Nominations for 2025/26 Staffordshire Cricket County Age Group Pathway are now live.
Please read before following link.
Changes to County Age Group Pathway 2025/26
As we look ahead to a new season, we are pleased to announce some positive changes to both our boys and girls Pathway.
All counties will be introducing an Early Engagement Programme (EEP), a nationwide initiative aimed at broadening the talent pool for junior county cricket. It replaces traditional U10-U12 county teams, offering a more inclusive and accessible pathway for young cricketers.
The programme emphasises increased opportunities for participation, coaching, and match play, with a focus on diversifying entry routes into the performance pathway. What this means for Staffordshire is;
· The retention of boys’ winter coaching programmes at U10s, U11s & U12s and summer playing programmes, which will have more of an emphasis around internal squad cricket and collaboratively organised cricket against neighbouring counties.
· An increase in the number of girls age groups which will now include the following;
· The Boys EEP programme will start with 2 open trials, which are currently outside of the existing County Age Group programme. Further decisions will be made on player’s involvement following these trials, and again before Christmas following a further 6 weeks of coaching.
· The Girls EEP programme will start with 6 weeks of coaching, following which players will go back to train with their clubs or be allocated to a group based on their current ability level.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the Staffordshire Cricket Player Pathway?
The purpose of the Staffordshire Player Pathway is to identify, develop and produce a supply of players, who can thrive in club cricket, represent the County and progress into professional cricket.
Before completing the nominations process, please note that to qualify to play for Staffordshire a player must either have been born in Staffordshire, play club cricket in Staffordshire, go to school in Staffordshire, or live in Staffordshire.
Players must be able to demonstrate a genuine ability to play cricket at County Age group level. These players should be standing out amongst their club/school peers. Nominations for year 3 or below will not be accepted.
Players must have been nominated by a Club or School coach. We will be contacting the nominator to ensure that it is appropriate for the player to attend County trials. Please only nominate players who have experience playing competitively with a hard ball (boys only).
How do Clubs and Schools nominate?
Nominators, please be realistic with nominations. This is not an opportunity for every player. Larger trials create more challenges for coaches and more room for error. It also creates more disappointed players when selections are made.
Once nominators have notified parents, the parents must use the booking links to register the player for the trial.
We will be contacting nominators to check that it is appropriate for players to attend the trials.
How do I know what age group the player should be in?
Your child's age group is determined by their date of birth and corresponds to school years. Age is based on 1st September 2025
· U9: School Year 4
· U10: School Year 5
· U11: School Year 6
· U12: School Year 7
· U13: School Year 8
· U14: School Year 9
· U15: School Year 10
· U16: School Year 11
· U18: Sixth Form & Higher Education
Who looks after each Age Group?
Each age group has its own lead coach plus a coaching team dedicated to the support and development of that squad of players that travels with them to every match.
What should be worn to a trial?
Whites, club cricket clothing or sportswear. No County Kits.
Will the player need to take any food or drinks?
Drinks will be needed to keep hydrated. Please bring water and food appropriate for physical activity.
Can feedback be given, if unsuccessful?
Due to the sheer volume of players, we will not offer individualised feedback to unsuccessful candidates along with notifications. We do however want the trial process to be as useful as possible in terms of player development and therefore feedback is available upon request.
Can a player be nominated for more than one county?
Players must be nominated for one set of County trials per season. We have agreements with local county board such as Warwickshire, Derbyshire, and Shropshire that players and parents must choose one county to trial with.
For further information, please email k.fenton@staffordshirecricket.co.uk