New Zealand cricket seen from an English perspective

Motivated by a desire to see why a country of four million people like New Zealand could hold a third ranking in world Test cricket, Englishman Phil Relf has been studying what makes New Zealand cricket tick over the summer.

Last year Relf jumped at the chance to be involved in a scholarship scheme for four English Level 3 coaches to spend time in either Australia or New Zealand. Three were chosen for Australia, where they spent three months, while Relf drew the "short" end of the straw and got six months in New Zealand.

The coaches were asked to do a series of assignments looking at topics of interest like: grass roots cricket, cricket in primary and secondary schools, club cricket, coaching education, the Academy programme, age group tournaments and other aspects of how the game is administered and played here.

The scheme, which is intended to be a regular initiative, is funded by the Lord's Taverners Charity and the ECB tagged the money for this purpose.

Relf, 32, is the full-time head of physical education at Sittingbourne Grammar School and does work with the Kent County Club and coach education for the ECB.

The experience in New Zealand had been great for his appreciation of the tactical and technical areas of the game.

What has impressed him in New Zealand has been the ease of exposure to the different elements of the game here.

"There is much greater access to key people. For instance in Christchurch you have first-class players playing and practising with their clubs. Players like Chris Harris and Chris Martin have been involved at club level and that is great," he said.

While he has been in New Zealand, he has been playing with the St Albans Club in the local competition.

New Zealand Cricket had been helpful in getting him get around the country to see how the various associations do their work and he has also been involved in Academy coaching and coach appraisals during the national tournaments staged at the High Performance Centre at Lincoln University.

"I am sure that one of the reasons for success in the Southern Hemisphere is that players have to work a bit harder here," he said.

By that he meant that away from the international players, first-class players tended to have day jobs so that in order to advance they had to work harder at their game when they had the opportunity.

It was something of a cultural factor, he said.

And while the domestic one-day competition was quite intensive, certainly more than he had expected, players generally still had more opportunity to train during a season than was the case in England where players were on the road from game to game with very little time to do training.

He has been impressed with the coach education, the New Zealand Academy programme and the open-minded and innovative approach that has been embraced by all concerned with the game here.

"The Academy is so comprehensive in what it covers, and the good thing about it is that they are always looking to improve things. They are innovative in training methods and the Academy combined a work ethic with that innovation.

"And this stretches through to the international side.

"I have been most impressed with the preparation that goes in beforehand and the thorough use of information to look at the opposition.

"People here are also prepared to look at other sports for ways of doing all sorts of things," he said.

England had been criticised for not looking outwards in the past and what he was doing was seen as one way to address the matter. Each country had different ways of doing things but there were features that could be adapted by each to their own advantage.

Relf felt the return to two overseas players for each county would strengthen the game in England.

He felt that New Zealand needed to extend the professionalism of its game.

He also thought there was something of a problem for players who had been through the Academy when they returned to their home regions.

It was a different world for them in their home areas, although he acknowledged that one of the aims of the Academy was to teach players self-sufficiency.

Other concerns he noted were with pitches, practice facilities at grounds and the lack of spinners in the country, something that will strike a chord with most who have taken an interest in New Zealand's recent history.