The Wanganui junior representative cricket programme begins this weekend with the U11s, U12s and U15s heading to Masterton to take on their fellow Central Districts counterparts, Wairarapa.
Dilan Raj from Cricket Wanganui said this weekend would test the level of junior cricketers' aspirations.
"Many of the representative cricketers have highaspirations and are following a similar pathway to local cricket professional Ben Smith and NZ U19s, Henry Collier and Nick Blundell," Raj said.
They are involved in the Wanganui Cricket School programme run by NZ High Performance coach, Raj himself.
"This will be their first serious outing for the season to test the skills they have added over winter to their repertoire."
Raj said the junior representative coaches were either New Zealand Cricket-qualified coaches or had played cricket to a high level and were undergoing their NZ certification. The coaches maintain the same athlete-centred philosophy throughout the age groups where the needs of each athlete come first.
Fosters participation, skill development and teamwork.
Develops well-rounded individuals who are confident, creative, accountable, set personal goals and are good decision-makers - the emphasis was on fair play and upholds the "Spirit of Cricket".
"In the approach to coaching, coaches can ask questions, set up situations which encourage players to solve problems and can share the ownership of the team by allowing players to have a role in decision making.
"The result of such an approach will be players who feel valued and respected, are innovative, self-aware and less coach dependent. Cricket Wanganui Coaching is about developing better people who in turn will be better cricketers."
