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West Ham’s relegation nightmare intensified dramatically as Wolves tore them apart 3-0 at Molineux this afternoon, with chants of “you’re not fit to wear the shirt” ringing from the away end.

Manager Nuno Espirito Santo watched helplessly as his former club finally ended their winless start to the campaign by ruthlessly exposing the Hammers’ defensive frailties inside a catastrophic opening 45 minutes.

Wolves needed just four minutes to pierce West Ham’s brittle backline when Hee-chan Hwang’s cross found Jhon Arias, who crashed home his first goal for the club to ignite raucous celebrations.

The nightmare worsened dramatically just past the half-hour mark when Soungoutou Magassa clumsily fouled teenager Mateus Mane inside the penalty area, allowing Hwang to dispatch his spot-kick past the helpless Alphonse Areola.

Mane himself twisted the knife four minutes before the interval with a spectacular long-range thunderbolt that flew inside the near post, leaving Areola rooted as the 18-year-old wheeled away to celebrate his first Premier League goal.

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West Ham had dominated possession with almost two-thirds of the ball yet created absolutely nothing, their impotence in attack matched only by their defensive chaos.

The absence of playmaker Lucas Paqueta, who’s attracting rumoured interest from Tottenham, exposed the glaring truth that Nuno simply lacks the quality needed to extract his struggling squad from the bottom three.

The Hammers have now extended their winless streak to nine Premier League matches, leaving them marooned four points behind 17th-placed Nottingham Forest with the situation growing increasingly desperate.

Tuesday’s crucial encounter against fellow strugglers Forest at the London Stadium has transformed into a must-win fixture for Nuno, whose expensive January recruits Pablo and Taty Castellanos watched powerlessly from the side.

Commentator takes aim at "horrendous" Max Kilman in West Ham defeat

Pressure mounting on the former Wolves boss has reached boiling point following this abject surrender against the division’s basement dwellers, and following reports that West Ham are considering Nuno’s future.

Nuno definitely wasn’t helped by his incredibly fragile backline, who were cut through like a knife through butter on a real afternoon to forget.

One of the major culprits, as he has often been this season, was £40 million defender Max Kilman.

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Taking to X, BBC commentator Sam Avery took aim at the Englishman, calling his signing “laughable” and potentially “the worst” in recent memory.

The 28-year-old has been subject to intense criticism this season, but Nuno’s lack of options means that West Ham have little choice but to rely on Kilman week in, week out.

After signing two strikers, there are widespread calls for the Irons to bring in a new defender as well, with relegation now staring them in the face.

Related Premier League forward set to join West Ham after Nuno specifically asked for him

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Shane Warne will be offered a signing-on fee for the IPL worth US$50,000 more than former team-mate Glenn McGrath © Getty Images

Shane Warne will be the Indian Premier League’s most expensive signing, at a cost of US$400,000 for the first season, set to kick off in April 2008. The finance committee of the Board of Control for Cricket in India met in Mumbai on Friday and approved several decisions taken by the IPL’s governing council regarding payment of its players.The fee quoted for Warne is the signing amount for him to be part of the player pool from which franchises will bid for the rights to employ players within their ranks. With Brian Lara reportedly being paid US$1 million to appear in the Indian Cricket League, and the market heating up over the two rival leagues, Warne and similar big-ticket signings could rope in well in excess of US$1 million, sources revealed.The second-highest signing-on fee has, not surprisingly, been paid to Glenn McGrath, whose nifty line-and-length bowling see him join up for US$350,000. Stephen Fleming, whose agents flirted with the ICL but in the end held back – to the extent that Fleming was one of those present at the IPL’s launch – also nets US$350,000.Mohammad Yousuf, who had reportedly signed with the ICL before being lured away by the Pakistan board – which made no effort to stop Inzamam-ul-Haq, Abdul Razzaq or Imran Farhat from joining the unrecognised league – has signed up with the IPL for US$330,000. A surprise entrant in the top five – and at the moment the list does not include current Australian or Indian cricketers – is Shoaib Malik, who is guaranteed US$300,000.The ICL, which is nearing the end of its inaugural edition, will hand out approximately Rs 18 crore [approx. US$4.5 million] in total prize-money for its 16-day tournament.The fees have been decided for only 34 of the 49 cricketers signed up by the IPL, sources said, and, of these, only 11 have received [partial] advance payments. The only player to receive payment in full is Yousuf, not surprising given that he was once a dead certainty to join the ICL. It is understood that McGrath is among those who have been given a sizeable advance.The 29 others who have received contracts:[All amounts in US$]
Australia Justin Langer 175,000
Sri Lanka Farveez Maharoof: 150,000, Kumar Sangakkara: 250,000, Mahela Jaywardene: 250,000, Muttiah Muralitharan: 250,000, Sanath Jayasuriya: 250,000, Nuwan Zoysa: 100,000, Dilhara Fernando: 150,000, Chaminda Vaas: 175,000, Lasith Malinga: 200,000
Pakistan Mohammad Asif 225,000, Shahid Afridi: 225,000, Shoaib Akhtar: 225,000, Younus Khan: 225,000
West Indies Shivnarine Chanderpaul 175,000
New Zealand Daniel Vettori 225,000, Jacob Oram 200,000, Scott Styris 150,000, Brendon McCullum 175,000
South Africa Loots Bosman 150,000, AB de Villiers 175,000, Albie Morkel 200,000, Graeme Smith 225,000, Herschelle Gibbs 225,000, Shaun Pollock 200,000, Ashwell Prince 150,000, Makhaya Ntini 175,000, Mark Boucher 175,000, Jacques Kallis 200,000.

