The American Cricket Federation, having already created the United States’ only successful domestic cricket league, is now pleased to announce the creation of a national side program that will, in coming years, propel America to its rightful place among cricketing nations.
In the next few weeks, ACF will appoint a General Manager for the new Team USA. This individual will have total control of the management of the team organization, and will report to the board of directors and CEO Jamie Harrison. The General Manager will have total autonomy, and total responsibility for team management. This should help to eliminate political influences, as the GM will be judged by the team’s performance alone. On the other hand, should the team be underperforming, the GM will be the one to be called to account. The GM will present regular reports to ACF management on the progress of Team USA and the realizing of agreed-upon goals.
By June of 2015, a panel of selectors with coaching and/or playing experience at the international level will select a twenty-man roster, based on players’ performances in the Newbery American Cricket Champions League, and their availability for regular training and matches against top US and international sides. This will be Team USA. The same twenty players will be kept together as a unit (no more starting over every time there’s a tournament), with players (and staff) only being rarely dropped and added individually due to fitness, performance or availability issues. A support staff of coaches, manager, physio, etc. will also be named at this time.
Team USA will have training sessions or matches across the country every 4-8 weeks with the expectation that all players will make themselves available at all events.
After these sessions or matches, coaches will send each player home with specific assignments for improvement, and players will submit video reports on their progress to the coaches in between meetings. The goal is to create a fully professional team and support structure that has everyone working together as much as possible twelve months a year.
Team USA will be constructed so that it can grow together over a number of years. This necessarily means that the player demographic will initially skew toward youth, with the idea being that a team is being developed that can compete at the highest levels in two-three years’ time. Of course, this also means that the first twenty man roster may not be the “best” twenty players in 2015, but rather twenty players who can be the best by 2017.
As mentioned above, selection will be restricted to players in the ACCL. Just as every other country in the world pulls its national players from its domestic system, and so will the United States. All parts will be working harmoniously toward the goal, with the player path beginning in club cricket, advancing through his league’s ACCL team, and finally, selection to the national side.
ACF is already in the process of finding sponsors for Team USA, one of which will be announced in coming days. We have no doubt that many businesses in America will be interested in being associated with Team USA, and that we will build a large sponsor base for the program.
ACF will also be about the business of building excitement for Team USA and its players, through year-round publicity, including social media, merchandising, player appearances, etc.. We will make Team USA something everyone will yearn to be a part of, either directly or as a supporter.
This is an exciting time to be a part of cricket in the United States, and we look forward to this next great challenge of creating an American national side that will make all US cricket fans proud.
Go Team USA!
Contact:
Jamie Harrison
CEO, American Cricket Federation
jamieh@
