Premier Cricket: Kingston Hawthorn, SECA in pathway agreement

The Hawks will lend their coaching and playing resources to talented young players in the South East association.

Hawks skipper Shorye Chopra is involving in the Kingston Hawthorn Academy program.

There’s nothing in writing, but Kingston Hawthorn Cricket Club and the South East Cricket Association have shaken hands on a pathway for talented young cricketers.

Under the arrangement, the Hawks will provide coaches and training facilities for SECA under-age representative teams.

It had its genesis last season, when Kingston Hawthorn’s Under 16 team for the Premier Cricket competition was filled with boys from South East and Cricket Southern Bayside clubs.

Kingston Hawthorn head coach Peter Marshall and senior players oversaw the team.

It trained and played matches at Walter Galt Reserve, with 10 clubs from either SECA or CSB represented.

The Under 16 competition will go to Under 17s next season and take the name of the Dowling Shield.

Try-outs and training for the SECA’s Under 16 Jim Beitzel and Keith Mackay Shield teams were held at Walter Galt, and the Hawks supplied coaches for the Mackay line-up.

Marshall said the Kingston Hawthorn-SECA arrangement was a “great development opportunity’’ for junior cricketers aspiring to go to Premier Cricket.

The SECA banner.

He said SECA was not adopting the Hawks as an official feeder club but was happy for the players to tap into a Premier club’s resources.

“They’re not endorsing Kingston Hawthorn as their preferred Premier club,’’ Marshall said.

“But they see that we’re a Premier club in the SECA area and the bayside area which can give some guidance to the representative teams, and hopefully the players enjoy it and can join our senior XIs. It was very successful last year with the Under 16s and we’re continuing on with it for at least the next three years and hopefully longer.’’

Marshall said the Hawks needed to open their door to local talent.

“That’s where our success is going to come from, the development of young players in the local area.

“We’re not a club that’s going to go out and spend a lot of money recruiting experienced players. We need to develop cricketers from within our area.

“Kingston Hawthorn is a community club playing Premier Cricket and we have to make it a destination club for local kids wanting to go to that level.’’

Since May the Hawks have been holding an Academy program at YoungGun Cricket in Moorabbin, with Marshall, assistant coach Al Manning and senior players including captain Shorye Chopra overseeing the coaching of about 40 players aged 14 to 18.

A senior group starts at YoungGun tonight, ahead of official training starting on July 22.

Marshall encouraged any senior players from SECA looking to play Premier Cricket to try their luck with the Hawks.

Brighton Union’s Matt Vorbach did so last season and showed promise with the bat.

Meanwhile, Sam Newell has told the Hawks he will be switching to Dandenong in search of more opportunities as a wicketkeeper-batsman.

Newell played the last few matches of last season as a batsman and smashed 99 off 82 balls, with 12 fours and 5 sixes, before being run out against Melbourne University.

He had joined Kingston Hawthorn from Camberwell Magpies ahead of the 2019-20 season.

Joel Lewis has established himself as the Hawks’ first-choice gloveman.