieved 9 sports scholarships in 2024 to

leading senior schools (Sedbergh, Rugby, Shrewsbury, Barnard Castle & Ampleforth), with cricket at the forefront

Brief history Cricket dates back to the school’s founding in 1877.

Headmaster Frank Joy built a pavilion with tuck shop profits

Cultural cricketers Matthew Pinsent, Jonathan Ruffer (philanthropist), Robert Swan (environmental activist)

Best prospect Herbie (now Year 8) represented Gloucestershire

Under-12s last year and is a big hitting allrounder with a bright future

Brief history Cricket has been played at since 1918. The playing fields are a short trip across the Minchinhampton Common. The school has traditionally played on a strong south-west circuit of other prep schools and senior schools

Cultural cricketers Rugby player

Nick Abendanon (Bath, Clermont &

England). Olympic marathon runner

Dan Robinson

What sets the school apart? No matter what team a child is in, they will receive a similar number of fixtures over the season and a fair exposure to high-quality coaching. The excellent, fast-draining and well looked-after sports fields on Minchinhampton Common Finest moment on the field The Beaudesert girls’ 1st XI coached by Kuber Berry (sports assistant) have made it through to the IAPS quarter-

What sets the school apart? It still maintains the tradition of wearing caps and blazers over cricket whites. The awarding of colours for representing the U13A Finest moments on the field In the past 12 months the U13 and U11 teams were crowned Yorkshire county champions. The record for highest score is held by RR Lees-Millais, who made 163 not out against Terrington Hall in 2004. C Raper holds the bowling record with 10 for 12 against Woodleigh in 1983

Future plans Having girls involved in prep matches. The school is costing the purchase of a mounted sports camera to enable the filming and live-streaming of matches on Main Field. The school has added top-quality coaches and developed the facilities to be a perfect environment for prep school cricket in the north of England. Training is embedded in the timetable all year round

Tours Form 5 to Oxford with hopes of an international trip next year

finals in the last two seasons

Cricketing progress The school’s new nets are packed every break Future plans The recent redevelopment of the net facilities has made it an ECB-accredited practice facility. Stuart Houghton is involved at Gloucestershire and Worcestershire CCC and has completed his level 4 coaching qualification. The school’s pupils move onto a range of top independent senior schools including Cheltenham, Radley and Marlborough

TOP 50 PREP/JUNIOR SCHOOLS BEDE’S

BEDE’S PREP

Duke’s Drive, Eastbourne, East Sussex, BN20 7XL

Number of pupils 240

Director of cricket Alan Wells (Sussex, Kent and England)

Teams 16 (Boys 1sts, 2nds, 3rds, 4ths), U12A, U11AB, U10 AB, U9AB, Girls U12, 2 x U11, 2 x U9)

Fixtures 90 per term

Facilities Indoor school with 4 nets, astro pitch, 3 grass pitches and full access to all facilities at senior school Club/county affiliation Strong links with Sussex CCC, as well as Eastbourne, Hailsham and Preston Nomads CC

Best prospect

George Martin-Jenkins

Professional cricketers produced Luke Wells (Lancashire, previously Sussex), Ali Orr (Hampshire, previously Sussex), Archie Lenham (Sussex), Ollie Rayner (retired, previously Sussex and Middlesex), Callum Jackson (previously Kent and Sussex, England U19); women’s cricket: Sarah Taylor (England and Sussex, fastest male or female to earn their first cap in all three formats of

international cricket), Mary Taylor (Sussex, Southern Vipers, Southern Brave), Ariana Dowse (Berkshire, previously Sussex and Hampshire) Cultural cricketers Christopher Martin-Jenkins and Peter Cook

Brief history Bede’s has a rich history of producing county players. Bede’s Prep offers year-round cricket coaching and a seamless pathway through to the senior school cricket

Finest moment on the field Bede’s Prep won the national championships in multiple years and was one of the first prep schools to introduce a full girls’ cricket progamme. In recent years Bede’s Prep has been undefeated as county champions for eight years running at U12 level in girls and boys

Cricketing progress Bede’s Prep has a strong field of young cricketers (with 8 playing for their age group at county level). The major development at junior level has been the transformation of girls’ cricket with a significant increase in participation levels as well as equity with the boys’ programme

Future plans Introducing a unique award based on skills development

BEDFORD PREPARATORY SCHOOL

De Parys Avenue, Bedford, Bedfordshire MK40 2TU

Established 1552

Number of pupils 400 Director of cricket Gary Steer (ex-Derbyshire CCC)

Professional Charlie Thurston Teams 37

Fixtures 180, most notable against Caldicott School

Facilities 11 artificial nets, 8 grass, 6 indoor nets, 9 pitches Club/county affiliation Official partnership with Northamptonshire CCC and Cricket East

Best prospects Josh Edmundson (Beds), Leo Tapp and Harry Spencer (Northants)

Professional cricketers James Kettleborough (England U19 captain, Northamptonshire), Christian Davis (England U18, Northants, Glamorgan, Derbyshire), Charlie Thurston (England U19, Northants), Emilio Gay (Northants, Durham), Harry Gouldstone (Northants)

Brief history Bedford School CC has a rich history dating back to the 18th century. The first recorded match took place on May 24 1787, against a team from Northampton. The school’s first cricket club was formed in the 1820s, with matches played against other local schools and clubs. In 1844 Bedford School CC was officially established, with the first recorded match against Oakham School on July 14 1844. Bedford School CC continues to thrive, with a

strong focus on developing young cricketers and competing at a high level. The club has produced several players who have gone on to play first class and minor county cricket

What sets the school’s cricket apart? Northants have played List A cricket at Bedford School… Lancashire’s Clive Lloyd hit the ball over the pavilion. Northants have also played 2nd XI cricket on the ground Finest moments on the field

Bedford School have won the U13 IAPS competition several times and are the current holders

Cricketing progress In the last 12 months, the school was proud to announce an official partnership with Northamptonshire CCC which will mean that the county will use the school’s facilities for matches and practice sessions. It has created a pathway to first-class cricket for elite players as well as an opportunity for boys in the Northants system to potentially come to the school. Bedford have also appointed a new, experienced head groundsman. The school is always looking to develop its facilities and equipment and there are plans to borrow the first XI square. There are also plans to work more closely with local prep schools by way of delivering masterclass sessions for them. Bedford Prep are playing more matches and are also putting out more teams than they have in the past, especially at the younger age groups

Tours To Cape Town every other year. The next will be February 2025

BISHOP’S STORTFORD COLLEGE PREP

School House, Maze Green Road, Bishop’s Stortford CM23 2PQ

Established 1868

Number of pupils 504

school), 16 artiﬁcial outdoor nets, 2 mobile net cages, 2 indoor nets plus 10 shared training/match pitches Club/county a liation Hertfordshire CCC use the main school square for 1-day and 2-day representative matches. Bishop’s Stortford CC for boys and girls

Head of boys’ cricket Dave Hughes (assistant director of sport, head of strength and conditioning)

Teams 43 – Boys U13ABCDE, U12ABCD; U11ABCEDF; U10ABCD; U9ABC. Girls: U13ABCDE; U12ABCDE; U11ABC; U10ABCD; U9ABC; plus other age-group teams that will not have external ﬁxtures for both boys and girls

Girls’ cricket? Yes, all the girls from U8 to U16 now do cricket for games as their main sport

Fixtures 234 in the prep school (boys and girls) with most notable ﬁxtures against Bedford, Haileybury and Felsted

Facilities 6 main squares (senior school but also used for prep school matches), 7 main squares (prep

Best prospects Ryan Bloemink and Iestyn Morton (both Year 8 in ’24/25)

Professional cricketers

produced AG (Graham) Doggart (Middlesex and MCC Committee), Charles (CH) Titchmarsh played for MCC in New Zealand (1922/23) and West Indies (1923)

Cultural cricketers

Sir Stephen Lander (Director-General of MI5), Andy Peebles (Radio 1)

What sets the school apart? It o ers sports scholarships and talented players an elite cricket programme throughout

BRENTWOOD PREPARATORY

Middleton Hall Lane, Brentwood, Essex CM15 8EE

Established 1892

Number of pupils 572

Master in charge Les Wingrove

Professional Jaik Mickleburgh, with

Andy Nolan (head of cricket and boys’ games)

Teams Boys & Girls (or mixed) U11ABCD, U10ABCD, U9ABCDEFG, U8ABCDEFG. Option for further teams of mixed ability and gender, especially in younger age groups, sometimes 6–8 a side

Girls’ cricket Yes, across all age groups. Girls invited to winter

the o -season. The Doggart Pavilion was opened in 1933 and is noted for its modern architectural style. It was presented by the Doggart family. The excellent outfield for the 1st XI square was previously used for international hockey matches until the 1970s Finest moment on the field The first UK school to tour Sri Lanka in 1985/86 and played in the inaugural Sir Garfield Sobers International

academy, and also enter IAPS girls’ competition, plus local festivals hosted by independent schools Fixtures 90 in 2024. Also eastern region IAPS festivals, both genders, attending boys’ festivals at Orwell Park and Bancroft’s

Facilities 6 outdoor nets plus 2 roll-on, based on the main and prep school site. Installation of a new 4-lane batting cage on the prep site; 3 hardball pitches spanning 3 sites with 4 junior softball pitches and access to an astro turf for terrier-formatted games, practices. Partnership with Brentwood CC o ers access to 2 outdoor nets and also an extra senior pitch during the week

Best prospect Elliott Peck, aged 9. Fine all-round cricketer who has already been identiﬁed by the county age-group pathway

Professional cricketers produced Kishen Velani, Robin Das, David Acﬁeld (Essex CCC), Rishi Patel Leicestershire CCC

Brief history Brentwood Prep has a strong cricketing history, with many pupils progressing on to the Senior school and providing the backbone to many teams in various age groups

Cricket Schools Festival in

Hosting ICC U19 International matches In July 2018

Cricketing progress The speed of uptake of girls’ cricket. The investment made in new and upgraded cricket facilities and the endorsement for the quality of the main square given by Mick Hunt

Future plans To develop and enhance already strong links with Essex CCC

Tours Senior School tour to Cape Town in 2027, and Prep School girls and boys on a short-haul tour to Spain or Guernsey in 2025/26

who compete in the county and MidEssex Cups from U11 through to 1st XI. Across all age groups in the prep good representation in the county’s development programme

Cultural cricketers Frank Lampard, Olly Lee, Elliott Lee (all footballers), Jack Straw MP

What sets the school apart? An excellent and popular winter academy with coaching from Adam Wheater and Paul Walter (both Essex), Jamie Porter and Sam Cook (both Essex and England Lions) Mark Pettini (Essex and Melbourne Stars) and Kelly Castle (Essex ladies and Sunrisers) Finest moment on the ﬁeld

Continued employment of additional ECB Level 3 coach, to enhance the programme, and allowing sta to develop their own skills sets alongside him. Implementing the introduction of cricket as the primary sport for girls in the summer term, both in KS1 and KS2. Growth in teams, winter nets participation, hardball ﬁxtures and in 2024 ﬁrst ever IAPS girls’ competition winners

Future plans New drainage works to allow relocation of main square for better hardball usage

Barbados.

Dave Hughes Head of boys’ cricket

TOP 50 PREP/JUNIOR SCHOOLS

BRIGHTON COLLEGE PREP

Walpole Lodge, Walpole Road, Brighton, East Sussex BN2 OEU

Established 1845

Number of pupils 500

Director of sport (prep) Edward Hopkins

Professionals Mark Davis (Sussex CCC), and Joe Barnett

Teams 40 for boys and girls

Girls’ cricket Yes, both hardball and softball: U8–U13

Fixtures 350, including Hurstpierpoint College, Westbourne House, St Andrew’s Prep Facilities 12-lane nets, 2 grass squares, 1 artificial wicket. Indoor: 4 nets and space for fielding practice inside the sports hall, and a new specific 3-lane cricket gallery in the basement with 4 bowling machines Best prospects Joseph Scorey (U13, RHB/WK), Sammy Woods (cricket scholar 13+), Alice Worne (U11, RHB, RFM)

Professional cricketers Matt Prior, Matt Machan, Carl Hopkinson, Joe Gatting, Jordan Rollins, Michael Thornley, Malcolm Waller, Bazid Khan, Neil Lenham, Clare Connor, Holly Colvin, Sarah Taylor, Laura Marsh, Freya Davies; Sammy Woods played Test cricket for England

MEET THE DIRECTOR OF SPORT (PREP)

Stepping up from junior level to senior school can be daunting for any young cricketer.

At Brighton College Prep though, integration with its parent school is key to helping smooth that transition and enabling players to develop more quickly.

and Australia, and rugby union for England 13 times, five as captain

Brief history Cricket is the core summer sport for boys and girls with the school aiming to inspire a lifelong love of the game. Clare Connor OBE is a true pioneer in women’s cricket, she captained England and is the MD of women’s cricket at the ECB

What sets the school apart?

Brighton College is the most successful school for girls’ cricket in the country. Old Brightonians include Clare Connor OBE, Holly Colvin, Sarah Taylor and Laura Marsh. Georgia Adams and Freya Davies are in the England Academy Finest moment on the field U12 team won the Sussex Cup 2023 defeating Seaford College in the final, qualifying to represent Sussex in the David English/Bunbury Cup; U13 team won the Sussex Cup 2023 Cricketing progress Girls’ cricket embedded as a core sport. The increase in pupils who have engaged in the All Stars and Dynamos programmes at local clubs and the number of pupils that been selected into the Sussex Pathway. Specialist staff working with the prep school to provide expertise throughout the academic year

Future plans The ‘Home ground’ on the main site is being relaid to incorporate a square for the 1st XI and 2 adjacent colts-sized pitches. Expansion of winter programme to assist most gifted, talented and passionate cricketers. Upgraded facilities, professional coaching, and

“Being able to use senior school facilities is intergral to what we can offer as a prep school, “ says master in charge Edward Hopkins. “Getting that expertise in front of the children as often as possible key to what we have, but we’re also really trying to harness that sense

increased competition opportunities for all pupils. Notably, a remarkable rise in girls’ participation, forming 20 dedicated girls’ teams from U8 to U13

of fun and ignite that passion for the game.

“We encourage them to engage with their local clubs and we also use those clubs’ facilities too.

