2020 ANNUAL REPORT

NOTTINGHAMSHIRE COUNTY CRICKET CLUB 2020 ANNUAL REPORT & ACCOUNTS 22 “IT’S VITAL THAT WE PROVIDE AS MANY OPPORTUNITIES AS WE CAN FOR WOMEN & GIRLS TO EXPERIENCE THE PROFESSIONAL FACILITIES AND SURROUNDINGS THAT WE ARE ABLE TO OFFER. IF CRICKET IS A GAME FOR ALL, THEN TRENT BRIDGE MUST BE A VENUE FOR ALL.” Mick Newell entity for women’s cricket. The Loughborough-based Lightning represent Nottinghamshire, Derbyshire and Leicestershire CCC, as well as Lincolnshire Cricket and Loughborough University.They are one of eight sides who complete the ECB’s new elite domestic structure for the women’s game. This year’s 50-over Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy enabled four Notting- hamshire players to get on the field in the height of summer – with three also competing in a fixture at Trent Bridge. In 2019, over 4,000 spectators cheered on Loughborough Lightning in the opening fixture of a double-header – and whilst we would have loved to replicate that this year, we were proud to throw open our doors to Sophie Munro,Teresa Graves, Lucy Higham and their Lightning teammates. It’s vital that we provide as many opportunities as we can for women & girls to experience the professional facilities and surroundings that we are able to offer. If cricket is a game for all, thenTrent Bridge must be a venue for all. Elsewhere, our County Age Group and Academy sides were able to enjoy a competitive, if shortened, season. The challenge of organising an eight-week season in the space of a week-and-a-half was a considerable one, and our Elite Pathway Manager MattWood deserves a lot of credit for putting a successful programme together. If we had lost a year of age-group cricket, there was a very real danger we’d have lost some of our players to other sports or interests – after all, a year is a long time when you’re 16. Matt and the team put together a brilliant schedule, and I’m sure the players and their parents were all very grateful. In the dozen or so games that the Academy were able to play, there were a number of standout performances. Our Academy Player of theYear, Sam King, was a nerveless performer all season long, bowling impeccably at the death and scoring his runs at a healthy rate. His performance in shepherding his side home in a tight chase against Worcestershire, hitting a six to win the match with only the number 11 batsman for company, was superb. Honourable mentions must also be made of the likes of Fateh Singh, a left-arm spinner who bowled economically and took 21 off the final over of a game against Derbyshire to see us to victory. The nature of our Academy setup has changed over the years.With players now no longer able to stay with the Academy past the age of 18, we’ve transitioned towards a younger group, with our side’s average age now around 16. Within that, we’ve seen the likes of Travis Holland and Sam Seecharan flourishing – two under 14s opening the batting in under 18 cricket. Matt has been tremendous in giving those guys the opportunity to progress, and this current crop have time on their side when it comes to pushing for senior honours in the future. The support that Matt has been able to access in Anton Roux and Andy Pick has also been vital this year.We all know Andy’s pedigree when it comes to working with high- calibre county pros, and Anton’s coaching CV – with spells as Head Coach of the Netherlands and Assistant Coach at Otago – is