‘As far as I see it, the best players must go to the World Cup – in terms of form and fitness. It’s not reputations that we need to go by’ © AFP

Nagpur is yet to produce a world-beating cricketer. Prashant Vaidya is the only international player from this city – CK Nayudu is from here, too, but made his fame in Indore – and his four one-dayers don’t really qualify him for the moniker, ‘Nagpur’s most famous cricketing son’. But Nagpur has managed to snag a famous son-in-law.And Rahul Dravid hasn’t given his in-laws much reason to complain – he averages 110.33 in four ODIs at the Vidarbha Cricket Association Ground, including one century and three fifties. Around 15 months ago, he started his captaincy stint here, a game when India surprised Sri Lanka and began a roll.Now he returns, with his plans somewhat in disarray after watching India stutter in the last few months. His own form has been patchy and his team-building plans would have received a jolt after the 4-0 thrashing in South Africa. The sprightly youngsters didn’t seem to have the wherewithal to handle the heat; the battle-scarred seniors who’ve returned can’t inject any youthful zest.He has six matches to figure out the World Cup jigsaw, before the final 14 are selected; he can’t afford to lose too many games, and he is going to be facing a side that has the “psychological edge”.Amid all this confusion, with everyone expecting the usual diplomatic talk at the press conference, he revealed a forthright side. First up, he announced the 12 for tomorrow; next he named the openers, something he’s rarely disclosed in the past; then he explained why; later, he candidly argued for Virender Sehwag’s exclusion, stating that being out of the side can have its benefits. No wishy-washiness, no verbal gymnastics, just a forthright session where he laid out his cards.”When I’ve got runs, it’s made a difference to the side,” he said without a second thought when asked about his lean patch. “I was happy with my form till I broke my finger in South Africa. But it was a strange tour for me. It’s not easy to miss four weeks in the middle of the tour and then to come back. Things didn’t go as well as I would have liked in the Tests as well. In a close series, one key innings can change the series. It’s not about the number of runs or averages. It’s about getting the critical innings when it matters. It didn’t happen but we need to pull up our socks and move on.”

We’re very close to identifying key players for the World Cup squad. You got to have a key group and we’ve identified them a while back. There have been a few form blips, a few fitness issues but we have a good idea of our plans

The Virender Sehwag question wasn’t avoided. Did it make sense to not play Sehwag, when it was almost certain he’d make the World Cup squad? “Veeru [Sehwag] when playing well, when he’s in a good state of mind mentally and physically, is an asset,” said Dravid. “Sometimes, playing games helps but sometimes a bit of time off – switching off mentally – can be beneficial as well. The selectors have taken a decision and we need to respect that.”Veeru’s been playing quite a bit of cricket,” he continued, “and sometimes being away from the game can do you a world of good. As far as I see it, the best players must go to the World Cup – in terms of form and fitness. It’s not reputations that we need to go by. We’re very close to identifying key players for the World Cup squad. You must have a key group and we’ve identified them a while back. There have been a few form blips, a few fitness issues – obviously some spots available for selection – but we have a good idea of our plans.”He admitted that Robin Uthappa was unlucky to miss out, adding “Gautam’s been on the South Africa tour recently and did well. We thought he deserved an opportunity first.” He accepted that there were only two options with the bowling department – either five specialist bowlers or four bowlers and three part-timers in Sachin Tendulkar, Sourav Ganguly and Suresh Raina. Listening to Dravid, it was tough to imagine that here was a captain in need of urgent solutions, trying to rediscover a consistent winning formula. But this was Nagpur after all.

