Interview with Coach Grant Lambert

GRANT MICHAEL LAMBERT

Recently, All Stars Cricket Tournament got a chance to interview Grant Michael Lambert former Australian cricketer, who played first-class cricket for NSW and grade cricket for Fairfield-Liverpool. Grant’s record as a player speaks for itself. Not only did he represent NSW 56 times in all formats, he also holds the record for most runs in a Sydney 1st Grade Cricket season with 1527. Grant also has the distinction of being the only player in the competition’s history to have scored 11,000 runs and taken 600 wickets.

Grant today is a a certified Level 3 CA Coach and Director of Coaching at Complete Cricket, Grant is also busy working with Sydney University Grade Club, Cricket NSW Junior Representative Squads and The Hills Sports High School to develop the next batch of Australian cricketers. Grant’s passion for the game shines through in his coaching and has already fostered significant results with his existing private coaching clients. With this in mind we went to Grant and asked him some questions to help us and budding cricketers in Australia.

Interviewer: Evening Grant, thank you very much for your valuable time and giving us an opportunity to interview you, how has your day been today ?

Grant Lambert: It has been fabulous, I always enjoying seeing children work hard and improving themselves by becoming better cricketers not only in their skills but character.

Interviewer: Can you please tell us a little bit about yourself and the academy ?

Grant Lambert: Sure I would love too, I run Complete Cricket with Mitch Yearsley. We cater for boys and girls of all ages and abilities, and are also involved with coaching at Cricket NSW, The Hills Sports High School, Fairfield-Liverpool, Sydney University and Parramatta Women.

Interviewer: I see you have an excellent training centre here, very impressive Grant. How has junior cricket changed from the days you have been playing ?

Grant Lambert: Junior cricket has become more inclusive. Players now get an equal opportunity to bat and bowl. There are less players on the field and the pitch is shorter.

Interviewer: That is true about becoming more inclusive, great for the future of Australia I believe. Lots of juniors are looking to take on cricket as their career, with this in mind can you share with the juniors the pathway to play competitive cricket in NSW ?

Grant Lambert: Kids can play competitive cricket at club level, then reps and NSW Academy if selected. As they get older they can then play Green Shield and Premier Cricket, and then hopefully onto professional cricket such as Sheffield Shield and Big Bash. It’s important for kids and parents to realise that if they are not selected in any part of the pathway it is not the end of the world, they can still reach their potential with hard work. Most importantly though, play cricket to enjoy it. Not everyone can play for Australia

Interviewer: Love what you say here Grant, it is all about enjoying the game primarily a good reminder. We see a lot of coaches coming up around in the Sydney region, we know you are an experienced player and also a certified Level 3A Coach. Question to you Grant, what makes a good coach ?

Grant Lambert: A good coach not only has sound technical and tactical knowledge, but more importantly they have the ability to communicate effectively with their players and know that everyone is different, so not all people do things or receive information the same way. A good coach is enthusiastic and cares for their players, making them better players and ensuring they enjoy the game

Interviewer: Thank you Grant, we know you are a busy man, we can see that with the amount of juniors coming to your academy for coaching. A last question for you please, do you have few words for All Stars Cricket Tournament and our upcoming tournament in September 21st to 23rd ?

Grant Lambert: Good luck to all participants in the tournament. I hope everyone has fun and gets the opportunity to put their skills into practice in a game situation. It is important to remember that in T20 cricket, as well as any other form of cricket, the fundamentals of batting, bowling and fielding are the key to performing well.

Interviewer: Thank you Grant Lambert we will keep this in mind to make the tournament fun for everyone who participates. Once again, thank you for your time and we wish Complete Cricket coaching all the best.