Callander isn't often referred to as one of Scotland's sporting centres of excellence, but when Tony Phillips arrived there, he was absolutely stumped as to why there was no cricket facility for young people.  Tony, born in Zimbabwe but raised in Durban, South Africa, had been playing cricket since he was knee high to a…well, a cricket bat.  He felt that the local Callander kids were missing out on opportunities that he had as a youngster.

So, rather than stand around looking dumbstruck like an English batsman after facing Shane Warne, Tony, along with SportCentral colleague Kari Anderson, decided he should do something about it.  He had already seen from his time introducing school kids to the game with Active Stirling that the eagerness and the numbers were there, all they needed was a club to go to.  A club that these schools could 'feed' into. 

Not long after, he was welcoming those same kids to McLaren Cricket Club, Callander. (www.mclarencricket.co.uk)  Tony and Kari run things on a day-to-day basis, while McLaren Development Officer Ailsa Robertson helps the local schools to organise coaches and camps for the aspiring young cricketers.

And, as Tony says, everything seemed to add up to developing a club in the area: "The McLaren Leisure Centre in Callander is a fantastic venue, which I felt lent itself to cricket development, plus the teachers at the primary schools I coached were also very enthusiastic for the development of cricket in the area.  I also noticed that the McLaren mini rugby section had really good numbers of players attending practice. So I reasoned that I would be able to attract some of them in the summer once the rugby season had finished."

And the club didn't take long to lift off.  Set up in 2006, McLaren Cricket Club already has 49 registered members aged between 6 and 17 years old.  So why does Tony think the club has been so phenomenally successful in such a short space of time?

“I felt it grew quickly for a number of reasons”, he says: “The most rewarding aspect has been the encouragement from everyone in the local community who are all very supportive of our initiative. This ranges from the local authorities, schools, McLaren Leisure Centre, parents and the players themselves.  Then there is the fact that cricket is a nice summer sport, away from the muddy football and rugby fields.  Plus there was all the exposure cricket has received from the Ashes and the World Cup”

Tony also receives significant help from Active Stirling, SportCentral and Cricket Scotland.  “They are all doing their very best to ensure that Cricket gets the necessary exposure. Structures are in place which will allow development for both girls and boys.  It is a long process, but the pathways that have been established are centred on long term athlete development, creating a structure and pathway for players to compete at the highest level.”

The team is currently involved in winter training sessions at the leisure centre where 24 or more players regularly turn out.  So how does Tony feel his team will perform in the new season?  “There are a number of players who are showing real potential and have mastered the basics very quickly. The litmus test will come when these developing players start competing against their peers in the summer.”

As Tony is from South Africa, he is accustomed to seeing cricket played at the very top level.  So he is a good judge of talent.  South Africa are the top ranked One Day International team in the world, and are amongst the favourites for the World Cup, where Scotland will play them.

So, asides from the obvious gulf that comes from being amateur against professional, why does Tony think the game is so much stronger in South Africa?  Not surprisingly, he takes the answer back to grass roots level.  The same level he is working at with Scottish kids right now. 

“Scotland rely heavily on their club structure to develop and spot talent, who will then be asked to attend district, regional and later national training sessions.  In South Africa the structure is slightly different as the players are identified through the school system at both primary and secondary level.  The majority of schools in South Africa have all got cricket playing fields and facilities.  The players practice twice a week and have games on Saturday against other Schools.  Selection to Provincial Squads is dependent on performance at these games and future training squads.  There are 160 registered cricket clubs in Scotland with 8000 players but that number could be greatly increased if cricket was part of the school curriculum.”

He then continued: “If Scotland had a strong secondary school structure with facilities, these players would be able to feed into the clubs and then add to the pool of potential players. However this is not likely to happen in the short term as there has not been enough focus on sports development over the past 10 years, and other areas of neglect will have to be addressed first, especially with the 2012 Olympics taking place in London.”

Not that Tony blames Cricket Scotland.  He is full of praise towards the country’s cricketing NGB:  “Cricket Scotland are making remarkable strides towards developing players for the future, but it is a long-term process.”

So, as a South African in Scotland with a Scottish girlfriend, where do Tony’s priorities really lie when it comes to the crunch in the Caribbean this month?

“I would have to remain neutral! Though, saying that if Scotland won, I would never hear the end of it from the locals.  However Scotland v Australia is a lot easier - come on Saltires!  My brother is Australian so it would be great if Scotland and South Africa beat the Aussies!”

You can’t say fairer than that…

 RO

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