marc71178
Eyes not spreadsheets
From The Sun-Herald
All is not lost for England. Rod Marsh, coach of the Australian cricket
academy for 10 years and now heading the English equivalent, says England
may have a greater depth of fast bowlers than Australia.
He also believes Steve Harmison and Simon Jones are better bowlers than
Glenn McGrath at the same age.
"There's some bloody good kids coming through," he said. "Providing the
system of them having to play so much doesn't destroy them, there's going to
be some serious heat around in years to come for Australia's batsmen."
Marsh once famously dismissed all English bowlers as "pie-chuckers".
Evidently, a change of jobs has prompted a change in his tune.
Marsh named Lancashire pair Kyle Hogg, 19, and James Anderson, 20, and
Hampshire's Chris Tremlett, 21, as bowlers to watch.
Hogg is a grandson of former West Indian great Sonny Ramadhin, Anderson
bowls fast outswingers, and Tremlett, son of long-serving county player Tim,
pounds the ball down from nearly 195cm.
Marsh also said he has in his charge two wicketkeepers, Glamorgan's Mark
Wallace and Nottinghamshire's Chris Read, who are better than himself and
Ian Healy were at the same age.
Marsh thinks it is crucial for all bowlers and keepers to continue to
improve otherwise they risk becoming lost in the English system.
"What happens to them in the next five or six years? They've got to keep
improving. If they do, they'll be fantastic," he said.
England's goal is to lead the world in Test and one-day cricket by 2007, and
Marsh thinks it is realistic. "A lot can happen in five years," he said.
"It's up to these guys. They've got to be the nucleus of that 2007 team."
Marsh said England now had the infrastructure right at last. Their biggest
handicap is that cricket is a long and poor second to soccer as the major
sport in the country.
Although cricket is not the most popular sport in any one Australian State,
it is the national sport. "In Australia, you are more likely to get a fairer
percentage of the most talented athletes playing cricket than you are in a
country that's dominated by football," Marsh said.
"But it's a poor excuse to say that England aren't getting enough of the
best athletes. It's a much more realistic approach to say that they haven't
been good enough for the last 10 years."
Marsh said although fitness is obviously a cornerstone to the academy
program, he doesn't see it as crucial to bridging the gulf between Australia
and England.
"I don't think the Australian team is necessarily any fitter than the
English team," he said. "They're just playing better cricket."
Marsh thinks it is encouraging that England are moving towards a youth
policy. "It must be done with care. You must not pick them just because
they're young," he said. "But you're better off to err on the side of youth.
They rarely let you down, youngsters."
Marsh has been working with his English squad at the Australian academy in
Adelaide, but from next year will be based at the new academy at
Loughborough University in the English Midlands.
But he has not renounced Australia and still keeps a watchful eye on
Australia's cricketing youth. He thinks the bowling stocks remain healthy
but worries the batting is thinning out.
All is not lost for England. Rod Marsh, coach of the Australian cricket
academy for 10 years and now heading the English equivalent, says England
may have a greater depth of fast bowlers than Australia.
He also believes Steve Harmison and Simon Jones are better bowlers than
Glenn McGrath at the same age.
"There's some bloody good kids coming through," he said. "Providing the
system of them having to play so much doesn't destroy them, there's going to
be some serious heat around in years to come for Australia's batsmen."
Marsh once famously dismissed all English bowlers as "pie-chuckers".
Evidently, a change of jobs has prompted a change in his tune.
Marsh named Lancashire pair Kyle Hogg, 19, and James Anderson, 20, and
Hampshire's Chris Tremlett, 21, as bowlers to watch.
Hogg is a grandson of former West Indian great Sonny Ramadhin, Anderson
bowls fast outswingers, and Tremlett, son of long-serving county player Tim,
pounds the ball down from nearly 195cm.
Marsh also said he has in his charge two wicketkeepers, Glamorgan's Mark
Wallace and Nottinghamshire's Chris Read, who are better than himself and
Ian Healy were at the same age.
Marsh thinks it is crucial for all bowlers and keepers to continue to
improve otherwise they risk becoming lost in the English system.
"What happens to them in the next five or six years? They've got to keep
improving. If they do, they'll be fantastic," he said.
England's goal is to lead the world in Test and one-day cricket by 2007, and
Marsh thinks it is realistic. "A lot can happen in five years," he said.
"It's up to these guys. They've got to be the nucleus of that 2007 team."
Marsh said England now had the infrastructure right at last. Their biggest
handicap is that cricket is a long and poor second to soccer as the major
sport in the country.
Although cricket is not the most popular sport in any one Australian State,
it is the national sport. "In Australia, you are more likely to get a fairer
percentage of the most talented athletes playing cricket than you are in a
country that's dominated by football," Marsh said.
"But it's a poor excuse to say that England aren't getting enough of the
best athletes. It's a much more realistic approach to say that they haven't
been good enough for the last 10 years."
Marsh said although fitness is obviously a cornerstone to the academy
program, he doesn't see it as crucial to bridging the gulf between Australia
and England.
"I don't think the Australian team is necessarily any fitter than the
English team," he said. "They're just playing better cricket."
Marsh thinks it is encouraging that England are moving towards a youth
policy. "It must be done with care. You must not pick them just because
they're young," he said. "But you're better off to err on the side of youth.
They rarely let you down, youngsters."
Marsh has been working with his English squad at the Australian academy in
Adelaide, but from next year will be based at the new academy at
Loughborough University in the English Midlands.
But he has not renounced Australia and still keeps a watchful eye on
Australia's cricketing youth. He thinks the bowling stocks remain healthy
but worries the batting is thinning out.
