Former BLACKCAPS all-rounder Lance Cairns and successful Central Stags coach Alan Hunt have been named as New Zealand’s Cricket’s two high performance talent scouts.
NZC General Manager National Selection Bruce Edgar says the pair bring a wealth of coaching, playing and selecting experience to the roles.
“Lance has a strong background in selecting and coaching, while Alan is across the game currently and has a really good eye for talent,” says Edgar.
Cairns undertook some talent scout work for NZC last summer while Hunt is new to the role after taking the Central Stags to victory in last season’s Plunket Shield domestic four day competition. Both will start work immediately in their part-time roles with the Plunket Shield having commenced on Sunday and the HRV Twenty20 starting on Friday.
Edgar says the work of the talent scouts focuses on identifying future BLACKCAPS.
“Essentially they’ll be studying domestic cricket, provincial A and under-19s to seek players of national interest who will then be included in NZC’s High Performance programme.”
Hunt, a former First Class cricketer for Auckland, has been Head Coach at the Central Stags for the last three seasons. In that time Central won the Plunket Shield (2012-13) and the Ford Trophy (2011-12), while in previous seasons they were runners-up in the HRV Cup and the Plunket Shield.
Cairns has been coaching for more than 25 years from school, club and provincial levels through to a First Class role with Northern Districts. He was a New Zealand selector in 2010-11 and has also selected New Zealand under-19 sides. The star all-rounder was named New Zealand Cricket Almanack’s player of the year in 1976 and 1983.
Meanwhile the West Indies three day warm-up match from November 27-29 has been moved from Christchurch’s Hagley Oval to Lincoln and will see a New Zealand XI face a West Indies side topped up with local players. This is due to the fact that only seven West Indies players will be in the country at the time as they are now playing an ODI series in India. The match will not be a First Class fixture.