“For us, we’re just part of the children’s lives in cricket – we want to help them to realise it’s a lifelong love.

“It doesn’t matter what level they’re playing at – there’s always extra cricket for them here.”

There’s integration with several local clubs too, who pupils are encouraged to represent and whose facilities the school hire to keep up with their own demand for cricket – a 350-strong

fixture card across 50 different teams in 2024. In a region with a strong schools cricket scene, this gives Brighton College Prep the sense of contributing to the ecosystem of the wider game in Sussex, benefitting pupils in return.

Both boys and girls represented county age group teams in the summer and, in a move which further highlights its commitment to all pupils, two girls also formed part of the school’s boys Under-13 side that reached the semi-finals of the Sussex Cup.

However, the overarching emphasis remains on keeping cricket a fun and enjoyable pastime for all pupils, whatever level of the game they play at.

“The overall feeling they get is a love of cricket,” adds Joe Barnett, the school’s head of cricket. “It just breathes a love of the sport into them and keeping it exciting for them is what we do.”

Tours 1st XI to Dubai, two U15 trips to Sri Lanka, girls’ 1st XI tour to Sri Lanka, all since 2014. The prep school plans to introduce a boys and girls’ tour in 2025

Edward Hopkins Director of sport (prep)

CALDICOTT SCHOOL

Crown Lane, Farnham Royal, Buckinghamshire, SL2 3SL

Established 1904

Number of pupils 250 Master in charge

Terrence Zengerink

Teams 8 senior; U11ABCD, U10ABCD, U9ABCD, U8ABCD

Fixtures 200 per season, including Lambrook, Dragon, Summer Fields, Bedford, Ludgrove, Cothill House and Moulsford

wrote the book Cycling to the Ashes; Dennis Silk and Hubert Doggart were regulars on the boundary

Facilities 6 outdoor nets, 4 indoor, 2 squares, 4 artiﬁcial, 2 outﬁeld pitches, astroturf

Professional cricketers

Andrew Strauss (Middlesex & England), Fabian Cowdrey (Kent), Alex Sho (USA U19)

Cultural cricketers Sir Tom Stoppard played on main ﬁeld when son Ed was skipper; Olly Broom (old boy) cycled from Lord’s to Brisbane for the Ashes in 2010/11 and

What sets the school apart? Every boy can represent the school and feel part of a team. Excellent coaching and regular game time allows the boys the opportunity to develop and grow as cricketers. Making cricket as fun as possible and ensuring young players remain in the sport long term. Caldicott strive to produce excellent cricketers, but more importantly gentlemen who know how to win and lose with dignity and respect for the opposition

Finest moment on the ﬁeld Touring South Africa in 2017, beating Bishops, SACS and Western Province Prep, then returning to the UK and winning the National T20 Cricketing progress

Making use of outside coaches to prepare boys for future tours

Future plans New main pavilion

Tours Cape Town February 2025 (26 boys)

CARGILFIELD SCHOOL

45 Gamekeeper’s Rd, Cramond, Edinburgh, Scotland EH4 6HU

Established 1873

Number of pupils 300 Master in charge David Walker

Professional Ewan Harrison (George Heriot’s School)

Teams U13 Boys (2 teams), U13 Girls (2), U11 Boys (3), U11 Girls (2), U9 boys and girls (4) Girls’ cricket Yes. Hardball cricket at U13/U12, and softball lower down the ages; U13 girls also play regular weekend matches teaming up with Royal High Corstorphine CC Fixtures Every Wednesday for boys and girls at all levels from U13 to U9 plus tournaments. Sedbergh and Merchiston are top ﬁxtures as well as local prep school rivals Belhaven Hill Facilities 2 grass squares, 4 allweather outdoor nets used all year round. Indoor: 4-lane facility (with a 5th down the middle) allowing for cricket to take place 12 months a year. Strong winter programme from August through to March allows boys and girls to play cricket all year round Best prospects Former pupil Rory Grant (16), now at Rugby School, played for Scotland in recent U19 ICC World Cup in South Africa, and part of Warwickshire EDP programme; Glen Gammell (16, Scotland U15 player); Harry Armstrong (18, played for Scotland in recent U19 ICC World Cup in South Africa) Club/county a liation Close

links with Scotland’s premier club, The Grange CC. Also with Royal High Corstorphine CC, who provide coaches throughout the winter, including Scotland batsman George Munsey

Professional cricketers produced Chris Sole (Scotland, played in T20 World Cup in West Indies 2024), Tom Sole (ex-Scotland and Northants CC); David Sole (former Scotland rugby captain and British Lion)

Brief history Cargilﬁeld is Scotland’s oldest prep school, founded in 1873. It has outstanding facilities that have allowed the girls’ programme to be built up with facilities and expert coaching

What sets the school apart?

Sending players on to some of the strongest cricket schools in the UK with many former pupils playing A-team cricket at Oundle, Radley and others. Providing a pathway for players to be at local clubs in and around Edinburgh

Finest moment on the ﬁeld Winning the Merchiston Super 8s in 2024

Cricketing progress Upskilling female teachers to fully coach girls’ cricket which is the main summer sport. Also, upgrading indoor facilities to cope with the extra children playing cricket

Future plans Continuing to work closely with local clubs to provide opportunities for pupils. To be the best junior school for cricket in Scotland, with the best facilities for this age group

TOP 50 PREP/JUNIOR SCHOOLS CASTERTON, SEDBERGH PREPARATORY SCHOOL

CASTERTON, SEDBERGH PREPARATORY SCHOOL

Casterton, Kirkby Lonsdale, Cumbria LA6 2SG

Established 2013

Number of pupils 210

Director of cricket James Anyon (ex-Warwickshire and Sussex)

Teams Under 13 3 boys’, 4 girls’; Under 11 3 boys’, 2 girls’; Under 9 2 boys’ and 2

CLAYESMORE PREP SCHOOL

Iwerne Minster, Blandford Forum, Dorset DT11 8LL

Established 1986

Number of pupils 143

Head of boys’ games

Bertie Hopkin

Head of girls’ games

Debbie Spokes-Phillips

girls’. Mixed teams at all age groups

Girls’ cricket Yes, the main summer sport for girls. U13 and U12 girls have played for Cumbria

Fixtures About 100, including against Aysgarth School

Facilities 3 indoor nets and bowling machine, 2 outdoor nets, 2 astro wickets, 1 grass square but access to senior school squares (5) as well as a square at Kirkby Lonsdale CC Club/county partnerships

sports ﬁelds, allowing 7 home ﬁxtures on a matchday. In addition, a new 8-lane ECB-standard net complex with 4 astroturf and 4 grass nets, and 6 grass nets and 4 indoor nets

Club/county a liation Dorset CC, Shroton CC, Blandford CC and Iwerne CC

Cumbria CCC

Best prospect Henry Coke (Year 7). He captained Cumbria U12s and plays for Westmorland Professional cricketers produced Tom Aspinwall (Lancashire)

Brief history In the 11 years since the prep school was founded, boys have played each summer term and the girls have just completed their second season. The U13 boys have reached the North finals six times in 10 years, the U11 boys won the Cumbria hardball tournament this year and the U13 girls reached the national indoor finals at Lord’s in 2023 and the regional final in 2024. U13 girls came third in IAPS tournament this year What sets the school apart? The opportunity for all pupils to be introduced to and play cricket at a level that is ready for them. The cricket programme is flexible and adaptable to the needs of the pupils. Even international

pupils joining for the summer term will represent the school in cricket, and a Japanese girl plays hardball with the U13A girls’. Two female scholars set up an introduction to cricket session for pre-prep pupils that ran during one lunchtime a week for six weeks in the ﬁrst half of summer term. The pre-prep pupils were encouraged to attend a batting festival

Finest moment on the ﬁeld U13 girls reaching the national indoor ﬁnal at Lords in 2023, only a year after cricket became the No.1 sport for girls in the summer term

Cricketing progress

The Under-9s playing mixed cricket all season. Every child in the school from pre-prep to Year 8 is now playing cricket in some form

Future plans

Developing links with local primary schools and local clubs. In planning stages with Cumbria Cricket to host the ﬁnals of a youth tournament in 2025

Professional Dan Conway (Oxford MCCU, Herefordshire & Yorkshire)

Teams All from U8s to U13s are mixed with hardball and softball depending on ability. Hardball 13AB, U12AB, U11A, U10A. Softball U13AB, U12AB, U11A, U10AB, U9AB, U8AB Girls’ cricket Yes. Numerous girls have played for the 1st XI over the last two years, including county-level players. The U13s reached the ﬁnal of the Dorset County Indoor Cup this year Fixtures 120, including Dorset county matches for U11s and U13s. Most notable against local rivals Port Regis and Sandroyd.

Facilities 4 permanently maintained squares, with 5 other wickets during the summer term on the extensive

Best prospects Tom Baines, Ned Cazalet and Wilf Townsend have represented the senior 1st XI this year. Current prep students Jovin Mann, Harry Kitching, Henry Chapman, Max Cardozo, Evie Doyle, Phoebe Melville, Eloise Close and Rachel McCarthy are promising players

Professional cricketers produced Lewis McManus (Hampshire, Northants), Jamie Price, Ollie York (both Dorset)

Cultural cricketers Tony Hart (artist/TV presenter) and Brian Epstein (Beatles manager)

Brief history Cricket was ﬁrst played at the original school site at Charlton Marshall in the summer of 1937. In the 1980s, a prep school cricketer made the headlines for taking 10 for 3. Clayesmore have been county

champions in at least one age group for the last six years

What sets the school apart? ‘Sport for All’ ethos – every boy and girl in the prep school is involved in at least 6–8 cricket ﬁxtures each term. The school has 5 male and female Level 2 or above coaches. McManus and Wilson have visited to coach Finest moment on the ﬁeld In 2020 the U12 boys won the Dorset County Cup

Cricketing progress The formal move to totally mixed cricket

Future plans Expanding the community engagement scheme with masterclasses delivered to local primary and prep schools. Extending the holiday programmes. Sports hall is being revamped

Tours Previous trip to Sri Lanka for 1st XI, Lanzarote sports training camp in December 2022 and looking at a tour in 2025

Bertie Hopkin Head of boys’ games

TOP 50 PREP/JUNIOR SCHOOLS

CLIFTON COLLEGE PREP SCHOOL

Clifton College, 32 College Road, Clifton, Bristol B58 3JH

Established 1862

Number of pupils 350

Head of sport Louise Catchpole Professionals Tim Hancock, James Averis (both Gloucestershire CCC), Jim Williams (Glamorgan) Teams Mixed 1st XI, Boys 13BC, Boys 12ABC; Girls U13ABC; Mixed U11ABC; Mixed U10ABCD; Mixed U9AB

Girls’ cricket 3 teams, mixed year 7 and 8. The girls participate in winter indoor competitions such as the U13 Lady Taverners competition. In 2024 3 girls represented mixed 1st XI Fixtures A minimum of 10 per season for each prep school teams. Most notable block ﬁxture v Pinewood School

Facilities 6 grass squares, 4 artiﬁcial wickets, 12 artiﬁcial nets, 16 indoor nets, use of hockey and football astros for junior cricketers

Club/county a liation Many pupils are associated within the Gloucestershire player pathway. The college has hosted a warm-up match for Gloucestershire’s Vitality Blast Campaign against a West of England Premier League

Best prospect Jonty Grindal (Captain, wicketkeeper/bat in the Gloucestershire pathway) Professional cricketers produced Matt Windows (Gloucestershire)

Brief history Clifton College was one of eight ‘Lord’s schools’ who could play at the home of cricket. In June 1899 AEJ Collins

made 628 not out, the most runs recorded in a game, in a house match. The record stood for 116 years. The ﬁeld on which the game took place is known as Collins Piece. Sir Henry Newbolt, an OC and nearby resident to the school, wrote his most famous poem Vitae Lampada featuring the opening lines: “There’s a breathless hush on the close to-night, Ten to make and the match to win.” The close mentioned is where the 1st XI play to this day

Finest moment on the ﬁeld Gloucestershire County Cup winners 2017

What sets the school apart? A strong prep school winter programme with an open session on a Tuesday evening alongside two performance sessions

Cricketing progress The development of girls’ cricket; players being selected for county sides from U11–U13. The Chellaram Sports Complex opened in September 2024; it has a 10-lane indoor school

Tours St Peters Super 8s Tour for the school’s U12As every year. Looking to take the girls’ U13 A on a tour. Before the pandemic Barbados and South Africa

COTHILL HOUSE

Cothill, Oxfordshire OX13 6JL

Established 1870

Number of pupils 170

Master in charge Alex Kidd

Professional Ross Martin Teams 16 – U9AB, U10ABC, U11ABC, U13 x 8

Fixtures Between 150-200 ﬁxtures a year including Summer Fields, Ludgrove, Dragon, Caldicott, Cheam, Twyford

Facilities 8 grass pitches including 4 protected squares with quality wickets; 8 grass nets which rotate every quarter of term to keep them in top condition; 8 hard nets for use all year round; 4 indoor lanes in new sports centre. New junior Bola machines and a new BOLA Pro bowling machine as well as a batting cage for main square. In the grounds there are 2 pavilions, 2 scoreboxes and 1 giant electronic scoreboard that boys and visiting teams enjoy using Club/county a liation Outreach with local clubs such as Abingdon Vale and Cumnor who use the indoor facility in the sports centre. New partnership with Oxfordshire County Cricket Club; school has hosted Oxfordshire Bulls ﬁxtures (stateschool children) free of charge

Best prospects Oscar Campbell (Year 6) a wicketkeeper/bat who plays for Oxfordshire and has a bright future, scoring two 50s last season. Hector Quicke is a talented bowler also playing for Oxfordshire U11s; Xander Mudd and Freddie Phillips (Year 5) are stars of the future and have both already played for the 1st XI Professional cricketers produced Charlie van de Gucht (Hampshire) Brief history Cricket at Cothill is central to life at the school for the boys during the summer term, and always has been since its founding in 1870. In 2000 at Lord’s Eton and Harrow were captained by old Cothillians, David Ferreira & Luke de Rougemont respectively

Cricketing progress Developing a winter cricket programme in the sports centre which means the boys hit the ground running at the start of the summer term

