Welcome to my news page. Here you?ll find the latest updates to my Instagram and LinkedIn accounts, where I will be sharing articles that intrigue me, perhaps thoughts from my experiences as I go along, and no doubt showing my support for local businesses and wonderful craftspeople. I hope you see something that makes you pause for thought or indeed makes you smile.
I very much look forward to working with you.
My wife & I were quite upset on hearing of the death of Shane Warne. Aside from the suddenness of his passing at 52, of someone we admired & who had become a familiar presence over the last 30 years, the connection seemed deeper.
Whilst there is a clear reason for sorrow with things that happen to us (death of a family member/friend, illness, worry, etc) & seeing the effects of war, natural disasters, the death of public figures, etc, can all prompt sympathy from us, occasionally there is a little more to it.
My wife explained how watching Shane Warne in the 1999 World Cup inspired her to follow & play cricket from which came enjoyment in competitive physical & mental activity, friendships made, new places to travel to & experiences gained. It even extended to meeting her husband! So much came from seeing him play, firing up motivations & inspirations.
And me? It took me back to 1993 & 'the ball of the century', watching him mesmerise with an almost supernatural wizardry, a time when my beloved father was alive & my equally beloved mother was well, when life seemed simpler, kinder & more joyous, with the harder times feeling less frequent. I studied what he did, listened to commentary, watched the television (BBC then), read books (no internet) & taught myself legspin & the variations, bowling for hours with a toy rubber dog's ball (lovely bounce) onto the concrete in front of the vehicle workshop in our haulage yard, trying to spin it across an oil drum. 4 years later, having joined a cricket club & invited to help out with some coaching, a young player (about 8 or 9 years old) bowled a ball that spun. I name dropped Shane Warne to engage & a response of 'Who?' prompted a moment of internal panic. However two other players said how great Warne was to their friend. He was sold. My very first bit of coaching.
From there came coaching courses, tutoring, training & mentoring tutors; developing players, coaches & coach educators; consulting with county & national boards on the support of those coaching & developing coaching; chairing the ECB's Coaches Association, making a connection between the Board & the thousands of volunteer coaches & contributing to coaching strategy; meeting with so many good people & going to lovely places; gathering experience, unlocking my potential & helping others; gaining cherished friendships including my best man Gordon & of course the most wonderful partner I could dream of.
Sometimes we can lose sight of why we do things, how we do them & who we do it for. Maybe we can follow the thread back to the inspiration to find the answers. Shane Warne's passing perhaps unknowingly prompted sadness & happiness, thinking of cherished times past & the paths taken from them. A point of inspiration in life. #bowlingshane #inspiration #coaching #thankyou
