THE trail of despair caused by lack of success for the England cricket team during the winter has often been put down to the lack of a coherent youth policy to nurture stars from schoolboy level all the way up to Test cricket.

Now attempts are being made locally to put in place a framework that will try and address that very problem.

The Swindon District Cricket Association have formed a District Development Group that has been charged with the task of encouraging interest in the game at the grass roots level and providing youngsters with more opportunities to play cricket within the area.

Chris Mabberley from Swindon Cricket Club has taken on the role of team leader for the project, which aims to bring together their combined skills and knowledge needed for the platform for youth cricket to develop in the Swindon area over the next decade. His group will help and advise any local club that is interested in developing a youth section.

Mabberley said:"This directive has filtered down from the Wiltshire Cricket Board and we will have a county-wide committee.

"The aim is to get more clubs in the area starting a junior section.

"Basically we want more kids playing the game."

Looey Law, the Committee's media liaison officer, explained: "Youth cricket in the area would surely have died a death long ago if it were not for the sterling efforts of Swindon Cricket Club running their own youth sections.

"But what we are looking to achieve is to extend the game to the youngsters throughout the town and adjoining villages by developing more teams in other clubs.

"The overall aim is to make cricket accessible to a wider group of kids.

"The long term objective is to get as many clubs as possible running teams at under 11, 13 and 15 years with openings for both boys and girls and those with disabilities too.

"Initially, we will concentrate on the youngest age group and set up a structure that will encourage them to stick with the game as they grow older.

"This, however, depends on the commitment of local clubs in order to start the process rolling.

"We want to provide openings for youngsters to play inter club cricket within Swindon then the best players will graduate to the Swindon District sides, from their the age group managers will recommend the best players to the county managers for trials for the Wiltshire representative sides."

Mabbley and co have already made great strides towards their goal, with an ECB course, aimed at introducing more qualified coaches, taking place last Sunday.

Twenty budding youth cricket coaches successfully attained the ECB's Grade One qualification.

Law added: "This is great news for the area as it will mean that more qualified coaches are available to clubs within our district."

The Development team have also managed to draft in some star turns to help the cause, with Gloucestershire's John Lewis a product of the Swindon Cricket Club holding a coaching night on Wednesday for the club's 15 to 19-year-olds and further sessions are planned ahead of the new season.