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An unbeaten 90 to Chris Rogers gave Western Australia a stunning day to remember as they took a 46-run first-innings lead after dismissing Tasmania for 86. Rogers finished with 14 fours from his 105 balls to prove the Bellerive Oval pitch was fine for run-scoring once the home side had lost a dramatic 9 for 46 to set a new low against the Warriors.Sent in by Justin Langer on a green surface, Tasmania started at a crawling pace, making only 12 in the 16 overs before David Dawson was dismissed, and only Michael Di Venuto (25) and Brendan Drew (13) reached double figures. Steve Magoffin was on a hat-trick after lunch, removing Michael Bevan and George Bailey, but Dan Marsh, who was returning to the lead the side after recovering from a shoulder injury, narrowly survived the third ball.However, Marsh became Magoffin’s third victim four balls later when he was caught behind by Luke Ronchi. Ben Edmondson then arrived to match the haul of his former Queensland 2nd XI team-mate, and the only positive for Tasmania was they crept past their lowest score at Bellerive of 76.Langer and Rogers replied at almost five an over to collect first-innings points in their opening stand of 111, which was broken when Adam Griffith dismissed Langer for 35. Griffith also picked up Shaun Marsh and Adam Voges as Tasmania hit back late in the day, but with Rogers in charge his side controlled the match when bad light stopped play 14 overs early.

Could South Africa’s old nemesis be given the reins?© Getty Images

Steve Waugh could conceivably coach South Africa when they tour Australia in the next southern summer for three Tests and a one-day series. Such an unlikely scenario has become a possibility after Graeme Smith, South Africa’s embattled captain, admitted that his side – which has plummeted down the world rankings – could benefit from Australian expertise.With Ray Jennings, the current coach, looking increasingly unlikely to get a contract extension in May, it’s believed that Waugh and two other Australians, Tom Moody and Geoff Marsh, are the frontrunners for the job. Marsh coached Zimbabwe from 2001 to 2004 after having plotted Australia’s charge to World-Cup victory in 1999. Moody currently coaches Worcestershire.Waugh ended a glittering career last January against India, making 80 in the final innings of a 169-Test journey, and has since expressed a desire to remain involved in cricket. When the cricketing community organised a fund-raiser for Asia’s tsunami victims last month, Waugh did his part by coaching the World XI against their Asian counterparts. reported that Waugh would be open to the idea of guiding South Africa out of the wilderness. It quoted Robert Joske, Waugh’s manager, as saying: “It is something we would consider. Our management philosophy is that we consider every offer that comes across the desk.”We haven’t heard from South African cricket authorities in relation to the job. But if an approach was made, or the opportunity arose, we would definitely sit down and talk it through. We have a strategic plan that we have put together for Steve’s retirement and our approach is that every valid approach that comes our his way should be seriously considered.”South Africa lost a home series against England for the first time in 40 years last month, and recent tours to Sri Lanka and India also ended in painful defeats, a far cry from the days when they were pushing Australia for the number-one spot.

The International Cricket Council (ICC) hopes to have a worldwide doping policy in place for next September’s Champion’s Trophy tournament in England. Malcolm Speed, the ICC’s chief executive, announced that he would be meeting with the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) soon to agree a strategy.”We are looking at a generic doping program that will go across the top of cricket,” Speed said. “We are about to have meetings with WADA to look at adopting the WADA program, but there is some opposition within cricket to that.”The subject hit the headlines in February when Shane Warne was banned for one year after failing a drugs test, when a minimum two-year ban was demanded by many anti-drug campaigners. Dick Pound, WADA’s president, condemned Cricket Australia for allowing Warne to train with the Victoria and Australia squads while still banned.Speed said that he would be asking for some leeway in punishing those found guilty. “If there are cheats out there who are using banned substances, yes we want to punish them,” he said. “But if there are issues that fall below that level, we want the discretion to deal with it on a more issue-sensitive basis.”Speed added that cricket had to be seen to be serious about the issue, but admitted that it had a long way to go if it were to tackle to matter properly.

