Match Preview: Southern Vipers v Central Sparks, RHFT
Southern Vipers have named a 14 -player squad to take on Central Sparks at Wormsley in their first home match of 2024
Hampshire fast-bowler Reece Topley has been added to the group of young fast bowlers who will head for South Africa as part of England cricket’s Pace Programme early in 2017.
The left-armer joins James Fuller, Jamie Overton, Reece Topley and Mark Wood as new additions to the programme.
The quartet will join Paul Coughlin, George Garton, Saqib Mahmood and Matt Taylor in a two-week training camp at the High Performance Institute for Sport at North West University’s Potchefstroom campus from January 26 to February 10.
We have made a few changes to the group originally selected, and I think it’s left us with a really nice balance. We’ll have three more experienced guys who are all on their way back from injury – and the chance to come out and work with us outside in South Africa in the superb facilities in Potchefstroom works well both for the players and their counties.
For Reece, Jamie and the other guys, they’re working towards the start of the county season – and with counties tending to go away earlier to start their pre-season programmes now, the time on the Pace Programme will help to ensure they hit them well-prepared.
Kevin Shine, ECB Lead Fast-Bowling Coach
The Pace Programme has been running since October 31, with the four bowlers originally selected – Coughlin, Garton, Mahmood, Taylor and Helm – splitting their time between their counties and the Performance Centre in a six-week training block.
Shine will be joined in Potchefstroom by Pete Atkinson, the ECB’s national lead for strength and conditioning, and the staff will be completed by Alan Richardson, the former Worcestershire seamer who is now the bowling coach at Warwickshire, and the Essex lead physiotherapist Chris Clarke-Irons.
Southern Vipers have named a 14 -player squad to take on Central Sparks at Wormsley in their first home match of 2024
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