Former International Spinner, Peter Such, to pass on his knowledge and expertise to young cricketers

Starting October 2021, Millfield School in Street, Somerset is offering a unique opportunity for young cricketers to receive dedicated spin bowling coaching from former International Spinner Peter Such through Millfield –The Spin Academy.

The Spin Academy, which is open to children nationwide who are aged 11 to 19, seeks to discover, improve and support gifted spin bowlers through a blended approach based on Such’s extensive experience as both a top-level player and coach. This blended approach will develop technique and movement patterns that support spin and help to deliver it consistently, improve tactical and technical play, explore variations to help cricketers become more skillful as a bowler and look at the mental attributes needed to succeed.

The academy programme consists of ten five-hour coaching sessions where all academy members will come together for training at Millfield on set dates between October and March, plus continuous development throughout the year with remote support and analysis from Such including regular catch ups on a closed social media platform, a personalised development plan and opportunities to submit footage for feedback. Participants will benefit from Such’s passion for spin bowling and the knowledge he has gained through his highly successful career as a player spanning 20 years with Nottinghamshire, Leicestershire, Essex and England. During that time, as a spin bowler Such took over 1,000 wickets in First XI County Cricket. On 51 occasions he took 5 wickets in an Innings and had nine 10 wicket bags. In his 11 Test Matches he took 37 wickets including two 5 wicket hauls with a Test Match best of 6 for 67 on debut verses Australia at Old Trafford.

In more recent years as a coach Such has worked closely with the likes of Monty Panesar, Graeme Swann, Moeen Ali, Adil Rashid, Jack Leach, Matthew Parkinson, Zafar Ansari, Mason Crane and Dominic Bess, whilst also supporting England Under 19, England Lions and County Spin Bowlers.

Such will be joined by Millfield Cricket coaches for the coaching sessions who have a rich tradition of developing excellence on the cricket field themselves. Recently the First XI remained undefeated in the 2019/20 season and cricketing alumni includes England and Kent batsman Daniel Bell-Drummond and Nottinghamshire left hand batsman and wicketkeeper Thomas Moores, displaying precedence for high level development within the school, standing players in great stead for a professional cricket career. The Millfield Cricket coaching team is led by former England Assistant Coach and Performance Director of Irish Cricket, and current Director of Cricket at Millfield, Mark Garaway, who alongside Such will provide invaluable coaching sessions that encompass technical bowling, tactical challenges, batting, plus strength and conditioning to create a rounded and immersive performance sporting experience. As the sessions progress they will become more bespoke to each participant, exploring themes designed to impact positively on performance.

The sessions will make use of Millfield’s indoor cricket centre featuring PitchVision technology on three lanes, a state of the art 4G fielding area, three adaptable bowling and batting surfaces, as well as five nets and an expansive 22 metre run-up.

Membership to Millfield –The Spin Academy runs from 16th October 2021 through to 15th October 2022. For more information on the academy click here