Since Folkestone Cricket Club first laid its roots in Shepway (1856), the welfare of the young player has been at the forefront of all our policies, the phrase  within the cricket fraternity “no youngsters no cricket”  is very true in today’s modern cricket world, with such initiatives as Clubmark and Focus club status raising standards throughout.

 I have been involved in colts cricket at F.C.C for a little over 3 years, and having the many conversations with senior players, officials and of course our dedicated followers, as well as the many people I see in other clubs who use that well worn out (But true) statement “In My Day” although we have different guidelines to follow, I have noted when talking to John Godden, Keith Riddalls,  or James Tredwell the pride when talking about their time as young players, as being the most important part of their formative years as well as being an enjoyable and relaxed part of their youth.   

Since the famous ashes win in 2005, cricket has been pushed to the forefront in sport, however, the English Cricket Board (E.C.B) was planning well before 2005 to raise the profile of cricket at a national level, while bringing club cricket in line with modern coaching methods, and current government legislation regarding child welfare & duty of care. In 2005 I was invited to join F.C.C to coach, as well as to assist in bringing the club forward by implementing procedures and a modern coaching set up which will be the springboard for our efforts and direction for years to come. As you may know, we were awarded Clubmark status in 2007, and in 2008 we were awarded Focus Club status. 

When I first started coaching at F.C.C we had around twenty four to thirty young players, and I was at that time the only coach, we advertised, we cajoled, we used every tactic we could reasonably employ but most of all we coached, as the numbers increased we felt it beneficial for the youngsters  to increase our coaching staff. We now have over 120 colts as members, and we manage six colts teams in the Summer and four during the winter, this has come about, due to the coaching skills and dedication of all the coaching staff, and from this dedication, the winning streak was born, and of course the first of many awards.  

The way we coach at F.C.C is always based on keeping things simple, “have fun, enjoy your sport and be aware of those around you”, we start training young people from the age of six and stop training them the day they retire from the sport, we like to train hard and play easy, we like to play as a team both on and of the field, this means when we play we are aware of how our team mates react and we can all draw on one another’s strengths , and counteract our own weaknesses.

As a club, and as a colts section we constantly look to the future, and also to the past to draw on experiences learned, it is this variety of knowledge that has seen the club achieve its current status, With focus club status we will hopefully be able to access more funding for our colts as well as to control our own destiny, with ownership of our ground and pavilion, this will of course take time, however, in the meantime we will be working very hard to fulfil the needs of your child. 

Our dedicated coaching staff are always willing to provide expert training and advice and they often put in more hours than their wives or girlfriends appreciate. The coaching tree is as follows:

TRAINING

When you bring your son or daughter to Folkestone Cricket Club (F.C.C) to train in cricket, you as parents will want to know how our club is run, firstly I would like to (proudly) point out that we are a Focus Club which basically means we have a seal of approval from our governing body the English Cricket Board & Kent Cricket Board, this award shows that we are a leading club in Cricket in our area.

Focus status means we have policies in place that protect the welfare of all at F.C.C. we have an up to date Child protection policy and ALL coaches have been trained in:

ü      Cricket Coaching

ü      Safeguarding & Protecting Children

ü      First Aid

ü      Member of the ECB Coaches Association

The Safety of your child is always paramount with F.C.C.

All our coaches and a number of other club officials have also undergone an enhanced C.R.B check by the appropriate official bodies, and a variety of other courses which enable us to run as an effective and efficient cricket club.

One question you might ask is what makes F.C.C different? The answer is we keep things simple, we have fun and we play our cricket with pride and in a sporting manner, and perhaps most importantly, we succeed.

During the summer months we train at our home ground at Cheriton Road  on a Monday night from 6pm until 8pm and in the winter we train at the Harvey Grammar School

from 5pm until 9pm this is done in two sessions the 6 to 11 year olds taking the first two hour session with the 12 to 18 year olds taking the second session.

When your children first come to training they will be put with their relevant age group and assessed on their ability, enabling the coach; with advice from the senior coaches to determine where best to place the young player in our training setup.

As a club we follow the Long Term Athletic Development approach to your child’s development in cricket; this method when used by parents, coaches and players together, will ensure a healthy lifestyle leading to long term health and hopefully a happy and rewarding sporting life.

Our coaching methods always follow the simplest concepts of the game, such as playing straight with the bat or running straight in the bowling action this leads later to the more complex considerations of tactics and of course the all important subject of the rules. We do of course offer more advanced training for those who we think could play at a very high level with the parent’s agreement.

We have an emerging player’s programme where those players who show above average talent, a commitment to the game, a willingness to learn and are truly sporting at heart are encouraged and mentored through the stages of higher level cricketing.

We aim, as a club to get all our members (even the non active ones) playing cricket, be it league or friendly fixtures, at present we play 6 colts teams (2 under 11, 2 under 13 and 2 under 15) we hold 2 “Kwik” cricket tournaments and take part in a Kent wide U9 Competition, the U11also play in a cup competition, the under 13s and under 15s play in national competitions. At F.C.C we have a Sunday team where we use as many young players as we can, this helps them to develop their cricketing skills with senior players, this approach will then prepare your children to play at the highest level they can.

For more information please contact The Head Coach.

If you have already decided you can download a membership form here!