Future plans Cothill is going co-ed in September 2025, and is looking forward to welcoming girls and including them in the cricket programme. The school now has 100 per cent participation with every boy there playing in ﬁxtures at least once a week as well as training three times a week

Alex Kidd (l) Master in charge Ross Martin (r) Professional

COTTESMORE SCHOOL

Buchan Hill, Pease Cottage, West Sussex RH11 9AU

Established 1894

Number of pupils 200

Teams 18 for girls and boys

Head of cricket Andy Walker Girls’ cricket It is the major sport for girls at Cottesmore. Due to its popularity, a pitch was created specifically for the girls

Fixtures Every year the school hosts the ‘Cottesmore Sixes’ tournament which is fast-paced and hard fought. The first XI play up to 12 matches; most notable are against Windlesham, Brambletye, Sunningdale and Woodcote House at the Cottesmore Sixes. All other teams enjoy a least an eight-game fixture card

Facilities 7 grass squares. The 1st XI square and colts square have 10 strips and there are also 5 nets. There is a state-of-the-art electronic scoreboard, made by Durant Cricket, for the 1st XI pitch; 3 new nets have

CRANMORE SCHOOL

Epsom Road, West Horsley, Leatherhead, Surrey KT24 6AT

Established 1968

Number of pupils 475

Master in charge Antony Down Teams 28 from U8–13

Girls’ cricket Yes, for girls up to the end of year 2. They then move site to St Teresa’s in Effingham where they enjoy a full programme of coaching and fixtures

Fixtures 220 – most notable is against Rokeby School

just been built Club/county affiliation

Sussex CCC; Roffey and Horsham CCs

Best prospect Leo Curtis (captain, allrounder, Middlesex)

Brief history Cricket has been part of Cottesmore since its inception with a strong presence at Buchan Hill since the school relocated to this site 75 years ago. Cottesmore sends children to Eton, Harrow, Radley, Marlborough and Downe House and some of the best cricketing senior schools in the country. Youngsters come from London and home counties pre-prep schools

Finest moment on the field

Beating the Zayed Academy at the Zayed Stadium (Abu Dhabi), under floodlights, in a 40-over game Cricketing progress The strong introduction and take-up of girls’ cricket. Watching both boys and girls play competitively and continue to progress. Over the past decade, there has been significant growth in girls’ cricket. Cottesmore now provides dedicated girls’ coaching

Facilities 4 grounds, 5 full-length indoor nets allow an extensive winter programme including use of 3 bowling machines. Two outdoor portable nets have been recently purchased Club/county affiliation Cranmore is affiliated to Surrey CCC and also shares strong ties and facilities with local clubs such as Horsley & Send and Guildford CC. School hosted training for Afghan refugees in the local area

Best prospect The U10 team adjusted well to hardball matches and had a successful season Professional cricketers produced

contribute towards a

Nick Peters (Surrey CCC)

Brief history Cricket commenced at Cranmore under the watchful eye of Mr Hartley Bishop. He was responsible for the building of the sports hall in 1984. Many coaches received their education at Cranmore as it was the centre for ECB Level One and Two courses in the county. A large number of pupils have represented district or county age-group sides and have benefitted from receiving coaching from former professionals such as Adam Hollioake and Alex Tudor

Cultural cricketers Actor Tom

Felton (Draco Malfoy in Harry Potter)

What sets the school apart?

The game ‘Cranmore Cricket’ was created at the school and is still used in coaching sessions throughout the county today. Designed for use in schools and featuring in educational guides, it allows a game of cricket to be played in a shorter format during lesson time with all able to participate Finest moment on the field

Cranmore has won the Surrey Prep Schools Cup several times at both U11 and U13 level

Cricketing progress Covers for both grass squares and the purchase of a roller have not only improved the appearance of the grounds but also the quality of the pitches and therefore the standard of cricket played

Future plans The Effingham Cricket Development Centre based at Cranmore is newly opened and has allowed boys and girls from the local area to receive expert coaching and use of the facilities. Cranmore merged with St Teresa’s School in 2020 and is going to 18

Tours 2014 was the first overseas, to Barbados. Dubai 2025

Future plans The school has begun to outreach to local professionals with an invitation to Cottesmore to

cricket-packed day of training for the pupils to participate in

Andy Walker Head of cricket

TOP 50 PREP/JUNIOR SCHOOLS

CUMNOR HOUSE SUSSEX

London Road, Danehill, Haywards Heath, West Sussex, RH17 7HT

Established 1931

Head of cricket Ben Chapman Teams 26 boys and girls teams from U8–U13

Girls’ cricket The school was a driving force in the South-East in encouraging others to move to playing girls’ cricket. Cumnor girls receive a multi-format o ering that is identical to boys’ programme: the 1st XI play the same formats as the boys’ side

Fixtures More than 200: New Beacon, Ardingly College, Brighton College, Hurstpierpoint, Holmewood House, Great Walstead, St Andrews, Handcross Park, Copthorne Prep, Cottesmore

Facilities 2 indoor nets, 4 artiﬁcial outdoor nets, 2 cricket cages to enable practice on the 2 main squares. The facilities allow hosting of 12 ﬁxtures at any one time. These pitches cover all ranges of ability and age groups, from 11- a-side hard ball to 6-a-side softball pairs. In the spring

DRAGON SCHOOL, OXFORD

Bardwell Road, Oxford OX2 6SS

Established 1877

Number of pupils More than 820 Head of cricket James Springer (boys), Clare King (girls) Teams 30 girls, 34 boys (both Years 3 to 8)

the artiﬁcial surfaces stage hardball matches, with 2 ‘throw-down’ nets increasing the exposure to playing on grass surfaces Club/county a liation Sussex CCC, plus links to numerous clubs. The school hosts 3 local primary schools

Best prospect Daisy De St Croix opens the batting, and is wicketkeeper and captain of the girls’ Under-13s. Plays for Sussex U13s

Professional cricketers Freya Kemp (England and Sussex CCC) Brief history Cricket has been played

at Cumnor since its inception in 1931

Cultural cricketers Piers Morgan (journalist), Simon Williams (actor), Rebecca Hall (actress)

What sets the school apart? The Under-8/9s play 6-a-side fun games, i.e. ‘Hutch cricket’, round-the-clock cricket, and pairs cricket, leading into 6/8-a-side, and 10-a-side matches. Some of the formats developed at CHS have been shared with the schools in our area Finest moment on the ﬁeld

The U13 girls won the IAPS ﬁnal at Prestfelde Prep School in Shrewsbury

and the U13 Sussex Independent School Cricket League for 2024. The U12 girls also won the Sussex Independent School Cricket league for 2024

Cricketing progress The girls are regular members of the colts and senior mixed teams, as well as representing the girls teams. The school has 6 boys and 6 girls on the Sussex Pathway programme

Future plans The school has submitted plans for a sports hall to incorporate cricket nets with 4 lanes for all-year-round use

Girls’ cricket Yes, it is now the main summer sport and all girls play it Fixtures About 160 for the boys and 130 for the girls. For the boys, Summer Fields and Caldicott are the big games. For the girls, there have been close ﬁxtures with Farleigh Facilities 3 refurbished nets with another 10 elsewhere. 6 grass pitches Club/county a liation Tiddington CC. Also annual ﬁxtures against the Oxfordshire Bulls and Falcons

teams. The Oxfordshires Bulls/ Falcons initiative was established by Neil Pickup, a member of sta at Dragon, and is designed to create more opportunities for state school children to play and train at a higher level, and is now supported by the county board. Dragon have also increased the number of state schools they play Best prospect 2 keeper/batters stand out: Hector Gray captained

the 1st XI last summer, scoring ﬁve half-centuries, while 11-year-old Hebe Kingsbury plays for Oxfordshire Girls U13

Professional cricketers Maia Bouchier (England); George Munsey (Scotland)

Brief history Cricket has ﬂourished at Bardwell Road over many years, and the proximity to the university in Oxford has seen many former pupils make the short trip to the colleges

and on to ﬁrst-class experiences. The Snapdragons is a traditional side, still running today. They were originally the Headmaster’s XI, comprised of some of the youngsters who needed close supervision. These days it is a Year 8 side with a range of abilities, and is one of the most successful teams in the school

Cultural cricketers Tim Henman, Emma Watson, Sebastian Croft, Hugh Laurie, Tom Hiddleston, Tom Hollander, Dom Joly, and Jack Whitehall

What sets the school apart? It is not unusual for the Dragon to ﬁeld 30 or more sides on any one Wednesday or Saturday, often taking on more than one opponent; its support of state school cricket, as per the Oxfordshire Bulls initiative. Cricket is now very much a sport for all at the school

Finest moment on the ﬁeld National quarter-ﬁnals in 2022 and 2024

Future plans The school is hoping to build a new sports hall which will include more indoor nets and additional space for extra out-ofseason training

DULWICH

DULWICH PREP LONDON

38-42 Alleyn Park, London SE21 7AA

Established 1885

Number of pupils 813

Head of cricket

Dennis Spammer

Dennis Spammer Director of sport

Teams More than 30: 8 at Under-9, 8 at U10, 6 at U11, 4 at U12 and 4 at U13 Fixtures 115 including Dulwich College and St Paul’s Facilities Indoor facility has 5 lanes and machines. Floor purpose built for cricket. Two senior squares with pavilion at the picturesque Gallery Road Playing Fields. Several pitches at the Mary Datchelor playing fields with one main square for all ages. Three astro pitches with pavilion at Grange Lane playing fields Club/county affiliations Boys in the Surrey CCC and Kent CCC programmes. Strong connection at Dulwich College with James Clark and former Kent spinner, Adam Riley. Many pupils play locally at Dulwich CC, Spencer CC and Alleyn CC. Many younger boys enjoy the

ELSTREE SCHOOL

Woolhampton Hill, Upper Woolhampton, Reading RG7 5TD

Established 1848

Pupils 300, with 210 in prep and 90 in pre-prep

Master in charge James Morris (ex-Berkshire CCC captain), Ben Champkin (director of sport), Katie Sanford (head of girls’ games)

Teams 20

Girls’ cricket All teams fielded are mixed and each team member is selected based on performance and merit

Fixtures About 20 days across the 6 Year groups. Most notably against Ludgrove, Summerfields, Cheam, Lambrook, Farleigh, Pilgrims and Cothill

Facilities 7 grounds for matches including one with an astro wicket; 6 outdoor grass nets near the main school building and a batting cage next to the 1st XI pitch. Pupils are also able to enjoy 4 indoor nets with a bowling machine in the sports hall

Professional cricketers produced Nick Gubbins (Middlesex and

ECB Dynamos and All Stars programmes

Best prospects

Freddie Reed (allrounder), Yohan Karalliedde (LHB), Freddy Sinclair (bowler)

Professional cricketers produced Derek Underwood (England & Kent), Daniel BellDrummond (Kent & England Lions), Rory HamiltonBrown (Surrey & Sussex), Ollie Sykes (Surrey)

Brief history Cricket has always been a vital part of the summer sports programme at Dulwich Prep. Boys who do not thrive in contact sports love it What sets the school apart? An extensive winter programme that allows boys of all abilities to access cricket at their level. Each year the school looks to upskill as many coaches as it can, at either the introductory level or at higher levels of the ECB programme.

The school is focused on allowing as many boys as possible to access the game. This has meant a far more even spread of coaching resources across the ability groups, ensuring the best coaches work with the lower-ability groups

moment on the field Travelling to South Africa last year, the school managed for the first time to win 4 out of 5 the fixtures, which then led into an unbeaten season Cricketing progress Plans to create 10 outdoor artificial nets

Hampshire) and Archie MacLaren (Lancashire and England)

Brief history Since the school moved to Berkshire in 1848, the facilities have adapted and improved to support a growing numbers of pupils. The Bramel Sports Hall is fitted with indoor nets and the outdoor nets were updated in 2020

Cultural cricketers James Blunt (1981-1987, singer-songwriter), Baron Bramall (b.1923), Sebastian Faulks (b. 1953, novelist), J Bruce Ismay (1862–1937, owner and survivor of the RMS Titanic)

What sets the school apart? The

long-standing tradition of ‘Bat Room cricket’ which is a lively component of break-time activities. In fact, ‘Bat Room’ cricket is so important to Elstree pupils that the 2019 Leavers gave a clock and plaque with the rules of the game which now sits on the wall of the bat room. The headmaster awards a signed mini bat to pupils who score 50 runs or take 5 wickets Finest moment on the field Offering outreach Kwik Cricket day for local primary schools. The expertise of coaching across the school from pre-prep through to Year 8. The staff team has been unbeaten

by the parents for at least the last 5 years

Cricketing progress Girls and boys playing together for the same team. The introduction of EPL, the Elstree Premier League in 2018. This is a tournament for the lowest ability players in Years 7 and 8 – the players are coached by the 1st XI coaches, they play on the 1st XI pitch and play in a Finals Day that the whole school comes to watch and support. The school has also moved to more short-form cricket rather than timed games to keep in line with top-level cricket

Finest

TOP 50 PREP/JUNIOR SCHOOLS FELSTED PREP

FELSTED PREP

Felsted, Dunmow, Essex C,6 3LL

Established 1564

Number of pupils 475

Director of prep school sport

Hector Bevitt-Smith

HABERDASHERS’ BOYS PREP SCHOOL

Butterﬂy Lane, Elstree, Hertfordshire, WD6 3AF

Established 1690

Number of pupils 300 Head of cricket Darren Miller

Professional Ben Howgego (Northants CCC) and Jamie Hewitt (Middlesex & Kent)

Teams 25 Y3 to Y6, 5 per year group. All boys represent the school in cricket

Fixtures 100, including Hertfordshire Y6 Hardball County Cup; IAPS Y6 Tournament

Facilities 3 grass wickets, 2 astro, 6 grass training, 9 astro nets

Club/county a liation Middlesex CCC, Hertfordshire CCC, Middlesex Women, Radlett CC

Best prospect Shrub Patel (Year 6, Middlesex academy, top-order batter and captain)

Professional cricketers produced Richard Yeabsley (Middlesex CCC), Tom Colverd (MCCU), Gavin Baker (Northants CCC)

Brief history Sport is an integral part

Fixtures One per week in cricket term

Facilities 10 squares for matches (8 grass, 2 synthetic), 10 outdoor nets, 4 indoor nets, 2 sports halls Club/county a liation Essex CCC, Sunrisers Cricket, Lord’s Taverners Best prospect Monty Cooper (Essex U18s), Abi Camp (Surrey U18s)

Brief history First cricket ﬁeld was established in 1805. The main ground ‘The Front’ is the only school ground overlooked by a beer garden called the Chequers

Cultural cricketers JHWT Douglas was also a gold medallist in boxing at London 1908

What sets the school apart?

