Academy and Under 17s

I would be surprised if they drop Hemingway, after only one year in the Academy and with only one year left, although 454 runs @ 25 and 2 fifties in 18 innings is a poor return. Ludlow needed to score heavily this season and has failed to do so. Hemingway played eight times for the Development XI compared to Ludlow's three. The problem for Oxley is that although he has taken 16 wickets, which would normally be more than enough to secure a place in the Academy as Whittingham was selected having taken only nine wickets, in Collard (30), Doram (20) and Rattle (18) we have three better spinners who have taken more wickets. Oxley failed to make a single appearance for the Under 17s and only played three times for the Development XI. Collard and Rattle have been very impressive and have emerged from nowhere this season. Garton (288 runs @ 26 and 31w @ 22), Cammish (550 runs @ 50) and Haines (745 runs @ 53) have secured their Academy place.

Sounds like a good performance from the youngsters, in what were probably testing conditions. A decent game for Ben Shoare, with 45 runs and five wickets

The following 18 are definitely in Sri Lanka:

Allen
Browning
Smith JE
Oxley
Doram
Cammish
Jenner
Billings
Shoare
Haines
Hemingway
Fazakerley
Piper
Smith N
Twine
Garton
Ludlow
Salt

Salt and Shoare are too old to be selected for the Academy next year and Allen, Browning, JE Smith, Cammish, Hemingway, Garton and Ludlow are too old to be selected for the Under 17s in 2015. Of the rest I would expect Billings, Doram, Haines, Jenner, Oxley, Smith, Twine, Fazakerley and Piper to start with Collard, Rattle and Sear making up the starting XII with Fazakerley and Piper coming in for Clark and Orr. My Academy squad of Ellen Burt, Leo Cammish (wk), Will Collard, Izzy Collis, Daniel Doram, George Garton, Tom Haines, Beck Hemingway, Jonty Jenner (wk), Sam Rattle and Tanya Wake remains unchanged from the matches in Sri Lanka.

Sussex Under 17 squad for 2015: Tom Haines (c), Dominic Sear, Jonty Jenner (WK), Joe Billings (WK), Daniel Doram, Nick Oxley, Ben Twine, Will Fazakerley, Nick Smith, Sam Rattle, Will Collard, Jamie Piper, Ollie Bradley, Tom Clark, Tom Haynes, Sam Hobbs, Harry Lloyd (WK), Ryan Maskell (WK), Alistair Orr (WK) and Harry Rollings with the first twelve playing. For Sussex Billings, Oxley, Twine, Fazakerley, Rattle, Collard and Piper replacing Hemingway, Ludlow, Cammish, Garton, Smith, Browning and Allen. This side should be able to compete against Essex, Kent and Middlesex but may struggle against Surrey with their side of Jacks, Curran (c), Patel, Pope (+), Austin, Dahl, Verdi, Culff, Jafri, Holder, Holmes, Meyer. Surrey replace Batchelor, Cott, Douthwaite, Jones, Kolk, Mann and Pereira with Jacks, Austin, Dahl, Culff, Jafri, Holder and Meyer moving up from the Under 15s. With the first three and the last seven likely to be selected for their 2015 Academy squad alongside current academy players Ollie Batchelor, Chris Jones and Will Pereira. Pope and Austin are in pole position to replace Batchelor, Jones and Pereira in 2016. Pope averaged 46 last year for the Under 17s and Austin 30 for the Under 15s. Middlesex will again rely heavily on Max Holden who scored 178 out of 333, Essex are weakened by the loss of Dan Lawrence and Callum Taylor who scored 169 and 180 respectively out of 493 last season and Kent aren't very strong on paper.

How come it has been leaked? Why wasn't it announced first on Sussex's own website?

jerseyeveningpost.com/sport/2014/12/30/jenner-earns-sussex-academy-berth/

Will an official announcement confirming whether Leo Cammish, Izzy Collis, George Garton, Tom Haines and Beck Hemingway have been retained and who has been added be made in the next couple of days? The press release suggests Oxley and Ludlow haven't been selected.  In any other season 16 wickets @ 31 would have been enough to see Oxley selected. In addition to retaining the five and the addition of Jenner I would select Ellen Burt, Will Collard, Daniel Doram, Sam Rattle and Tanya Wake. However, I don't know if any of them were part of the EPP last year. Doram took 5-11 in Sri Lanka and 19 wickets for the Under 17s so one would expect him to be selected. Collard and Rattle with 30 and 18 wickets certainly deserve to be selected as do Ellen Burt and Tanya Wake who both took 15 wickets. I can't think of any other year where I could have picked an Academy squad of 12 where eight took 15 wickets or more.

Sussex players with 15 or more wickets:

Garton 31
Collard 30
Bertwistle 22
Doram 19
Rattle 18
Beadle 16
Harman 16
Oxley 16
Burt 15
Collis 15
Wake 15

The good news is that Sussex will still be able to select eight of these for the Academy in 2016.

Such was the scarcity of bowlers in previous years that we had to select someone for the Academy on the back of just nine wickets but thankfully not anymore.

Batting wise only Collis (798), Haines (745), Cammish (550) and Hemingway (454) scored 300 runs last season and of those only Haines is young enough to be selected for the Academy in 2016. Hopefully Bertwistle, Burt, Harris, Jenner and Wadey will join this group next season.

Why have so few players been selected?

I am surprised Hemingway has been dropped as they don't normally drop Academy players once they have been selected although 454 runs @ 25 is a poor return.

The inclusion of Salt is a surprise as he is overage. I would have selected him for the Academy Plus squad instead.

Why haven't Ellen Burt (15 wickets), Will Collard (30 wickets), Nick Oxley (16 wickets), Sam Rattle (18 wickets) and Tanya Wake (15 wickets) been selected? Before players have been selected having taken nine wickets. If we are not going to bring through players from within Sussex do we need an Academy or an Academy coach?

I expect B Beadle, Bertwistle, Bourne, Burt, Collard, Harman, Oxley, Rattle and Wadey to be pushing hard for Academy selection next year.

Not enough to form a side