XXXX Queensland Bulls allrounder James Hopes has made a late dash toHobart to be on stand-by for tomorrow’s Pura Cup clash against theTasmania Tigers.Hopes flew to Tasmania today as a pre-cautionary move after off-spinnerNathan Hauritz was troubled by a calf muscle strain at training thismorning.The allrounder was part-way through captaining the Queensland Academy ofSport team in their match against the Tasmanian 2nd XI at Allan BorderField, top-scoring with 57 in the first innings and taking 2-31 from17.5 overs.Hauritz was bothered by the injury during last weekend’s Australia ‘A’match against Sri Lanka and the Queensland selectors felt it was best tocover all contingencies should he not be 100 percent tomorrow morning.Hopes had the company of wicket-keeper Wade Seccombe for the flight toHobart today after the Bulls gloveman was granted permission to delayhis trip to be present at the birth of he and wife Vicki’s third child.The Seccombe’s became parents again yesterday with the birth ofElizabeth Grace.Meanwhile the Bulls have benefited from the presence of Queenslandcricket legend Carl Rackemann during their build-up for the match.Bulls coach Terry Oliver has taken steps to incorporate past Queenslandplayers into the team’s routine wherever possible, with Rackemanntravelling with the team on Monday.Oliver has involved the likes of Ian Healy, Rackemann, Geoff Foley andScott Prestwidge in the team’s preparations so far and has plans toutilise the experience of Trevor Barsby and Allan Border when available.”Having these blokes around is good for some of the younger players toget an idea of where the team has come from and it’s good for me to haveanother person to bounce ideas off,” said Oliver.Rackemann, the leading wicket-taker in Queensland history, coachedZimbabwe for two seasons with some success before returning to farm inQueensland.XXXX Queensland Bulls v Tasmania, Pura Cup, Thurs Dec 19 – Sun Dec 22,Bellerive Oval: Jimmy Maher (c), Brendan Nash, Martin Love, AndrewSymonds, Stuart Law, Lee Carseldine, Wade Seccombe, Ashley Noffke,Nathan Hauritz, Joe Dawes, Damien MacKenzie, Scott Brant, James Hopes(one to be omitted, twelfth man to be named)

As the night skies closed in around Old Trafford, so too did the Australians. Intimidating field placings more akin to Test cricket greeted new England batsmen, an umbrella slip cordon and a couple of short legs ensuring that Australia applied a vice-like tourniquet which squeezed the life out of the England reply, reducing the game to an exhibition of Australia’s supreme bowling attack. England were totally eclipsed by 125 runs and dismissed for a record low of 86 all out.England had set out in pursuit of a revised target of 212 from 44 overs after rain had curtailed Australia’s total to 208 for seven from 48 overs. An immediate goal was to achieve 84 without loss from the mandatory 25 overs to win the match as the threat of rain was always a possibility. As it turned out, to merely survive for 25 overs was probably England’s main batting achievement in an innings which only displayed the true calibre of this Australian outfit.Glenn McGrath and Jason Gillespie were unmercifully persistent and accuracy personified. Knight and Trescothick could barely pierce the field and the pressure of these two quicks caused anxious times for the two left-handers. They did reach 25 without loss but after Knight had groped forward and edged McGrath behind, Stewart and Vaughan departed off consecutive balls to the hostile Gillespie. Shah avoided the hat-trick and had made a very fortuitous ten before edging Gillespie on to his pad to Ponting.Three wickets went down in 20 balls for no runs. Trescothick was cleaned up by McGrath and Shane Warne made his appearance at his beloved Old Trafford to taunt the England lower order and turn the ball past the startled Hollioake. Andrew Symonds, meanwhile, joined in the fun, inducing Cork to find Hayden at deep mid-wicket off a rank long hop, and then plunging to his right to snap up Collingwood one-handed. Gough succumbed to Warne and Ian Harvey performed the last rites with the wicket of Mullally.If this was an Ashes rehearsal, then England’s recent renewed confidence after Test series successes looks misplaced. Australia were just simply too good. Their batsmen, thanks to Steve Waugh and Damien Martyn, rescued a poor position of 27 for three and although England, and in particular Hollioake and Mullally, bowled well and ensured Australia didn’t set a huge target, it was quickly evident that Australia’s standard is still way above that of England in one-day cricket.