Professional Jason Gallian (director of cricket), plus Nick Mansﬁeld and Hector Bevitt-Smith

Teams U9 4 girls and boys teams, U10 3 boys and girls teams, U11 3 boys and girls teams, U12 3 boys and girls teams, U13 3 boys and girls teams

Girls’ cricket Yes

of Habs life with the ability to play both elite and participation. Cricket is a priority sport with more than 100 ﬁxtures in place to cover the demand from the players. Cricket begins in the pre prep and continues all the way

Professional cricketers produced HWT Douglas (England & Essex), Derek Pringle (Essex & England), John Stephenson (Essex, Hampshire & England), Nick Knight (Essex, Warwickshire & England), Tim Phillips (Essex), Elliot Wilson (Worcestershire), Jordan Cox (Essex & England), Will Buttleman (Essex), Poppy Timson (Essex), Grace Poole (Essex), Emma Jones (Essex & Southern Stars), Jess Olerenshaw (Essex & Sunrises)

The school has a long history of producing ﬁrst-class and international cricketers

Finest moment on the ﬁeld 2004 and 2005 National T20 Champions, 2017 Girls U15 Indoor and Outdoor national champions, 2019 Girls 1st XI National Champion

through the prep school

Cultural cricketers Dean Wilson (journalist), Manoj Badale (Co-owner of Rajasthan Royals)

What sets the school apart? The combination of academia and elite

Cricketing progress The continued development of girls’ cricket and the participation of all girls from under-13 playing in competitive ﬁxtures. Development of facilities at the prep school such as sightscreens, boundary ropes, coaching developments

Future plans New sports hall ﬂoor for the senior school sports hall including the indoor nets

and participation in school and cricket life

Finest moment on the field A recent international tour to Barbados and reaching the final of the Year 6 Hertfordshire County Cup and National Finals Day in 2024 Cricketing progress Collaborating with the girls’ school to introduce more cricket opportunities by providing festivals. Using the ECB icoach resources to upskill teachers and the delivery of cricket sessions. A Year 6 tour every 2 years, the first in 2024 to Barbados, playing 5 fixtures. Over the last 10 years developing the outdoor facilities with more astro nets. Cricket scholarships from 11-plus. A high-performance programme for elite cricketers. Boys in the prep school can train and play in the year groups above, which helps provides more opportunities and develop high-performance players

Future plans To build a pavilion with the development of the top ﬁeld. To develop the partnership with Middlesex CCC for both boys and girls

Tours Barbados 2024, then every other year

HEATHFIELD JUNIOR SCHOOL

Cobbett Road, Twickenham TW2 6EN

Head of cricket

James Watson

Teams Year 3 girls; Year 4 boys & girls; Year 5 boys AB and girls; Year 6 ABC & girls

Fixtures The pupils play their cricket under the banner of HWRCC – as a school side

Girls’ cricket Yes. Hardball, softball, squad and inclusive clubs. The girls play at Hampton Wick Royal CC and in Surrey and Middlesex Under-9, U10 & U11 leagues. Girls last year won the Middlesex U11 softball league and the Surrey U11 hardball league, beating big clubs in the counties. The girls were Richmond Borough Kwik Cricket champions for the second year running. They also reached the Chance to Shine National Street Finals at Edgbaston for U13 – playing two years up. Runners-up at the Mason Cup, the indoor competition at Lord’s for prep schools, the ﬁrst state school to be invited in its 20-year history. During winter training the girls received masterclasses from Monte Lynch, Ariana Dowse and Emma Jones

Facilities 3 nets with Flicx pitches, a Flicx pitch for ﬁxtures; multi-use hall and playground Club/county a liation Middlesex CCC; Surrey Foundation; Chance to Shine; Sheen CC; Hampton Wick Royal CC; Sunbury CC; Teddington CC. Watson has been seconded by Surrey Foundation to coach in schools to provide a pathway into club cricket. He also coaches the Hounslow Street U13 team that won the London Youth Games in 2024. He also coaches at Sheen CC and is helping set up the junior section at Putney CC

Best prospect Yasha Bhan (year 5) was the outstanding bowler at the Mason Cup (at Lord’s), bowls medium pace and is an elegant batter

Brief history Before lockdown the pupils had never played cricket before. Now it’s the main sport with highest participation levels. Pupils chosen to sing national anthem at T20 World Cup 2021

Heathfield Schools’ Partnership

What sets the school apart? No other state primary school o ers what they are o ering. Youngsters joining the school based on its cricket Finest moment on the ﬁeld

Seeing children on big screens in T20 World Cup 2021 singing the national anthem. Boys and girls borough champions. Girls U11s Surrey hardball league champions beating

big club teams. Girls U11 Middlesex softball champions. Boys and Girls both reached the Chance to Shine National Street Finals. A visit to 10 Downing Street

Cricketing progress Running more girls’ teams in the younger age groups

Future plans Watson has been into local schools to deliver sessions and provide pathways

James Watson Head of cricket

TOP 50 PREP/JUNIOR SCHOOLS

HIGHFIELD & BROOKHAM SCHOOL

Highﬁeld Lane, Liphook, Hampshire GU30 7LQ

Established 1897

Number of pupils 483

Head of cricket Richard Dunn

Teams Under-13: 10; Under-11: 6; Under-10: 6; Under-9: 6; Under-8: 6

Girls’ cricket Yes, it is the main sport for the girls in the summer term Fixtures About 230, with notable ones against Aldro, Twyford and Westbourne House Facilities Indoors, 3 nets with roll-out mats. Outside, 4 artiﬁcial pitches. In total, 12 pitches, 4 grass nets, which include mobile cages, 3 artiﬁcial outdoor nets; 3 bowling machines, 3 covers for the 1st XI square and 2 Flicx pitches. Every pitch has a scoreboard Club/county a liations Pupils play for Liphook and Ripsley, Fernhurst, Haslemere and Grayshott cricket clubs, as well as the Hampshire Hogs CC. A three-year sponsorship deal with Fernhurst CC for the junior section shirts Best prospect

Tom Reid, who played his third year in the 1st XI. A batting average of 24.3 and his bowling stats are 7 wickets with an economy rate of 5.06 and an

average of 11.21 as a leg-break bowler and a strike-rate of 13. His knowledge of fielding positions and his awareness in the field is beyond his years. Ella Gri th was taking wickets and scoring runs all season and has been playing country cricket for her age group What sets the school apart? At Highfield, performance and participation, with the 1st XI reaching the latter stages of the IAPS cup. Matches are o ered for all ages and ability. The aim to make cricket enjoyable for all and all children leave the oval feeling that they “want to play tomorrow”

Finest moment on the ﬁeld This year, the boys’ Under-11s winning the IAPs tournament at Merchant Taylors’ School, while the boys’ 1st XI drew the U13 IAPS ﬁnal at St Peter’s in York

HURSTPIERPOINT COLLEGE

College Lane, Hurstpierpoint, West Sussex BN6 9JS

Established 1849

Number of pupils 350 Head of cricket Mark Nash (ECB Level 4 coach)

Professional Jonty Jenner (Sussex and Jersey)

Teams 10 boys and 6 girls in the senior school Girls’ cricket Yes, it is the main sport in the summer term and all have the opportunity to play at whichever level they prefer

Fixtures More than 150 ﬁxtures a year across the senior school with the 1st XI playing more than 20. ABCD teams that play a number of ﬁxtures and enter National and County Cups

Facilities 8 grounds and 6 grass squares, 15 artiﬁcial nets and 5 grass practice wickets during the summer, with 6 indoor nets used in the winter Club/county a liations An educational trust which works closely with local primary schools to deliver a sports programme and joint provision of facilities

Best prospect Henry Rogers, 1st XI captain has recently signed a contract with Sussex CCC, played for England Under-19s last summer, winning the ESCA young cricketer of the year Professional cricketers produced George Garton (Sussex, England, Southern Brave), Tom Haines

(Sussex, England Lions), Jack Carson (Sussex, England Lions), Bertie Foreman (Sussex, England Young Lions), Justin Bates (Sussex), Martin Speight (Sussex, Durham), Jemima Spence (South East Stars)

Brief history Although the school was founded in 1849, and it is clear that cricket was played not only when the school was at Shoreham but also at the Mansion House, there are no written records until 1858. That season therefore is the ﬁrst season for which scores survive and players names available. In recent years the school has had success winning the Woodard Schools Festival

What sets the school apart?

Hurstpierpoint was once said to have the longest square in the country, so large it is now two separate grounds

Finest moment on the ﬁeld

Winning the National Schools T20 Competition in 2015

Cricketing progress The girls’ programme continues to go from strength to strength, with more pupils than ever participating. The changing formats and the growth of girls’ cricket has led to new and exciting games of cricket. Participation is higher than ever and the pupils are provided with a professional programme that runs across the whole year

Future plans Developing links with local schools to ensure more and more children have the opportunity to be involved.

Tour South Africa 2025

Cricketing progress The continued investment in facilities and coaching courses for the sta which is allowing all the children, regardless of team or ability, to play cricket with a smile on their face. The growth and development of All Stars Cricket. The investment in facilities and upskilling of coaches Future plans To renovate the outdoor net facility into a 5-bay astro complex. To continue to promote facilities to local clubs

KING’S COLLEGE PREP

Kingston Road, Taunton, Somerset TA2 8AA

Established 1951

Number of pupils 350

Master in charge Rob Woodman (Somerset)

Professional Keith Parsons (Somerset)

Teams 22 teams from U8-U13 Girls’ cricket Is played, and at U8 and

LOCKERS PARK

Lockers Park Lane, Hemel Hempstead, Hertfordshire HP1 1TL

Established 1874

Number of pupils 204

Director of sport

Jack Doyle

U9 with mixed cricket Fixtures Are played on most Wednesdays and several Saturdays, with the highlights being County Cup fixtures

Facilities 4 indoor nets with a bowling machine, 5 outdoor nets, 9 grass cricket wickets and the use of the facilities at King’s College, Taunton senior school Club/county affiliation A strong relationship with several local state primary schools. The school open

Teams U13ABCDE, U11ABCDE, U9ABCD

Girls’ cricket An all-boys’ school Fixtures In their 150th year, 112 fixtures across all age groups, the most notable against Haileybury Facilities 4 new indoor nets, 3 outdoor nets, 1 grass square, 1 artificial strip and a full-size astroturf for softball cricket. 3 bowling machines, and use Hemel Hempstead CC for additional fixtures during the week Club/county affiliation Host local primary schools at Lockers Park for masterclass and introductory sessions, using all facilities and cricket staff to bring cricket to schools who might not have the opportunity to do so. Hosted their first primary schools festival this summer with more planned in future

up facilities to them, which is always popular and since 2023 some have been added to the fixture list. North Curry CC also train in the indoor nets during the winter months

Best prospect Current first team includes Brendan Coles, Theo Jones, Humphrey C-S, James White, Wilbur Mack, Will Selway, Will Thompson, Caleb Cook, Harry Perkins. The majority represent their county Cricketers of note James Rew, Thomas Rew, George Thomas, Josh Thomas, Katie Rowe (all Somerset and England U19s)

Brief history The school’s cricket reputation is incredibly strong. In previous years, they have held

Best prospect Leon Vandra-Simon is an opening bowler who possesses good pace and can move the ball both ways. Eddie Mitchell, an U11 opening bowler who took 4 for 4 in his first game of 2024 and also opens the batting Cricketers of note Stanley Jackson (Yorkshire & England), Bryan Valentine (Kent & England), Mansoor Ali Khan Pataudi (Sussex & India), Tom Pugh (Gloucestershire), Ronnie Aird (Hampshire & MCC president), George Panayi (Warwickshire), George Garrett (Warwickshire & Kent)

Brief history Starting with Henry Draper in 1874, Lockers Park has been blessed with a series of headmasters who were fanatical cricketers. It has always been a sport for all with cricket played every day throughout the summer term. In the 1970s the first school in the Hertfordshire area to introduce limited-overs cricket

Cultural cricketers Lord Louis Mountbatten, Sir Alistair Aird, MPs Keith Joseph, Sir Anthony Berry, Paul Channon, James Honeybourne, Guy Mansfield KC

the trophies for U11-U19 county competitions. Jos Buttler has appeared at the school

What sets the school apart?

Strength in cricket from Year 3 to Year 13. The cricket pathway is evident and proving extremely reliable. Each summer the school hosts the King’s Cricket festivals, which draws in teams from all over the world

Finest moment on the field U11 National finalists 4 years in a row, U16 and U19 National winners last year

Recent progress The cricket programme has expanded even further, and there are now 30 pupils having extra cricket sessions on a Saturday morning from January. The majority train in the cricket centre at King’s Taunton, with sessions led by Parsons

What has changed in the last 10 years? All pupils play cricket. There is a real love for the sport, and with the beautiful facilities the pupils look forward to each and every game

Tours The school have hosted Victoria College, Jersey for their tour and are setting up links for a return visit

What sets the school apart?

