THE value of schools' input in sport must never be underestimated, especially if they establish a clear pathway to progress for talented pupils.
Hastings Boys' High School is reaping the rewards of a cricket coaching structure that isn't only yielding results but ensuring the latent energy from any success is progressively filtering through to the first and second XI teams.
The HBHS Colts XI cricketers won the annual Invitational Challenge Trophy for the fifth consecutive year when the Napier Boys' High School-hosted tournament ended after four days on Thursday.
"They [Colts] have added value because our first XI team have been the Hawke's Bay qualifiers of the Gillette Cup two years in a row," says HBHS teacher in charge of cricket Trent Miller considering NBHS and Lindisfarne College have traditionally dominated the premier schoolboys' competition.
What makes the Colts' achievements even more remarkable is that the juniors have a 50 per cent turnover in their fold because they inevitably graduate to the senior level.