Lendl Simmons and David Miller were the big winners in the Caribbean Premier League 2016 draft on Thursday in Barbados, going first and second overall to fetch top tier $160,000 contracts. Simmons went to the St Kitts & Nevis Patriots, having represented Guyana Amazon Warriors in 2015, while Miller was snapped up for the first time by a CPL team going to the St Lucia Zouks second overall.Miller will team with Shane Watson to fill the void left by Kevin Pietersen, who opted to withdraw himself from the CPL for this season. Sohail Tanvir’s pick at fifth overall by Guyana essentially meant he and Simmons made a straight swap between teams. Chris Gayle (Jamaica Tallawahs), Dwayne Bravo (Trinbago Knight Riders) and Kieron Pollard (Barbados Tridents) were all retained by their franchises in the first round.The six designated marquee overseas players were all taken in the second round beginning with AB de Villiers by the Tridents. He was followed by Martin Guptill, who will switch from the Patriots to the Amazon Warriors for 2016. Brendon McCullum went next to the Knight Riders, Kumar Sangakkara to the Tallawahs, Watson to St Lucia and Faf du Plessis rounded out the marquee picks going to the Patriots.Hashim Amla was taken by the Knight Riders in round four, one pick ahead of Big Bash player of the tournament Chris Lynn by the Amazon Warriors who represented the Tallawahs in 2015. Adam Zampa, who had a breakout season in the BBL with Melbourne Stars to fetch both an Australian call-up and an IPL contract with Rising Pune Super Giants, was taken in the sixth round for $60,000 by the Amazon Warriors.Besides Lynn, other players on the move were Samuel Badree and Brad Hodge, who were swapped up in consecutive rounds by the Patriots; Shakib Al Hasan, who went from the Zouks to the Tallawahs after being taken in the third round; David Wiese, from the Amazon Warriors to the Tridents; and Umar Akmal, from the Amazon Warriors to the Knight Riders; and Dwayne Smith from the Tridents to the Amazon Warriors.Among the overseas CPL veterans in the auction pool who went undrafted were Shahid Afridi, Misbah-Ul-Haq, Tillakaratne Dilshan and Johan Botha. However, Michael Hussey managed to fetch a $90,000 price tag in the fourth round from St Lucia Zouks. He’ll be teammates with Morne Morkel, who was taken in the seventh round for $40,000.One more player that caught most attendees off guard was Kieran Powell, who fetched a $10,000 price tag in round ten from the Patriots. Powell, 25, last played for West Indies in June 2014 and had declared his interest in January to pursue a career in baseball. He recently had a tryout attended by several scouts at the IMG Academy in Florida. However, he did not secure a contract with any Major League Baseball franchise.Ramnaresh Sarwan was also a surprising name plucked in the final moments of the draft going with the first pick in the 15th round to the Knight Riders for $4000. Sarwan last played any form of competitive cricket with Leicestershire in 2014 and hasn’t played any regional cricket in the Caribbean since the 2014 Nagico Super50 with Guyana.Six Associate players were taken in the final round of the draft, all of them representing USA and Canada. The Patriots retained Canada offspinner Nikhil Dutta, who debuted for them last year, and the same went for Florida batsman Steven Taylor with the Barbados Tridents. Canada batting allrounder Nitish Kumar went with the second pick in the final round to the Zouks, followed by fast bowling allrounder Timroy Allen to the Tallawahs, wicketkeeper Hamza Tariq to the Knight Riders and fast bowler Ali Khan to the Amazon Warriors.St Kitts & Nevis Patriots: Lendl Simmons, Faf du Plessis, Samuel Badree, Brad Hodge, Thisara Perera, Jonathan Carter, Krishmar Santokie, Evin Lewis, Tabraiz Shamsi, Kieran Powell, JJ Smuts, Devon Thomas, Shamarh Brooks, Tino Best, Jeremiah Louis, Nikhil DuttaSt Lucia Zouks: David Miller, Shane Watson, Darren Sammy, Michael Hussey, Johnson Charles, Andre Fletcher, Morne Morkel, Fidel Edwards, Derone Davis, Eddie Leie, Keron Cottoy, Shane Shillingford, Delorn Johnson, Kyle Mayers, Keddy Lesporis, Nitish KumarJamaica Tallawahs: Chris Gayle, Kumar Sangakkara, Shakib Al Hasan, Andre Russell, Imad Wasim, Lasith Malinga, Rovman Powell, Chadwick Walton, Jon-Russ Jaggesar, Andre McCarthy, Jonathan Foo, Alex Ross, Kesrick Williams, Nkrumah Bonner, Garey Mathurin, Timroy AllenTrinbago Knight Riders: Dwayne Bravo, Brendon McCullum, Sunil Narine, Hashim Amla, Umar Akmal, Kevon Cooper, Sulieman Benn, Colin Munro, Anton Devcich, Ronsford Beaton, Nikita Miller, Javon Searles, William Perkins, Yannick Cariah, Ramnaresh Sarwan, Hamza TariqGuyana Amazon Warriors: Sohail Tanvir, Martin Guptill, Dwayne Smith, Chris Lynn, Rayad Emrit, Adam Zampa, Jason Mohammed, Christopher Barnwell, Veerasammy Permaul, Orlando Peters, Assad Fudadin, Anthony Bramble, Paul Wintz, Steven Jacobs, Steven Katwaroo, Ali KhanBarbados Tridents: Kieron Pollard, AB de Villiers, Shoaib Malik, Nicholas Pooran, Ravi Rampaul, David Wiese, Robin Peterson, Raymon Reifer, Ashley Nurse, Wayne Parnell, Akeal Hosein, Imran Khan, Kyle Hope, Navin Stewart, Kyle Corbin, Steven Taylor