Lockers Park v Ludgrove was one of the earliest recorded prep school matches. Pataudi was coached by Frank Woolley at Ludgrove Finest moment on the field In 2011, unbeaten over 14 matches. Panayi scored over 1,000 runs and Jamie Jordache 700-plus Recent progress Weekly drop-in sessions and full winter programme to allow all year groups

to train. Introduction of Year 2 cricket programme into the main games provision

What has changed in the last 10 years? An increase in participation Future plans An upgrade to the astroturf to provide a high-quality facility for softball cricket. New outdoor nets. New festivals and coaching clinics for a larger number of primary schools

Tours South Africa 2026

Jack Doyle Director of sport

TOP 50 PREP/JUNIOR SCHOOLS LUDGROVE

LUDGROVE SCHOOL

Ludgrove, Wokingham, Berkshire

RG40 3AB

Established 1892

Number of pupils 200

Master in charge Gabriel French Teams 16 teams run over a total of 5 years, senior boys (Years 7 and 8 play together)

Girls’ cricket An all-boys’ school

Fixtures Approximately 12 fixtures a year, plus various tournaments and tours. Derby fixtures are Summer Fields, Lambrook and Caldicott Facilities 8 grass nets, 4 astro nets, one cage and 9 wickets of which only one is roll out, the rest are grass Club/county a liation A link with Binfield CC, and the school o er out their wicket for the local state senior school

Best prospect Captain Alex Steel had a superb 2024 season, scoring a

MEET THE MASTER IN CHARGE

The most important element of Ludgrove School’s programme is their “strong culture of cricket.” This ensures that cricket is played at the school throughout the year and harnesses a love for the game among their students.

lot of runs and taking wickets

Cricketers of note George O’Connor has been in the Sussex setup and continues to do well there

Brief history The school’s ﬁrst headmasters played ﬁrst-class cricket, with the current head’s grandfather (the third generation to be head) representing Yorkshire. The school has been included in numerous magazines celebrating prep school cricket

Cultural cricketers John Major famously played matches at the school. Another prime minister, Alec Douglas-Home, attended the school and went on to play ﬁrst-class cricket. Bear Grylls played in the school XI What sets the school apart? The school tour annually pre-season, taking a large group of boys to Spain

The culture can be symbolised in a game played by everyone in the school as the master in charge of cricket, Gabriel French, explained: “We have a game called ‘Stump’ and it’s a traditional game that’s been played throughout centuries.

“We have an o cially appointed keeper of stumps, so one of the boys has made that his job and every morning he makes sure that the game is going on. Everybody in the school plays

where they are coached and readied for the season. The school has an exceptional cricketing culture, ensuring all boys are well-versed in the game and the way it is played Finest moment on the ﬁeld The class of 2019 went undefeated, as did the class of 2023 – another outstanding group

Recent progress A carefully balanced program of rotation whilst

it and on a good day, we will probably have 60 kids playing.

“It’s played with the cut-down bat and a tennis ball and means throughout the year they play cricket and it is very much seen as the pinnacle.”

French also has a very high standard for cricket colours at Ludgrove which motivates students to strive for excellence on the ﬁeld.

The result is that Ludgrove consistently punch above their weight in ﬁxtures by beating schools with more pupils.

He added: “It’s a wheel that’s in motion, it runs and runs and the boys come here and even if they are not cricketers, they know that they want to play cricket because this is the pinnacle.

“It also means that it’s not dependent on me pushing them to be at a practice session, they

maintaining a winning culture has been key to their progress. While not perfect yet, it is something the school is working towards

Future plans The school are trying to ensure they have a better outreach programme with local schools in the area, sharing facilities

Tours The school intend on returning to Desert Springs again next year, with another group of 24 boys

will do it because it’s part of the culture.”

Ludgove see lots of their students go to fellow all-boys schools but cricket also plays a signiﬁcant part in the decision-making.

Radley, for example, o ers a sports scholarship and the two schools have built a strong relationship from a cricketing perspective in the last few years. Two out of the last three 1st XI captains at Radley have been Old Ludsgrovians.

The school is one of only a handful of fullboarding boys’ prep schools left in the country so they understand how important their role is in shaping their students’ future.

“One of the things that makes Ludgrove incredibly special is the sense of community,”

French said. “All schools are communities but because we play such a vital role, as a full boarding school, in the way these kids grow and develop we’ve managed to get incredible buy-in from parents who are trusting us with their children from a very young age.”

Gabriel French Master in charge

l Boys’ fortnightly boarding prep school l Rated ‘Excellent’ by the ISI l 130 acres of grounds

l Excellent academic and pastoral record l Inspiring boys’ confidence, creativity & character

l Up to 15 cricket teams fielded each week l Annual pre season cricket tour to Desert Springs, Spain

l Indoor and outdoor nets l Expert coaching l Strong sport scholarship record to senior schools

Ludgrove, Wokingham, Berks

TOP 50 PREP/JUNIOR SCHOOLS

MERCHANT TAYLORS’ PREP

SCHOOL

Moor Farm Bungalow, Sandy Lodge Road, Rickmansworth, Hertfordshire WD3 1LW

Established 1910

(as Northwood Prep)

Number of pupils 370

Director of cricket

Christophe Horne

Teams 17: 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, 4th XI & 5th XI, U11ABCD, U10ABCD, U9ABCD

Girls’ cricket All boys’ school

Fixtures 60 regular matches, typically with local derbies against St Martin’s and St John’s the most anticipated. Merchant Taylors’ enter the U13 IAPS National Cup and U11 Herts Schools’ County Cup

Facilities 3 cricket pitches at the prep school, a cricket specialist groundsman, 6 outdoor nets and 4 indoor nets on site. Roll on covers, sightscreens and score hut on main wicket. Two bowling machines including TrueMan by BOLA. Access to cricket facilities at the senior school Club/county affiliation Most

MILLFIELD PREP

Edgarley Hall, Glastonbury, Somerset BA6 8LD

Established 1945

Number of pupils 450

Head of boys’ cricket

Marc Gardiner

Head of girls’ cricket

Kim Morgan‑Hughes

Professional David Beal (Somerset)

Teams 15 boys’ and 15 girls’ teams Girls’ cricket The same offering for both boys and girls. Huge number of fixtures for all abilities, including matches versus Somerset, Gloucestershire, Wales and other county sides at U13, U12 and U11 Fixtures Around 140 matches a year. This year the boys’ U13 were in two national competitions and the County Cup

Facilities 8 outdoor nets, 4 indoor nets, outdoor portable net for grass net practice, 10 grass pitches, 2 artificial wickets. Indoor and outdoor bowling machines. 4 indoor nets just refurbished. Grass pitches will have new covers for 2024/25 Club/county affiliation Somerset

A team boys in all age groups play district, area or county cricket (Herts or Middlesex). Strong connections with Old Merchant Taylors’, Eastcote and Stanmore cricket clubs

Best prospect Kiyan Patel (U11 captain and Middlesex U11 allrounder)

Brief history Cricket has developed as the main sport at Merchant Taylors’ Prep. There is a real passion for the game and ever improving facilities. Boys play cricket at break time and a huge number play cricket at club level. Recent success at county level and beyond has enhanced their cricketing reputation. The school plays on a traditionally strong North

London circuit

Cultural cricketers Sir David Lidington (former MP and Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster)

What sets the school apart? The adjacent Merchant Taylors’ School hosts first class matches, Middlesex age group training and matches and is the winter home of Middlesex CCC in the state of the art Julian Hill Cricket Centre. Prep school cricketers have access to these facilities. The prep has hosted coaching masterclasses from Eoin Morgan, Steven Finn, Alastair Cook and Muttiah Muralitharan. More boys play club cricket than any other sport Finest moment on the field IAPS

county youth performance programme. Huge number of county players in all pathway ages

Cricketers of note Peter Denning, David Graveney, Jonathan Atkinson, Harvey Trump, Iain Fletcher, Piran Holloway, Aftab Habib, Jeremy Hallett, Wes Durston, Ben Hollioake, James Hildreth, Max Waller, Robin Lett, Ben Duckett, Daniel Bell Drummond, Matt Hobden, Charlie Hartley, Cameron Steel, George Hankins, Will Smeed, Kasey Aldridge, Jess Hazell, Lily Hawkins

Brief history Millfield Prep boasts a proud history of cricket. The boys’ 1st team has frequently won Bunbury and National Prep Schools titles, and

U13 national cup runners up 2015 and 2022. Herts Schools’ U11 cup winners 2018, 2019, 2021 and 2024. East Of England Schools’ U11 winner 2019 and finalist 2018. U11 national finals 2019 Recent progress The upgrade in facilities, progress of younger cricketers and continued uptake of the sport makes it genuinely ‘cricket for all’

What has changed in the last 10 years? Improved wickets, facilities and coaching increased both the popularity of cricket and success on field

Future plans More after school clubs for cricket throughout the school year and greater access to nets

many students have represented county sides, particularly Somerset, at various age levels. At least 10 ex pupils are currently active in first class cricket. The girls’ team has thrice won the National Indoor title at Lord’s, including a recent summer victory. The girls have not lost to a county side

Cultural cricketers Roland Rudd (consultant), Chris Robshaw (England rugby), Richard and Simon Mantell (hockey), Ella Eyre (musician) and many more What sets the school apart? Millfield Prep has a rich history of success, with both boys’ and girls’ teams regularly reaching the later

stages and winning prestigious titles. The fixture list is unrivalled. This extensive schedule ensures pupils at all levels have ample opportunities to play and develop skills

Finest moment on the field The U13 girls have won the indoor national competition 4 times in the last 7 years

Recent progress Girls’ cricket has grown dramatically and is now flourishing

What has changed in the last 10 years? Senior and junior development teams for girls and boys allows training all year round

Future plans Refurbishment of current indoor nets, a total makeover for pavilion

MILTON KEYNES PREPARATORY SCHOOL

Tattenhoe Lane, Bletchley, Milton Keynes MK3 7EG

Established 1975

Number of pupils 450

Head of cricket Andrew Hall

handed batter)

(Worcestershire, Northamptonshire & South Africa)

Teams 18 in the school

Girls’ cricket Mixed teams in Year 3 and 4, developing into Year 5 and Year 6 A and B sides. Year 5 and 6 are playing hardball

Fixtures Roughly 50 a year. Most notable are the games against Bedford School

Facilities 3 lanes of indoor nets, 8-lane outdoor nets, Flicx pitch, PitchVision video analysis, bowling machine. Use of 3 local grounds to host home ﬁxtures

Club/county a liation Strong links with Stony Stratford CC, Northamptonshire and Leicestershire

Best prospect Srikrishnav Sainath (Northants U11 legspinner and right-

Brief history Cricket has always played a huge part in the schools sporting programme, but this has developed hugely in the past 10 years. With the addition of Hall, as a school they have gone from strength to strength. They have won regional IAPS competitions and compete with larger independent schools. The girls moved from rounders to a full cricket programme and are now a highly competitive outﬁt in hardball cricket

What sets the school apart?

Cricket is seen all-year-round and every day in the school. It is the main craze on the school playground, with all ages and both boys and girls playing every lunch and break. The availability of speciﬁc coaching opportunities equal to all children

Finest moment on the ﬁeld Invited to the Bedford sixes tournament for the past 2 years, and each time have reached the ﬁnal

Recent progress The development of the girls game, with a variety of coaches coming in to support

them further. Facilities constantly improving to upgrade what they o er. With limited space on school site, a Flicx wicket will allow for some home hardball cricket

What has changed in the last 10 years? Cricket thankfully is a growing sport. Inevitably the T20 element has enabled this

Future plans MKPS will be establishing the Andrew Hall Cricket

Academy. This will support, enhance and develop cricket in the school ﬁrst and foremost, but also provide high level cricketing opportunities for local communities. The o er of a school cricket scholarship to upcoming talent. Next year is the 50th and MKPS will be hosting a cricket tournament to celebrate this, with an Andrew Hall invitational side part of the day

NOTTINGHAM ACADEMY PRIMARY

Greenwood Road, Nottingham

NG3 7EB

Established 2011

Number of pupils 700

Master in charge Andrew

Staszkiewicz (headteacher) and Luke

Taylor-Hutchinson (head of cricket)

Teams 3 teams. Year 5/6 Boys, Year 5/6 Girls and Year 4 mixed

Girls’ cricket The school actively look to encourage as many girls to play as possible and always run a team within school. In 2024 the school o ered independent sessions

for a girls’ team and also entered Nottinghamshire’s Dynamos cricket tournament

Fixtures Between 10 and 20 ﬁxtures based on success in local and regional tournaments. Also take part in Notts Dynamos tournament each year

Facilities Limited in comparison to other schools in terms of facilities. They have a net, an artiﬁcial wicket and a ﬁeld used for practice Club/county a liation

A partnership with Caythorpe CC and often hold camps there. Also a liated to Nottinghamshire CCC

Best prospect Abdullah is a fast bowler and a very useful batsman who likes to give it a whack, resulting in a number of tennis balls ending up on the roof this year. He was also the captain of the school in Notts Dynamos, enabling the school to ﬁnish third in the county

Brief history An inner-city school

in one of the most deprived areas in England. Cricket is natural to many of the children and is something they look to do all of the time. As a school they have supported this natural love of the game and each year build teams to challenge in local competitions but also provide youngsters with as many opportunities as they can What sets the school apart? The genuine love for the game. The children don’t play for any prestige, but because they love the sport

Finest moment on the ﬁeld

Winning the regional Dynamos cricket tournament in 2022. Elvin Aljankovic also managed to get a hat-trick on ﬁnals day of 2024 Notts’ Dynamos Cricket

Recent progress The school are proud of the number of children who started playing cricket for the ﬁrst time in school but now play hardball cricket for clubs. The school have started working with Chance to Shine Future plans To continue to build partnerships with other local clubs. They would like to form an ‘old boys’ side to play a match against one of the well-known private schools

Andrew Hall Head of cricket

TOP 50 PREP/JUNIOR SCHOOLS

ORWELL PARK SCHOOL

Nacton, Ipswich, Suffolk IP10 0ER

Established 1868

Number of pupils 300

Head of cricket Adam Mansfield (also Suffolk head coach)

Teams 10 Boys’ teams: U13 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, 4th XI. Colts U11ABCD, U9AB. 8 Girls teams: U13 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI. U11ABC, U9AB Girls’ cricket The main and only sport in summer term since 2016. At the time, the only local school to completely move away from rounders

Fixtures 92 for boys and 62 for girls, including Framlingham, Ipswich and Woodbridge

Facilities 7 maintained grass squares and an artificial pitch. Alongside the astroturf, they can host a maximum 10 fixtures on matchdays. A 5-lane outdoor net facility and 3-lane indoor net facility for the winter programme. Recently purchased a roll-on cage used on the main square and in 2024 purchased sightscreens that will allow county fixtures

Club/county affiliation In 2022 the school introduced an annual primary

PACKWOOD HAUGH SCHOOL

Park Bank, Shrewsbury, Shropshire SY4 1HX

Established 1892

Number of pupils 200 Director of sport

Tammy Pembleton

school festival. This continues to take place and in 2023 introduced an outreach programme where staff would visit local primary schools to deliver a programme in preparation for the festival

