Stars of tomorrow sign for Wellington next season

Cricket Wellington, through the support of Railway Metro New World, has secured the services of 2 young cricketers for next season – Michael Pollard and Tom Blundell.

Pollard and Blundell have been contracted from 1 February 2010 to 30 April 2011 through the Railway Metro New World Scholarship Programme. Railway Metro New World also supported Sophie Devine, Wellington Blaze and White Fern Representative, through the 2009/10 season, allowing the Wellington Blaze to benefit from her services and enjoy another fruitful summer.

The Railway Metro New World Scholarship Programme sits separate to the Wellington Firebirds contracts awarded for the summer at the start of October.

All three players are significant contributors to their respective teams and certainly stars of the future. Cricket Wellington CEO Gavin Larsen is thrilled to have secured the services of both Pollard and Blundell for another season. Larsen said “These scholarships give us the opportunity to keep some of our best young cricketers in the region, with the view to developing them for higher honours. All three are very talented athletes and we expect they will be key contributors to Wellington teams in future years”.

Pollard made his Wellington Firebirds debut this season, and has impressed early with averages of 31.5 and 21.5 in domestic One Day and First Class cricket respectively, including 60 runs on debut. A right hand top-order bat, Pollard has come through the Wellington age group programme, Wellington Future Firebirds, and New Zealand development teams. He was Wellington’s top run scorer at 2009’s national Under19 tournament, resulting in his selection for the New Zealand Under 19 side.

Blundell has enjoyed a similar path of progression through Wellington and New Zealand age group teams, culminating in his spot in the New Zealand squad for 2010’s Under 19 World Cup. Blundell, who would like to become a policeman if he doesn’t become a professional cricketer, is a stylish right-hand batter who bowls right arm offspin.

Wellington women’s cricket was very lucky to have Sophie Devine back from Christchurch, where her family now lives, for the 2009/10 summer.

Devine had an outstanding domestic season for the Wellington Blaze this year, and was particularly dominant with bat in hand. She had several great innings that assisted the Blaze in winning games where they were staring at possible defeats and is one of the few women’s players capable of finding the boundary at will. If she continues to develop her game then there is nothing stopping her becoming one of the top women’s all-rounders in the world.

Statistically, Sophie was Wellington’s leading run-scorer in both the Twenty20 and One-Day competitions this season, averaging over 44 in both formats. In Twenty20 cricket she scored 134 runs in four innings and in the one-dayers 270 runs in seven innings with a top score of 73.

With the ball she took 15 wickets in the One-Day competition, including 5 for 15 in the season opener against Canterbury, while also taking five catches and being involved in several run-outs.

(a) The Railway Metro New World Scholarship programme was established in 2008 in conjunction with Cricket Wellington.

The scholarships, which are awarded annually to members of the Cricket Wellington High Performance programme, are awarded to cricket players who have the potential to represent Wellington at First Class level and make a significant contribution toward the success of Wellington cricket.

The scholarships are awarded to young elite players who Cricket Wellington believes deserve additional support to assist their cricketing progress. Recipients of the scholarships commit themselves to Cricket Wellington for a period agreed to between all parties, and recipients receive $2000 each to assist them with gear purchase and cricket related expenses.

Railway Metro New World’s support of these three players and of the Wellington School of Cricket, for whom they are premium sponsor, helps Cricket Wellington in their pursuit of a high performance Culture of Excellence, and the development of future international cricketers.

ENDS