DUBLIN – The restructure and realignment within the High Performance section of Cricket Ireland moves to the next stage to ensure the organisation is fit-for-purpose as it enters its next period of growth.
The changes follow the announcement in May that the existing High Performance Director role will split into two strategic leadership roles – Director of High Performance and Director of Cricket.
The next steps in the process are to implement a number of recommendations around the coaching and support staff which have emerged from recent World Cup reviews and which serve to deliver on the high performance elements of the new Cricket Ireland Strategic Plan.
These changes are as follows:
Gary Wilson
- Gary has been promoted to Assistant Men’s Head Coach but will still lead on batting/wicket-keeping.
- He will assist [men’s Head Coach] Heinrich Malan with the planning and delivery of coaching programmes for training, preparation and playing, both on and off the field, for the men’s senior performance squad, and specifically lead and manage the programmes for the players in Northern Ireland outside of competition and tours.
Brendan Connor
- Brendan will take up the role of Performance Services Manager on a full-time basis, moving on from the men’s Strength & Conditioning coach role
- He will lead all aspects of Performance Services support across all international teams (Men’s cricket and Women’s cricket) and Cricket Ireland Talent Development programmes.
- The role will include supporting Provincial Unions to continue to provide the best-in-class Performance Support provision for their players.
Scott Irvine
- Scott’s title has changed to Performance Analysis and Player Insights Lead – Men’s cricket.
- In addition to analysis of men’s international matches, he will manage the men’s player Depth Chart; manage and oversee the men’s player succession planning in consultation with senior, pathway and Provincial Union head coaches; will be responsible for collating player rankings and reports from Coaches and Talent Scouts; and will provide support to the Men’s selection panel to inform objective selection aligned to the strategy of the Ireland men’s teams.
Jay Shelat
- Jay’s title has changed to Performance Analysis and Player Insights Lead – Women’s cricket, and he will undertake exactly the same duties in the women’s performance system as Scott will in the men’s system.
James Cameron-Dow
- James recently commenced his new role as High Performance Spin Coach for the women’s programme and will add to the two senior women’s coaches.
- He will identify and help develop a spin bowling group to feed the needs of the women’s programme and succession plan.
Ty Chegwidden
- Ty has joined Cricket Ireland as Lead Strength & Conditioning Coach – Men’s Cricket.
- He joins the organisation from Hampshire CCC where he was Senior Strength & Conditioning Coach, while he has also performed roles with ECB and Surrey CCC.
Richard Holdsworth, High Performance Director for Cricket Ireland, said:
“High Performance is a dynamic area of any sporting organisation. As we mature as a Full Member and begin to roll-out the new Strategic Plan, we believe these changes will be essential to help our system evolve.
“Some of these changes have been in the works for a while and are recommendations from a succession of post-World Cup reviews. New ICC funding and the new High Performance department structure finally gives us the opportunity to properly implement them. The impact, for example, of data and analysis within the game is literally changing the way our selection, coaching, player development and succession planning processes are delivered.
“No doubt the system will continue to evolve in the coming years, and we all look forward to seeing how Graeme [West, the new Director of High Performance] will take forward the system in years to come. For now, Graeme and I are confident that this first tranche of changes plays to the strengths of our excellent coaches, will help us drive forward our new strategy, and will help Graeme hit the ground running.
“The staff we have supporting the men’s, women’s and talent pathway environments work exceptionally hard on and off the training ground and are so passionate about developing our players to succeed on the world stage. I congratulate everyone on their well-deserved promotions and welcome the new team members to the Irish cricket family and wish them the best of luck in their new roles.”