Greg Chappell: “Cricketers of the future] are going to be athletic, strong, impact players” © George Binoy

If you were walking across a Burma bridge, clambering up monkey ropes, swinging on a Damdama jhula and jumping over a khadda; you could either be a cadet going through an obstacle course at an army camp … or a student at the Rajasthan Cricket Academy under the observation of former India coach Greg Chappell and biomechanist Ian Frazer.It’s been a month and a half since Chappell was appointed director of the Rajasthan Cricket Academy and the emphasis has been on training young cricketers to be athletes.”The cricketer of the future is going to look very different from the cricketer of the past. We are looking for athletes who can play cricket,” Chappell told reporters in Jaipur. “We have seen the short version, Twenty20, really taking off and playing a bigger part in the international scene. The cricketer of the future is going to have more demands placed on him than ever before. It is being able to find that athletic talent and training that to the needs of the future.”What attributes should a future cricketer have? “Firstly they have to go beyond fear,” Chappell said. “They have to be accountable and they have to take responsibility to what happens to them and the team.”When pressed for an example of a future cricketer from the current Indian squad, Chappell said that he would rather not name anybody in case it was taken out of context but said players such as Matthew Hayden, Ricky Ponting, Adam Gilchrist, Andrew Symonds and Andrew Flintoff fitted the bill.

‘The obstacle course at the academy is an attempt to provide a simple, low-cost and easily reproducible means of training strong and flexible cricketers’ © George Binoy

“They [cricketers of the future] are going to be athletic, strong, impact players. If you want to stand out in the future game, particularly as the game appears to get shorter, you have to be an impact player; you’ve got to be somebody who can impose themselves on the game.”Chappell believed that cricket was going through an exciting phase with the growing influence of Twenty20 cricket and the advent of the IPL in 2008. He said that the format could change the face of cricket.”The basic talent demands of the game won’t change, the physical and mental demands will. The identification and training process are going to have to change. The demands will be greater because of the distinct formats at the international level. Players will have to be flexible more mentally and physically then ever before. The best players have always been mentally strong and will have to be in the future as well.”The obstacle course at the academy is an attempt to provide a simple, low-cost and easily reproducible means of training strong and flexible cricketers. Chappell stressed the importance of such a system to develop fitness for it is easy to implement even in the districts where facilities and finances weren’t as easily available as in the larger centres.Chappell said he did not believe that there was a scarcity of athletes in India and didn’t think the training process would take much time once the students were identified.”It is important to start with the vision of what we are looking for. Once you establish that then you can save a lot of time looking for that type of player. If I have to give you a good guesstimate [I would say] between 18 months and two years before we start players coming through to the first-class level from a programme like this.”