Best prospect Gracie Brunt currently represents Suffolk U13s and also part of the county’s centre of excellence. The best male prospect is fast bowling allrounder, Henry Raber, who plays for Suffolk U13s and is part of the EPP Programme

Cricketers of note Simon Fernandes (Essex), Frankie Hughes (Essex Women)

Brief history The school has been at its current location since 1937, when cricket was first played there. In 1992 the school welcomed girls for the first time and 14 years later cricket became the main and only summer sport for all. The annual 6-a-side tournament is the school’s highlight and has been in place for 39 years now

What sets the school apart? The beautiful 110-acre site alongside the River Orwell – a fantastic setting for the game

Finest moment on the field The girls’ 1st XI has played in every finals

Professional James Wojda Teams 4 U13 Boys, 2 U13 Girls, 4 U11 Boys, 2 U11 Girls, 4 U9 Boys, 2 U9 Girls Girls’ cricket Girls play cricket as the major game of the summer term, joining boys’ sessions where appropriate. There are many opportunities for mixed cricket in both hardball and softball formats

Fixtures In 2024, 55 matches were organised for the boys’ teams and 32 for girls’ teams. In addition to this, 1st XI, Colts XI, U13 Girls and U11 Girls also attended local tournaments Malvern Eights, Shrewsbury Prep Schools tournament, Wrekin Sixes, ESCA U11 Hardball Cup as well as hosting many more

Facilities 4 indoor nets, 4 artificial outdoor nets, 6 grass nets, 9 grounds (including 1 artificial and 2 squares)

Individually,

Recent progress The past 12 months has seen all pupils represent the school in a cricket fixture. Becoming

Club/county affiliation

Links with several local clubs, allowing children to choose which format of the game they wish to pursue outside of school. Pupils encouraged to trial for Shropshire county and district teams

Cricketers of note Tim Lamb (Middlesex, Northamptonshire & TCCB/ECB chief executive)

Brief history Cricket has been played at Packwood since the school’s earliest days. The school’s greatest cricketer to date arrived from South Africa in 1909: JD Wyatt-Smith averaged more than 100 runs each season at the school, and was a very fast bowler, in one match taking 10 for 0, including one wicket when a flying bail was caught by a long-stop. He held the junior record for Throwing the Cricket Ball (104 yards)

What sets the school apart?

All pupils involved in inter-school matches on Wednesday and Saturday afternoons

Finest moment on the field U13 girls reaching finals of the Lady

Taverners National Indoor Cricket Competition three years running (2014, 2015 and 2016)

Recent progress Thanks to a change in the school timetable, all pupils access quality cricket coaching from senior coaches, leading to all pupils progressing their technical and tactical skills through a number of different formats. Additional cricket professionals employed to increase

Future plans Aim to to host more county fixtures. The outreach programme through holiday cricket camps will hopefully continue to expand

access to individual and paired lessons throughout the year What has changed in the last 10 years? Cricket has become the main sport of term for both boys and girls, with equal access for all Future plans Plans underway for all pupils to have improved access to a winter programme, including a return to the Lady Taverners competition for girls

day of the Suffolk Schools County Competition since its inception.

Ben Robinson scored four centuries in the same term

the main sport for girls’ games is a significant cultural shift of increased inclusivity

James Wojda Professional

FRIDAY 7 AND SATURDAY 8 FEBRUARY Scholarships available standrewsprep.co.uk 01323 733203

Packwood

Smart, Skilful

Kind

TOP 50 PREP/JUNIOR SCHOOLS

PRESTFELDE SCHOOL

London Road, Shrewsbury, Shrewsbury SY2 6NZ

REPTON PREP SCHOOL

Milton, Foremark, Derbyshire

DE65 6EJ

Established 1940

Number of pupils 450

Established 1929

Number of pupils 350

Master in charge Mike Haswell

Teams 5 U13 boys, 4 U11 boys, 3 U13 girls, 2 U11 girls, 4 U9 mixed

Head of cricket Megan Pittman

Technical director of cricket Martin

Speight (Sussex & Durham)

Teams 19 teams – mixed from U9 to U13

Girls’ cricket Compulsory for all girls up to Year 7 and the update after is

Fixtures 70

Facilities 6 grass nets, 4 grass squares, 2 artificial wickets, 2 Flicx wickets, 2 astroturf nets, 6 rough cut strips for softball. Inside gym for coaching, tennis courts Club/county affiliation Shropshire CCC use the facilities for county, district and junior programmes. Shrewsbury CC have used the facilities Cricketers of note Craig de Weymarn (England physio)

national champions

Brief history Traditionally an allboys’ boarding prep school, cricket has long played an important role in the boys’ PE provision. Now a fully co-ed school, the girls have started to play cricket on the beautiful grounds. The school has had a great deal of recent success, reaching the U 11 national finals in three of the last six years, winning the competition in 2017. The same team went on the win the David English competition in 2019 Finest moment on the field 2019 U13 David English Bunbury

ever-increasing. U13 girls reached the national semi-final stage in 2023 and have won indoor county events

Fixtures 115 in total. Fixtures every Wednesday (all teams), as well as A teams on a Saturday. 7 Saturdays, 9 Wednesdays. Most notable fixture is against Trent College, as well as Derbyshire/Nottinghamshire age group fixtures

Facilities 4 outdoor artificial nets, sports hall with 3 nets, 2 grass wickets for hardball cricket (1 U13 pitch, 1 U11 pitch), 1 artificial wicket, 5 softball pitches/areas Club/county affiliation

Ticknall CC, Derbyshire CCC, Nottinghamshire CCC. The school has girls and boys who play for the junior age-groups. The school also hosts matches for Derbyshire age-groups

Best prospect Rupert Hallows (Lancashire U15, plays for senior school U14/U15), Theo Brown (Derbyshire U15, plays for senior school U14/U15), Hana Mae Carr – Derbyshire U15 Girls, plays for senior school girls U15/1st XI)

Brief history A strong history of cricket at the school, playing an

Recent progress Boys and girls playing cricket with and against each other in both coaching and matches. The school have nine home matches and fielded 17 teams on one day – a record for the school. The school also upskilled several staff to coach and umpire matches for the first time in 2024

What has changed in the last 10 years? Prestfelde had no girls’ teams; now every girl in the school plays cricket and they don’t offer rounders Future plans New astroturf planned which can be used for cricket coaching and matches

extensive and competitive fixture list each summer for boys and girls against other top prep schools in the midlands

Cultural cricketers Tom Chambers (actor), Will Hughes (footballer), Georgie Twigg (Hockey) What sets the school apart? Hosting county-age group matches and international age-group teams in recent years. Training and match facilities are excellent. Hosting of IAPS festivals and other tournaments for boys and girls in various age groups. Five ECB-qualified coaches including Speight

Finest moment on the field

Third place at U13 National Finals Day in 2024

Recent progress Move towards mixed senior teams and the progress of girls cricket within the school What has changed in the last 10 years? There is now a throughschool approach to cricket between the prep and the senior school, with technical director of cricket Speight able to coach all cricketers from Year 3 to Year 13

Future plans Introduction of 11-plus scholarship programme

ROKEBY PREP SCHOOL

George Road, Kingston upon Thames KT2 7PB

Established 1877

Number of pupils 400

Master in charge

Rob Williams

Professional Andy Gannaway Teams At least two fixtures for 36 different teams, ranging from seven mixed ability U7 teams to the 1st XI. At senior level (Years 7 & 8) they run six teams throughout the season using all 67 boys at this age group in weekly fixtures. 4 teams at Year 6, 5 at Year 5, 6 at Year 4 and 7 in each of Years 2 and 3

Girls’ cricket An all-boys’ school Fixtures 170 – Shrewsbury House, Parkside, Aldro, King’s House, Cranmore

Facilities 3 squares, each of which has an astroturf pitch and Flicx to allow 4 hardball games at the same time. 2 nets at Rokeby Sports Grounds and 3 at school. A sports hall for winter training Club/county affiliation In 2024

SHREWSBURY HOUSE SCHOOL

107 Ditton Road, Surbiton KT6 6RL

Established 1865

Number of pupils 321

Master in charge Danny Baker Teams Circa 50

Girls’ cricket An all-boys’ school

Fixtures More than 350, the biggest against local rivals KCS Wimbledon

Facilities Brand new re-laid 3G artificial surface with latest technology supporting boys to play all year round. 4 indoor nets with bowling machines as well as sports ground 10 minutes away, plus access to Chessington CC Club/county affiliation Primary Festival of Sport supports local primary schools access facilities and high-quality coaching. Developing a Surrey Cricket Alliance where talented boys who have not yet represented the county can access high-quality coaching

Best prospect William Dennis, a hard-hitting batter who bowls a heavy ball. Two very capable U11s in Jack Bailey, a very talented batter

welcomed pupils from Latchmere Primary School three times

Best prospects Theo Hostombe-Daniels, Arjun Arora and Zakier Uddin Cricketers of note Joe Porter (Surrey), Luke Harrington-Myers (Cayman Islands)

Brief history Prior to the school moving to Kingston in 1965 the cricket records are a little thin on the ground. Wimbledon Common was used as a venue but most matches took place away from Rokeby. When the school moved all sport took place at Richardson Evans Memorial Playing Fields in Roehampton Vale. This was a superb venue for football and rugby but had no recognised cricket pitches. A framed scorecard from the early 1970s shows Donhead dismissing Rokeby at U11 level for 0! It was not until agreement was reached with Malden Wanderers in 1985 that cricket really took off. Since then cricket has grown to become the most successful sport

Cultural cricketers Oliver Reed and Richard Briers (actors)

and attacking leg spinner and Charlie Hebburn, a wicketkeeper who has batted four times, been not out four times and scored well over 150 runs as a 10-year-old

Cricketers of note Lord MacLaurin (Hertfordshire, ECB chairman)

Brief history Cricket has been played at SHS since at least 1897. In 1899

What sets the school apart? Truly stunning grounds – a match for any prep school

Finest moment on the field

2011 U11 8-a-side team winning the national title

Recent progress The love for the sport, best illustrated during school break times when cricket is invariably played

What has changed in the last 10

an old boy, Claude Jupp, played for Surbiton CC against MCC and was caught off the bowling of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. 1903 saw the first unbeaten season when the 1st XI won all eight of their fixtures. During the Second World War, when half of the school moved to Devon and half remained in Surbiton, the ‘two schools’

years? The school strive to make the game as inclusive as possible to all pupils. Every boy in every year plays at least three games – the vast majority considerably more Future plans To increase bespoke coaching sessions for individuals and small groups of spin bowlers, opening batters, fast bowlers, wicketkeepers

Tours India 2026

played against each other. In 1986 SHS scored 130 for 4 against Rokeby and bowled them out for just 11. Cricket has enjoyed unprecedented success in recent years

Cultural cricketers Stirling Moss (F1 driver)

What sets the school apart? The match against Sydenham School on June 2 1897 is one of the first interprep school matches

Finest moment on the field 2024 hugely successful with the boys winning both the U9 Downsend competition and U10 Caterham competitions against strong opposition

Recent progress Staff and boys collaborated to create a ‘3 and 30 award’ for any scores of 30 or three wickets or dismissals. To date, over 50 pupils have reached this feat

What has changed in the last 10 years? SHS established a vibrant and exciting house cricket competition allowing boys to play with their friends

Future plans Next year boys can access their first pre-season, allowing them to fine-tune technical skills before the season

Tours St Lucia 2025

Rob Williams Master in charge

TOP 50 PREP/JUNIOR SCHOOLS

SPRATTON HALL SCHOOL

Smith Street, Spratton, Northampton NN6 8HP

Established 1951

Number of pupils 400

Director of sport Gareth Barnard

Head of boys’ games

Oliver Woodhouse

Head of girls’ games Jess Clarke

Teams 25 – all mixed boys and girls from Year 3-8

Girls’ cricket Fully mix throughout school where girls and boys train and play together from seniors down to Year 3

Fixtures Over 200 ﬁxtures, including Witham, Bilton Grange and Oundle

Facilities 8 outdoor astro nets, 10 grass wickets, 6 astro wickets and an indoor sports dome. Used by junior county teams and Northampton Saints

Club/county a liation Overstone Park, Brixworth and East Haddon

CCs. Northamptonshire CCC and Leicestershire CCC

Best prospect Eddie Greany and Milo Green (both allrounders, Northants U12), Immy Turney

ST ANDREW’S PREP

Meads Street, Eastbourne, East Sussex BN20 7RP

Established 1877

Number of pupils 323 Director of cricket

Matilda Callaghan

(allrounder, Northants U15), Bessie Sanders (o spinner, Northants U12)

Cricketers of note Rob White (Northants)

Brief history Cricket has been played at Spratton Hall since 1951. Girls began playing cricket instead of rounders in 2017 with the school fully mixing teams in 2021. Cricket is played in all age groups from Year 2 to 8 with matches starting in Year 3

Cultural cricketers Harry Mallinder, Toby Cousins (both Northampton Saints and England rugby), Robbie Povey (Canada rugby), Max Fryatt (New Zealand Schools rugby), Tenniel Evans (actor), Mark Haddon (author), Michael Ellis MP

What sets the school apart?

