Midweek musings

It has been another sad few days for cricket, with the passing of Christopher Martin-Jenkins. He was an excellent commentator and, in an era where it appears a pre-requisite for those in such roles to have been players themselves, he was one of the last of the breed.

He always struck me as a fair man in his comments and writing and was able to describe the action with a clarity and gift that is given to a very few. For me, cricket commentary has been best served by CMJ, Brian Johnston, John Arlott and Henry Blofeld, none of them cricketers, but wordsmiths all. It is good to have the expert analysts, but those four combined a passion for and knowledge of the game with an ability to paint a picture nonpareil.

All is quiet at the County Ground, though I understand that next week will see the announcement of the 2013 Academy intake. Mykylo Bird, Harvey Hosein, Tom Taylor, Greg Massingham, Greg Cork and Will Davis look likely to have another year, although the identity of those coming on board is a mystery until next week. There are several strong candidates, however and I look forward to seeing the names of those involved.

So, indeed, should everyone, as these lads are very much the future of our club. We must continue to invest in and produce our own young talent and hope that they emerge as the next generation to follow Redfern, Whiteley, Burgoyne, Knight, Hughes, Borrington and more. The sterling work that was started by Karl Krikken and is now led by Howard Dytham brought somewhat premature dividends last summer. Fast forward five years and who knows what this young crop of talent might achieve?

As I have written before, some will always fall by the wayside and reach a level that tops out before the first-class game, but if one or two from each year come through, the academy will more than justify its existence. In my opinion it will, and will continue to go from strength to strength.

Why am I so confident? Because the club has excellent coaches who know local cricket, together with a scouting network that is improving all the time. There will be few, if any, young players in the Derbyshire and Staffordshire areas that they are unaware of, with the presence of Kevin Dean in the local leagues, together with his role at the club, being of real benefit.

We will all, in due course, be getting excited (hopefully!) about our new overseas player for 2013. None of us should underestimate the importance of next week's announcement.

After all, one of them could quite possibly be one of our idols in a few years time.

Nice thought, huh?