The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) today awarded licences to four First Class Counties - Essex, Lancashire, Surrey and Gloucestershire - for the establishment of local County Academies, which will assist in the development of their most talented young cricketers.

This represents the second wave of Academy licencing, following the award of eight licences last year, and it strengthens the continuing establishment of a new national network of ECB County Cricket Academies.

Hugh Morris, ECB Performance Director, said: "I am delighted to award licences to a further four County Academies, which will provide a major boost for the development of the best young players in those areas. Sport England funding is vital and although, for financial reasons, we are unable to award more than four licences at this stage, we are aiming for all First Class Counties to have accredited Academies by September 2003."

The aim of each County Cricket Academy is to identify cricketers who have the potential to play at the highest level of the game, and to deliver a comprehensive development programme which will provide them with the opportunity to fulfil their potential. Each Academy will support and fund a squad of up to 12 players, between the ages of 13-18, per year.

The County Cricket Academy programme, which forms part of the ECB's World Class Plan, will compliment the new ECB National Academy, with the ECB's overall target that 50% of England senior players will have come through the County Cricket Academy network by 2007.

The Counties will provide partnership funding for their own Academies, although the ECB will contribute £50,000 p.a. to the costs of each one through funds provided by Sport England.

The ECB's accreditation scheme is designed to ensure that there is nationwide consistency in the development of talented cricketers, as well as a comprehensive resource structure to back them up. In order to receive ECB accreditation, a number of criteria will have to be met by the County Academies, and these will be reviewed on a regular basis in order to maintain standards.

The project will be centrally driven by the ECB, but locally delivered by the First Class County Clubs. The ECB establishes the programme, sets the targets, trains the full-time Academy Director, provides a standard template for the development of Academy players and then monitors the results. The Counties, meanwhile, identify and select the players, and run the Academy.

Players will be selected annually, ready for the start of the non-residential programme in September. In the following seven months until March the following year, the intensive individual training programme will be split roughly in 50% technical development, 25% mental development, 10% tactical development, 10% physical development and 5% lifestyle management. Each Academy player will have a minimum of two one-to-one technical sessions per week with a senior County player during the close season.

During the summer months, a competitive programme for each player will be planned by the Academy Director through modification of school, club and representative opportunities. Players will be fast-tracked if appropriate to their development.

© ECB