Spratton Hall has fantastic facilities and ensures every child gets to play in matches while giving them the

Professional Mark Tomsett Teams Year 5 & 6 (4 boys and 4 girls teams), Year 7 & 8 (5 boys and 5 girls teams)

Girls’ cricket Girls’ ﬁrst team were winners of the Lambrook Tournament 2023. Girls U11As IAPS Bronze Medalists (Regionals) 2023. Both Girls’ 1st team and U11As playing hardball. Girls U11A IAPS Silver Medallists (Regionals) 2024

Fixtures More than 110 ﬁxtures. The school worked towards the IAPS Tournaments. U13 boys enter into the county cup

opportunity to develop their cricket no matter their starting ability

Finest moment on the ﬁeld 1st XI boys’ unbeaten season in 2017. 1st Xi girls’ indoor county champions and competed in the nationals at Cambridge University. Winning the National Lady Taverners U13 indoor competition

Recent progress With the school fully mixing a few years ago, it now feels the norm that boys and girls compete and train alongside each other. They are seeing more and more girls in the top teams winning matches for the school

What has changed in the last 10 years? The biggest change has been girls changing from rounders to cricket in summer term and then mixing with boys for matches and training. The outdoor nets have pushed the standard to an all-time high

Future plans Continue to push girls’ cricket and exposure to hardball matches so they get the same opportunities as the boys

Tours Mixed Year 8 tour to Bath to play All Hallows and King Edward’s School

competitions which involves state schools Facilities Sports hall with 4 indoor nets. 3 pitches on site. Access to further 6 prepared pitches o site. Access to Eastbourne College’s 8 outdoor nets for games lessons Club/county a liation

Very close links with Eastbourne CC as a number of pupils play for them. The school o er out sports hall and indoor nets for winter training. Also links with Sussex Cricket Foundation as a number of players are involved in the district and county pathway programme. The school sponsor East Dean CC –a small, local club which focuses on junior development

Best prospect A few county players in Year 7 & 8

Brief history Cricket is the main summer sport at St Andrew’s Prep for both boys and girls. With the introduction of girls’ cricket in 2020, they now boast over 18 teams. The

boys were Sussex U12 Champions in 2017. In 2018, as a result of winning the Sussex Cup, they were entered into the Bunbury U13 National Cup as the Sussex representatives What sets the school apart? It is a strong tradition at St Andrew’s and with 3 main pitches at the heart of the school on-site it is hard not to be involved. They run an inclusive programme o ering both girls and boys opportunities in the nets and to play on their best pitches

Finest moment on the ﬁeld IAPS

National ﬁnalists and County Cup winners

Recent progress The development of girls’ cricket

What has changed in the last 10 years? More inclusive approach with the younger years. Hardball introduced to girls from Year 5

Future plans More links with Eastbourne College to o er an all year-round programme with lots of pre-season activities

Mark Tomsett Professional

ST FAITH’S SCHOOL

Trumpington Road, Cambridge CB2 8AG

Established 1884

Number of pupils 560

Head of cricket Chris Clayton-Smith

Coach Mike Critchley

ST PETER’S YORK 8-13

Clifton, York YO30 6AB

Established 627

Number of pupils 380

Head of cricket Gareth Sharp

Professional Sam Grant Teams Around 35 in total Girls’ cricket A and B teams from Years 4 to 8

Fixtures All teams average 1 fixture a week, with competitions adding to this number throughout the term.

Notable fixtures Aysgarth, RGS Newcastle, Dulwich College and Leeds Grammar

Facilities 8 artificial nets, 3 grass pitches, 1 artificial pitch. 2 indoor sports halls equipped with nets and bowling machines. 4 cages and grass training pitches

Club/county affiliation Used as a ground for North of England U15 selection. Has hosted Northern Diamonds training and fixtures

Best prospect Rayyan Ahmed, a fast-bowling allrounder who plays for Yorkshire U12s. Jack Bennett, a batting allrounder who plays regional cricket. Sophia Horsfall-Samb, a

represent their senior schools and county sides

Fixtures Every team has between 7-9 fixtures and tournaments, including Bedford, Felsted and Bishop’s Stortford, as well as hosting Kent College touring side

Facilities 4 grass nets on site, plus 2 indoor nets in indoor hall as well as a brand new 6-lane facility at shared playing field, Latham Road. Along with this, 3 hardball and 4 softball pitches

Club/county affiliation

Cambridgeshire

Best prospect Ellie Howland bats with flair and technique, bowls leg-spin with accuracy and fields to a high standard

Cricketers of note Justin Benson (Ireland)

(both BBC sports presenters), John Maynard Keynes (economist), Prof David Thouless (Nobel prize winner, Physics), John Storey (Olympic rower), John Peake (Olympic hockey), Alex Goode (England rugby), Tessa Howard and Katie Curtis (both GB Hockey)

What sets the school apart? Leaders in girls’ cricket in the East, being the first school in the area to fully convert from rounders to cricket 8 years ago

Finest moment on the field IAPS National finals day, where the girls came third

Recent progress Integrating boys and girls together in cricket lessons in Years 3, 4 , 5 and now 6, has been a huge step forward.

Teams U12/U13 (Mixed): 3 Boys, 3 Girls, 1 mixed; U11: 5 mixed gender teams; U10: 4 Boys, 4 Girls; U9: 4 Boys, 4 Girls; U8: 4 Boys, 4 Girls

Girls’ cricket A huge part of sport at St Faith’s. Girls start their cricketing journey in Year 3 and girls’ teams have been extremely successful over the past 8 years with many going on to

Brief history KS Ranjitsinhji came to the school to acclimatise before heading on to Cambridge University. From this point on cricket was always held in high regard in the school, happily now accessible for all children

Cultural cricketers Sir Christopher Cockerell (inventor of hovercraft), Prof Lord Robert Mair, Sir John Tusa, Tom Williams, Alastair Bruce-Ball

promising seamer currently playing for Yorkshire age groups

Cricketers of note Jonny Bairstow, Norman Yardley, Don Wilson (all Yorkshire & England), Steven Coverdale (Yorkshire)

Brief history Cricket has been played at St Peter’s since the late 19th century, when a travelling group of boys played Pocklington School in the

first school fixture. Ever since then, teams have represented the school every Saturday in the summer term all over the north and beyond

Cultural cricketers Harry Gration (broadcaster)

What sets the school apart? Nestled under the watchful eye of York Minster and the River Ouse, there are few better sights than

What has changed in the last 10 years? New formats, which ensure all pupils get a fair and equal opportunity, has been the biggest change. Mixed cricket, where pupils are supported based on current ability rather than gender

Future plans To make the game more accessible to all and challenge the old stereotypes of cricket by changing formats and teaching styles

cricket at St Peter’s on a warm summer’s day

Finest moment on the field Ben Lodge hit six sixes in an over in a T20 against Queen Elizabeth Grammar School Wakefield in 2018. IAPS finalists for 7 in the last 10 years, winning back-to-back in 2018 and 2019

Recent progress The development of the girls’ programme has been a real source of pride, with players being selected more regularly to representative sides and many others playing regular fixtures against strong opposition

What has changed in the last 10 years? Development of the Super 8s, a highlight for U12s cricketers with schools travelling from all over the UK to take part

Future plans Integrated boys and girls’ teams in order to further the development of both groups at requisite skill level

Tours A great 10 days in Abu Dhabi and Dubai during the Easter holidays, with 24 boys and 2 girls representing the school with distinction against several local sides and strong UKbased opposition

TOP 50 PREP/JUNIOR SCHOOLS

TAUNTON PREP SCHOOL

Staplegrove Road, Taunton, Somerset TA2 6AE

Established 1847

Number of pupils 400

Director of cricket

Pete Sanderson

Professionals Marcus Trescothick

(Somerset & England, current

England assistant coach) and Dave Roberts (exWestern Storm coach and Somerset Women head coach)

Teams 30 teams across 6 age groups for girls and boys. The aim of match days is to play as many pupils as possible in the best format for those players to enjoy their cricketing experience. Not many

schools have so many teams

Girls’ cricket One specialist coach is used in every session for pupil beneﬁts, but also to continue the development of other female sta . Girls can access hardball cricket from Year 5. For other players the game is developed through softball practice and matches

Fixtures Every Wednesday all teams play ﬁxtures or have internal cup competitions including the girls. The most notable ﬁxture is still the MCC match, as well as Lashings

Facilities The equivalent of 12 grass and 9 artiﬁcial nets. Also use middle nets with cages. 6 grounds for cricket but also use 5 extra pitches not on proper squares. These facilities are used by Somerset Academy and youth teams as well as local clubs sponsored by Taunton School.

Indoor, 7 net lanes in two di erent halls. 3 bowling machines for indoor and outdoor use including a Merlyn. The main hall can be used for indoor matches

Club/county a liation Somerset Best prospect Year 8 Megan Driskel is an exciting allrounder, part of Somerset U15s. Year 8 Byron Hamer

is an exciting prospect, a very exciting opening bowler who bats middle order who plays for Somerset U14s

Cricketers of note Tom Abell (Somerset), Jodie Dibble (England Women); Aftab Habib (England, Essex, Leicestershire, Middlesex), John Jameson (England, Warwickshire), Jack White (England, Somerset), Tom Jameson (Warwickshire), Piran Holloway (Somerset and Warwickshire), Adam Dibble, Ricky Bartlett, Alan Marshall and Nick Pringle (all Somerset)

Cultural cricketers Jeremy Wright and Geo rey Cox (both Conservative MPs and attorney general), Alan Gibson (cricket writer)

What sets the school apart?

Having Trescothick, a current England coach on the cricket sta

Finest moment on the ﬁeld The 2024 summer provided many new highs, reached 4 county cup ﬁnals

Recent progress The addition of an extra coach in the prep school has made a signiﬁcant di erence

Future plans New hybrid pitches are being put in and there is a plan for an indoor cricket centre

Tours Dubai 2025

Pete Sanderson Director of cricket

THE BLUE COAT SCHOOL,

THE BLUE COAT SCHOOL, BIRMINGHAM

Somerset Road, Birmingham B17 0HR

Established 1722

Number of pupils 639

Master in charge Simon

Gregory (Shropshire CCC and Halesowen CC)

Teams 39 teams in total, providing fixtures for 366 pupils across Year 3 to 6

Girls’ cricket Every year group in the prep school (Year 3 to Year 6) participates in girls’ cricket with a minimum of four teams in each year group. In 2023, hardball cricket was introduced to girls at U11

Fixtures More than 200

Facilities 3 hardball pitches, 8 softball pitches, 4 lanes of artificial outside nets, 2 lanes of indoor nets, portable cricket net

Club/county affiliation

Warwickshire

Best prospect James Barwell, currently U11 boys’ captain who also represents Warwickshire at U11 level. Barwell is a fast bowler and middle order batsmen

THE NEW BEACON

Brittains Lane, Sevenoaks, Kent TN13 2PB

Established 1900

Number of pupils 330

Head of cricket

Owen Herbert

Teams 17 U8-U13

Cricketers of note Vikram Banerjee (Gloucestershire & ECB director of business operations)

Brief history Since the appointment of a new headmaster in 2017, there has been a strategic vision in establishing the school as one of the major cricketing prep schools

Girls’ cricket An all-boys’ school

Fixtures 30 fixtures. Kent Cup and Summers Cup fixtures

Facilities 5 outdoor nets, one grass wicket, 3 astro wickets, astro pitch and sports hall

Club/county affiliation

Super sporting Saturday for local primary schools

Best prospect Shabd Luthra, Cowdrey Scholar to Tonbridge School. County level cricketer. Top order batsman and all rounder Cricketers of note Sam Billings, Zak Crawley (both Kent & England)

Brief history Cricket has always been considered the most important sport at The New Beacon. The school has a history of producing top sportsmen, particularly cricketers and the previous head of games who ran the

sport for 40 years was a keen coach and cricketer. Many boys chose the school for cricket and we encourage excellence along with inclusivity sending out gems with every boy in the school playing regardless of ability. They also have competitions within the school which are hotly contested

Cultural cricketers Siegfried Sassoon (poet), Tim Laurence (equerry to Queen Elizabeth II), Ben Earl (rugby)

What sets the school apart?

Helping produce two England cricketers who both played in the same Test match. Producing county and England players, but also ensuring every boy regardless of ability can represent the school

Finest moment on the field 2008

U13 National Champions

Recent progress New head of sport with a more inclusive approach while still maintaining excellence. More younger coaches and an aim to increase participation in the wider community

What has changed in the last 10

country, the Blue Coat School provide all children with the opportunity to play cricket and compete against other local schools

Finest moment on the field

Retaining titles won in 2023 for both the boys and girls at the ESCA and IAPS competitions

in the region. Results over the past three years in both boys’ and girls’ major competitions, recognition from Warwickshire that the school should be used as a prime base for its development squads What sets the school apart? As one of the largest prep schools in the

Recent progress Blue Coat are most proud of promoting diversity and inclusion in cricket, both in regards to progressing girls’ cricket and ensuring the sport reaches a diverse population. As a school with a diverse cohort, they are able to reach demographics currently underrepresented in cricket and begin to foster a love of the game What has changed in the last 10 years? Even during remote learning during the Covid-19 pandemic, the school continued to pursue cricket, innovating with drills pupils could do at home

Future plans Prior to trials for the Warwickshire winter training squads in November, the school aim to offer coaching to children from local schools (delivered by Blue Coat staff) who do not have this opportunity within their own setting or beyond

years? New nets, new astroturf used for all-weather cricket, new sports hall, more employed specialist staff, more staff training, new Head of Sport

Future plans More pitches, more coaching for staff. Exciting times are ahead for The New Beacon. The

recent merger with Tonbridge School provides amazing opportunity for collaboration of sports staff and use of top-class facilities

Tours Planned for the future, would be the first one with interest generated by new head of sport

Owen Herbert Head of cricket

TOP 50 PREP/JUNIOR SCHOOLS

TWYFORD SCHOOL

Twyford, Winchester, Hampshire SO21 1NW

Established 1809 Number of pupils 430 Director of sport Gregg Lewis Head of girls’ cricket Laura Crook Coaches Steve Riddle, Ashley Wright Teams 20 boys: 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, 4th XI, U13AB, U12AB, U11ABC, U10ABC, U9ABCD, U8ABC. 15 girls: 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, U12AB, U11ABC, U10AB, U9ABC, U8ABC Girls’ cricket The main sport o ered to girls in summer from Year 3 through to Year 8 since 2015. Fixtures against Cheam, Farleigh, Highﬁeld, St Swithun’s, Lord Wandsworth College, Edgeborough, King Edward VI Southampton Fixtures 300plus across all teams in summer term. Horris Hill almost annually since 1895 and relatively recent

introduction of Ludgrove Facilities 8 ovals, 1 astroturf for U8/ U9 matches, 4 outdoor nets (on allweather surface which was upgraded and installed by Durant in December 2022), 2 indoor nets in the sports hall Club/county a liation Hampshire. Year 5 and 6 children play local primary school Twyford St Mary’s Best prospect Eliza Bristowe, Hampshire elite player pathway, plays two age groups above Cricketers of note Jimmy Adams, Joe Weatherley, Felix Organ (all Hampshire)

