The latest county cricket census carried out by Wisden makes depressing reading for Bears fans who would hope that a club of the size of Warwickshire would be able to produce more than its fair share of home-grown talent. But:

• in a table of what percentage of players were born in the county or an adjoining one, Warwickshire came 12th out of 18 counties
• in a table showing where county players learnt their cricket, Warwickshire came 13th
• looking at the % of home-grown players, Warwickshire were 15th; and in the table of who had signed the most from other counties, the Bears were second
• overall, Warwickshire were 17th out of 18 in looking at the balance between creation and purchase of players

The New Year report card must say "could do better".

Thanks Terry, interesting article. I don't think anybody would claim Warwickshire's player development has been good. In the club's slight defence it's possible that 5 of the top seven next year will be home grown (stretching a point on Sam H). But bringing through bowlers has been terrible, would Chris Woakes be the last good bowler we developed?

I think Chris Woakes is the last bowler who came through the junior ranks and made the grade with the club - and he made his debut in 2006.

Other counties have good links with the private schools in their area, who help with the development of young players, apart from Jacob Bethell and Ben Blakemore that doesn't seem to be the case at Warwickshire.

I've been banging this drum for ages. Things seemed to stall drastically in this regard when Gilo was at the helm. We're just not a county that backs locally developed cricketers and we do poach from other counties quite a fair bit. The bowlers situation is just embarrassing and the fact that we do not have a steady pipeline of homegrown seamers coming through means our hit and miss recruitment style gets exposed.

Re. Homegrown players, we have got better though, Yates, Mousley, Shaikh, Bethell, Hain (just), Woakes etc, all first teasers when available, generally.

The private school thing is crucial. Because league cricket doesn’t produce players the same way anymore.
If you look at the likes of Yorkshire, Lancashire, Surrey, Sussex, Middlesex, Somerset even Kent. They use partnerships with schools. Sedbergh, Whitgift, Tonbridge, Cranleigh, Manchester Grammar, Merchant Taylor’s, Eastbourne, Millfield, King’s Taunton, all have strong links to the counties. They get year round coaching with top coaches, with top facilities, playing other schools with strong teams. Those counties go out of their way to get the best young players into those schools on scholarships.
It’s a shame the sport has come to this because the ECB and government destroyed cricket in the state system. But the club should have adapted like so many others.

BristolBear wrote:

The private school thing is crucial. Because league cricket doesn’t produce players the same way anymore.
If you look at the likes of Yorkshire, Lancashire, Surrey, Sussex, Middlesex, Somerset even Kent. They use partnerships with schools. Sedbergh, Whitgift, Tonbridge, Cranleigh, Manchester Grammar, Merchant Taylor’s, Eastbourne, Millfield, King’s Taunton, all have strong links to the counties. They get year round coaching with top coaches, with top facilities, playing other schools with strong teams. Those counties go out of their way to get the best young players into those schools on scholarships.
It’s a shame the sport has come to this because the ECB and government destroyed cricket in the state system. But the club should have adapted like so many others.

Completely agree. The obvious tie up for us is Rugby School. But there's also Warwick & Solihull (and Princethorpe to a lesser degree). Can't believe we've not done that before now.

Highveld wrote:

Other counties have good links with the private schools in their area, who help with the development of young players, apart from Jacob Bethell and Ben Blakemore that doesn't seem to be the case at Warwickshire.

And Dan Mousley

Yep & Rob Yates, Warwick School.

I think there’s a difference between players coming from those schools, and a link and using those schools.
For example I know Surrey actively fund scholarships, and have ex players as coaches in Surrey private schools.
Some counties have “centres of excellence” set up at schools to convince parents to send their kids to those schools, and have contributed to funding facilities at those schools, to use them for age group matches and winter training. Even having school coaches having a role in coaching the county age groups to strengthen the link and provide consistency.
The connection between the county and the school is very obvious and deliberately so. And schools welcome it; because it helps them bolster their reputation and bring in more potential students because parents think going to that school gives them the best chance at making it.

Dan Mousley is an example of a school giving a scholarship to get a talented sportman to represent the school.

The main problem from what I have seen over the years is that despite lack of success, Birmingham is a 'Football City' and even though over the last 10, 15. 20, 25 years, Warwickshire have won more trophies than all the local football teams put together, nowhere in the city, do I see/hear much to do about cricket. On the recruiting front, what we have done is get players from other counties and turn them into better players once they are here - Ambrose, Clarke, Rankin, Chopra, Evans spring to mind unlike Nottinghamshire who just steal players who are close to their peak as soon as they realise they are worth signing. But, yes, it is a big question about us not producing players from the local clubs but it has been the same for decades.

Well there is a whole County outside Birmingham including Coventry and I’d wager if there was a Birmingham v the Rest of the County match of the all time players the. The rest would be stronger.

I’d like to see players produced from both.

Even going back to John Whitehouse time we nearly lost him to Gloucestershire because selectors couldn’t be bothered to travel to Nuneaton.

Highveld wrote:

Dan Mousley is an example of a school giving a scholarship to get a talented sportman to represent the school.

Well Dan was already at Bablake but it was a very keen ex Master called Terry Patchett who then donated the scholarship.

More anti Birmingham rhetoric...

BosworthBear wrote:

Highveld wrote:

Dan Mousley is an example of a school giving a scholarship to get a talented sportman to represent the school.

Well Dan was already at Bablake but it was a very keen ex Master called Terry Patchett who then donated the scholarship.

I forgot Bablake in my list of prospective Independent Schools we could link with. A great sporting school, with a good record of bringing cricketers along - not just Dan M. Now they tied up with King Henry's, there could be a great opportunity to improve our intake from Cov.

The_Lickey_Banker wrote:

BosworthBear wrote:

Highveld wrote:

Dan Mousley is an example of a school giving a scholarship to get a talented sportman to represent the school.

Well Dan was already at Bablake but it was a very keen ex Master called Terry Patchett who then donated the scholarship.

I forgot Bablake in my list of prospective Independent Schools we could link with. A great sporting school, with a good record of bringing cricketers along - not just Dan M. Now they tied up with King Henry's, there could be a great opportunity to improve our intake from Cov.

Indeed and not just Cov but the surrounding area as well so Nuneaton, Kenilworth, Leamington, Rugby

John Whitehouse came from my Grammar School, KEGS in Nuneaton, not a private school but a good cricketing Grammar School in the early 60's, with a keen sports master and a weekly visit from Derriff Taylor, both being key.

South-Coast-exile wrote:

John Whitehouse came from my Grammar School, KEGS in Nuneaton, not a private school but a good cricketing Grammar School in the early 60's, with a keen sports master and a weekly visit from Derriff Taylor, both being key.

That’s right and he played for Nuneaton CC but he left to study at Bristol University and whilst there Gloucestershire made an approach to Warwickshire for him. It was only then the selectors at Edgbaston recognised the talent on their own doorstep! He should have played for England and toured India!

Was Whitehouse a good enough player to play Test cricket, a first-class average of 32 would suggest otherwise. Yes we do have other places to get players from in the county but the Birmingham League is supposedly as strong as any in the country, so it does make me wonder what happens to good players whilst they are playing well in that particular league.