Good coaching works across all environments
THIS WEEK... DEREK MORGAN England Learning Disabilities head coach
Age: 37 Role: England Learning Disabilities Head Coach How did you get involved in Learning Disabilities cricket? I was a cricket development co-ordinator with the Lancashire Cricket Board before a chance conversation in 2008 with Ian Leather, the England team manager at the time, led to my involvement and I became head coach in 2010. How different has the role been compared to your previous coaching experiences? Over time I’ve come to think there are fewer and fewer differences than what I perceived originally – good coaching practice is translatable across any environment. The main issue is a sense of low-self esteem, we try to build their self-value. Any cricketer can be affected by this but it is more magnified in this environment. How do the players respond to coaching? As we work with some players who sit across the autistic spectrum, you find that something that may be seen as insignificant turns out just the opposite from their world view, while things you presume would could cause struggles they will breeze through.We always try to build a sense of stability for the guys so there is a framework and point of reference, and it amazing how well they can respond. What are the qualifying criteria as a Learning Disability player? To qualify for county level, you must submit an IQ test showing a score of 75 or under, and have a document certifying that a learning disability was diagnosed before the age of 16. For international cricket an adaptive behaviour assessment by a psychologist is also required. Most people will already have the first two from childhood. Does the game work differently? We follow exactly the same rules and regulations, but the nuances would probably pass the casual spectator by. Tactically assessing and responding to situations during play is a large part of what we do. Many of the players will not have been faced with leadership roles in their lives before and this is something we also develop and encourage. How has the game grown in your time, and what is still left to do? The ECB have been exceptional in their support of learning disability cricket but the rest of the world has not yet caught up. We have a Tri-Series, held every two or three years, with South Africa and Australia and we want to help the Sub-continent teams expand their disability cricket in this format. Our next Tri-Series is 2017 and we’re hopeful that we will be one of the demonstration sports at the 2019 INAS Global Games – for para-athletes with an intellectual disability.