WEST HOUSE SCHOOL

24 St James Rd, Birmingham B15 2NX

Established 1895

Number of pupils 350

Director of cricket

Naheem Sajjad

Teams U11ABCD, U10ABCD, U9ABCDE, UABCDE

Brief history Twyford is one of the oldest prep schools in the country, and cricket has been played through its 200-year history. Twyford has just celebrated 165 years of competitive matches. Charles Dodgson (better known as Lewis Carroll) had brothers at the school and took a portrait of the 1st XI in 1858. H McDonnell, himself an Old Twyfordian, played for Hampshire

Girls’ cricket

An all-boys’ school Fixtures A & B teams play up to 10 ﬁxtures per season with C, D and E playing 5-6 ﬁxtures. U11As play an annual match against the Year 7 team at King Edward’s School, Birmingham Facilities Two indoor nets and two new outdoor nets and bowling

while headmaster

Cultural cricketers Douglas Hurd (foreign secretary) was in the 1st XI in 1942, Brian Trubshaw (ﬁrst Concorde pilot), Simon Chambers (owner of Storm Model agency) What sets the school apart? The oak-beamed Jimmy Adams Pavilion and 1st XI pitch looking out on the South Downs makes for a striking setting. Some of the earliest interprep school matches were played at Twyford as shown in Dodgson’s portrait and the write-up in the

machine. Two cricket grounds including a well-equipped club standard facility Club/county a liation The main cricket ground is also home to Harborne CC girls’ section and the home venue for Harborne CC playing in the Worcestershire League. The school supports the development of junior and youth cricket at Harborne through the provision of coaches and sponsorship Cricketers of note Ron Maudsley, Robin Dyer, Simon Green (all Warwickshire), Harry Boam (Wellington, New Zealand U19) Brief history Against the backdrop of the report from the Independent Commission for Equity in Cricket, West House is a city prep school educating boys whose families often make signiﬁcant sacriﬁces to send their sons. This school’s reputation is founded on the people who work within it or are associated

Hampshire Chronicle. Court cricket is a game unique to Twyford where up to 100 children play at breaktimes. Boys and girls play together and bowlers, using taped tennis balls (for swing) pit themselves against individual batters not allowed to defend. Fielders vie to catch them out and claim the bat Finest moment on the ﬁeld First win at national level as ESCA U11 8-a-side National Champions in 2014, retained in 2015 and 2019 Recent progress O er after-school clubs through the year

with it. Within the context of the cricket there is a huge example of encouragement, inclusion, diversity and the success that comes with the approach adopted and the building of meaningful partnerships that can beneﬁt the entire community Cultural cricketers No fewer than 9 Lord Mayors of Birmingham, 6 members of the Cadbury family, Chaneil Kular (actor), Soweto Kinch (musician)

Recent progress Continued investment in the facilities and strengthening of relationship with Harborne CC

Callum Williamson Head of PE and games

TOP 50 PREP/JUNIOR SCHOOLS

WESTBOURNE HOUSE SCHOOL

Coach Road, Chichester, West Sussex PO20 2BH

Established 1907

Number of pupils 353

Professional Kevin Smith (Sussex), Matt Geffen (Boys’ 1st XI coach and Sussex Academy)

Club/county affiliation Have hosted Sussex winter junior cricket training

Best prospect

Teams 30 teams who play matches every week, often twice a week. Boys – 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, 4th XI, 5th XI, U11ABC, U10ABC, U9ABC and U8ABC. Girls – 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, 4th XI, U11AB, U10ABC, U9AB and U8AB

Girls’ cricket The major girls’ sport in the summer. In October 2023 the girls completed their second overseas tour to South Africa

Fixtures Each team plays an average of 8 matches, plus tournaments in certain age groups. Most notable block fixtures Cranleigh, Highfield, Twyford and Windlesham

Facilities 6 outdoor nets and 4 indoor nets and a bowling machine. 13 cricket pitches of which 6 are astroturf

WESTBROOK HAY SCHOOL

London Road, Hemel Hempstead, Hertfordshire HP1 2RF

Established 1892

Number of pupils 380 Master in charge Stuart Stedman Teams 4 U13; 8 U11 boys’ teams; 5 U11 girls’; 8 U9 boys’; 4 U9 girls’; 3 U8 girls’, plus mixed cricket

Girls’ cricket The girls train with the boys in co-educational groups while playing in their own girls’ sides on match days

Fixtures Year 5-8 sides play up to 11 matches. Play in tournaments hosted by Haileybury, Bedford, Merchant Taylors’ and St Albans as well as regional competitions

Facilities 2 grass hardball pitches, 1 astro wicket, 6 junior wickets, a grass net and 3 astro nets – all outside – as well as 2 indoor nets and a bowling machine Club/county affiliation Members of Herts Schools Cricket Association and hosted inaugural U11 Girls’ County Cup in summer 2024. Craig Ringsell, groundsman for

Boys – U11: George Hobkirk, Rupert Gillett (both Sussex), Jonty Higgins Drysdale (Hampshire), U12: Rocco Matthews (Sussex). Girls – U13: Willow Lock, Marissa Ellis (both Sussex)

Cricketers of note Holly Colvin (England Women), Charlie Tear (Sussex and Scotland)

Brief history Westbourne House was an all-boys boarding school of 160 pupils with a small fixture list. There were many unbeaten seasons. The fixture list has grown over the years. The school hosted an ex-England XI against the Duke of Richmond’s XI. The Shopwyke Strollers are a very active prep school old boy XI. The big development in

Chesham United FC and Leverstock Green CC, is in charge of the wickets. John Neal, head of coach development at the ECB, is a former teacher and he runs a clinic for both staff and senior sides. They play a range of independent and state schools and also host an annual U7 cricket festival for local state schools

Best prospect Yuvan Samtani, current Year 3, plays for the U11 Watford district team. Sophie Bertin, current Year 5, is a stylish and composed allrounder who is part of the Bucks county set-up

Cricketers of note Alex Hales (Nottinghamshire & England)

recent times has been the growth of girls’ cricket

Cultural cricketers Tom Bradby (ITV correspondent, journalist and author), made a 50 in the 1st XI; Marcus Brigstocke (comedian), Nick Clarke (presenter and journalist), Alastair MacKenzie (actor and brilliant 1st XI scorer), Tom Newton Dunn (political journalist)

What sets the school apart? Every single pupil from Year 2 upwards plays cricket at a level they want to Finest moment on the field

Dominating Sussex prep school cricket pre-2000 for many years at U11 and U13

Recent progress The girls’ continued cricket progress in the last 12 months. It has been incredible and in advance of many other schools

What has changed in the last 10 years? Many pupils are ready for hardball from Year 4/5

Future plans To invest in new pitches to cope with the rising demand for girls’ hardball. Hoping local community engage more by offering coaching skills to local schools during term Tours South Africa (annual)

Brief history Pupils are regularly part of representative squads and recent success is seen in winning the U11 County Cup in 2012, 2014, 2015. The girls are treading a similar path now with four involved in the county programme Cultural cricketers Luke O’Nien

(Sunderland footballer), Raef Bjayou (British entrepreneur and TV presenter), Deji Olatunji (YouTuber with over 10m subscribers) What sets the school apart?

‘Cricket for All’ policy means cricket played every day during summer term Finest moment on the field

Winning the County Cup 3 times in 4 years. Hales, 10, hitting his coach for six over long on a close second

Recent progress Development of girls’ programme. The girls’ A-side regularly play hardball cricket

What has changed in the last 10 years? Reduced numbers in smallsided cricket has given pupils more opportunities to improve skills

Future plans Develop into an all-through school incorporating senior pupils, arrange fixtures and competitions for U14-U16 age groups

Clare Cook & Brandon Hanley Heads of sport

WOODCOTE HOUSE SCHOOL

Snows Ride, Windlesham, Surrey GU20 6PF

Established 1816

Number of pupils 110

Master in charge Andrew Monk Teams 6

Girls’ cricket An all-boys’ school Fixtures 35, ensuring the majority of boys get the chance to represent the school. The home and away ‘El Clasico’ against Sunningdale always fun afternoons and honours are usually pretty even

Facilities 4 grass squares, 4 artificial nets and recently refurbished pavilion with electronic scoreboard and digital coaching facility. Use Eversley Indoor Centre for winter training and close links with Valley End CC ensure facilities are shared on regular basis Club/county affiliation Woodcote House works closely with Valley End CC’s Christmas Chari-Tree appeal, now in its sixth year – a partnership between local independent schools and businesses to provide hampers and presents for struggling families via

the local primary schools. Woodcote also helps with sponsorship at VECC and provides grass pitches for some of the club’s youth fixtures, both boys and girls

Best prospect Magnus F in Year 6 is maturing as an all-rounder while Harvey G and William P bowl with control. All are involved in local club cricket too.

Brief history The iconic Front Field pitch with its Georgian house backdrop, has had cricket played on it for well over 100 years.

Originally an academy for cadets prior to Sandhurst entry, Woodcote House has always had a strong cricketing tradition which the school proudly maintain

against Sunningdale in 2018 when the 1st XI racked up 209 for 5

Cultural cricketers Roger Hodgson of Supertramp and Oliver Tilney, the Diet Coke Man. Jasper from indie band Red Lane has his name on the honours board

What sets the school apart? The survivors of the Battle of Trafalgar would have made their weary away across the 1st XI pitch, before spending the night at the Pelican Inn, the school’s original incarnation Finest moment on the field The school’s highest score in a T20 was

HIGHLY COMMENDED

Recent progress The developing relationship with Valley End CC has meant local state school children are now becoming increasingly aware of cricket and the numbers playing reflect this

What has changed in the last 10 years? The awareness of the game from those joining school is at a lower level than in the past. Very few schools are happy to play anything other than T20 and timed format is a thing of the past in all but a few places

The following schools entered a submission to The Cricketer Schools Guide 2025 but unfortunately just missed out on the top 100, top 50, top 25 or top 20. However, their cricket programme has been highly commended and we look forward to hearing of their progress in the future

Senior schools

Alleyn’s School

Ashford School

Canford School

Cheadle Hulme School

Chigwell School

Christ College Brecon

Church’s College

Collegiate School

Dauntsey’s

Elizabeth College

Gigglewick School

Hill House School

King’s Bruton

King’s Ely

Kirkham Grammar School

Leicester Grammar School

Loretto School

Loughborough Grammar School

Mount Kelly

Queen Elizabeth’s Hospital

Ratcliffe College

RGS Worcester

Rossall School

The King’s School Worcester

The Oratory School

The Perse School

Warwick Independent Boys School

Wellingborough School

Wells Cathedral School

Wycliffe College

Junior/prep schools

Blundell's Prep

Brambletye School

Dorset House

Feltonfleet

Fettes Prep

Hill House School

King's School Cantenbury

Langbrook Hay

Moulsford Prep School

Newcastle under Lyme Prep

Old Buckenham Hall School

Pinewood School

Queen's College Prep School, Taunton

St Neot's Prep

Stamford Prep

Stroud School

King Edward VI Prep, Southampton

Swanbourne House

The Pilgrims' School Winchester

Holmewood House

The Elms School

State schools

Beechen Cliff

William Perkin

All-girls schools

Farnborough Hill

Top 100 senior schools

Abingdon School 25

AKS Lytham 25

Ardingly College 26

Barnard Castle 28

Bede’s School 30

Bedford School 31

Berkhamsted School 33

Bishop Stortford College 33

Bloxham School 34

Blundell’s School 34

Bradfield College 35

Brentwood School 35

Brighton College 36

Bromsgrove School 38

Caterham School 38

Charterhouse 39

Cheltenham College 39

Clayesmore School 40

Clifton College 41

Cranleigh School 41

Denstone College 42

Dulwich College 42

Dunottar School 43 Durham School 43

Eastbourne College 44

Ellesmere College 44

Emanuel School 45

Epsom College 47

Eton College 47

Felsted School 48

Forest School 50

Framlingham College 51

George Watson’s College 53

Gresham’s School 53

Haberdashers’ Boys School 54

Haberdashers Monmouth School 54

Haileybury 55

Hampton School 56

Harrow School 58

Hurstpierpoint College 58

John Lyon School 59

Kimbolton ............................................. 60

King Edward VI School, Southampton................................... 61

King Edward’s School, Birmingham ...................................... 61

King Edward’s, Witley......................... 62

King’s College School, Wimbledon...................................... 64

King’s College Taunton..................... 64

Lancing College................................... 66

Latymer Upper School ..................... 68

Lord Wandsworth College .............. 68

School, Northwood

Top 25 state schools

Brighton Aldridge Community Academy 112

Chislehurst & Sidcup Grammar School 113

Dr Challoner’s Grammar School 113

George Abbot School 114

Huddersfield New College 114

King Edward VI School, Stratford-upon-Avon 115

Lancaster Royal Grammar School 115

Myerscough College 116

Old Swinford Hospital 118

Queen Mary’s Grammar School, Walsall 118

Reading School 119

Shenfield High School 119

Simon Langton Grammar School for Boys 120

South Dartmoor Community College 120

St Bartholomew’s School, Newbury 121

The Bishop’s Stortford High School 121

The Canterbury Academy 122 The Judd School 122

Top 50 junior/prep schools

School for Boys

Top 20 all-girls schools

Cheltenham Ladies' College 128

Denmark Road High School 128

Downe House School 129

Godolphin and Latymer School 129

Guildford High School 130

King Edward VI High School for Girls 130

Lady Eleanor Holles School 131

Loughborough High School 131

Malvern St James Girls’ School 132

Mayfield Girls School 132

Notting Hill & Ealing High School 133

Portsmouth High School 133

Putney High School 134

Roedean School 134

Sherborne Girls' School 135

South Hampstead High School 135

St Catherine’s School, Bramley 136

St Helen & St Katharine School 136

St Swithun’s School, Winchester 137

The Mary Erskine School 137

Supporters of The Cricketer Schools Guide

Completed projects by Durant Sports

Durant Sports install a wide range of products across the UK. Some of our work in schools includes:

Shrewsbury School

Conversion of an old outdated scorebox to a cutting edge video screen compatible with PCS Pro.

Blundell’s School

Manufacture and delivery of a solar powered, personalised DC28-digit cricket scoreboard on a manoeuvrable trolley.

North London Collegiate

Installation of a 4-bay, fully enclosed practice area with black powder coated steel.

South Northumberland Cricket Club

Installation of DuraFlex, our very own ECB Approved Indoor Specialist Cricket Vinyl Surface at South Northumberland Cricket Club.