Munster Reds Head Coach Jeremy Bray has touched down in Australia, kicking off an exciting visit to one of world cricket’s leading high-performance hubs. After a three-hour delay in Doha, Bray finally arrived in Sydney, wasting no time in immersing himself in the cricketing heartbeat of New South Wales.

His first stop was “Cricket Central”, the state-of-the-art high performance centre at Sydney Olympic Park, a venue steeped in sporting history as part of the 2000 Olympics. There, Bray rubbed shoulders with some of Australia’s finest cricketers, including Nathan Lyon, Mitchell Starc, Curtis Patterson, and Moses Henriques.

Reflecting on his early observations, Bray was struck by the unique structure of the NSW player development system:

“I was fascinated to see the way NSW structure their programmes for youth players. It’s less about training in age groups, and more about developing players in groups, regardless of age. So all the seamers would train and learn together, same with the batters, keepers and spinners. So essentially Cricket NSW are creating cohorts of skilled young players who bounce off one another and learn their craft through dedicated training and matches.”

Unlike in many systems, once the season proper begins, the focus shifts heavily from training to game time – ensuring players stay sharp and learn in the match context. Promising young talents are also fast-tracked, giving them early exposure to higher-level cricket to accelerate their development.

Looking ahead, Bray is set for a busy schedule. Tomorrow, he hopes to meet Peter Clarke, Head Coach of the NSW Breakers, who brings immense expertise from his eight years as sport psychologist with the Australian women’s team.

“I am fascinated to learn how Peter applies his extensive sport psychology methods to high performance cricket,” Bray said.

He is also excited to catch up with former teammate Matt Nicholson, now a bowling coach with NSW. The pair shared dressing rooms in the Australia U19 setup before Nicholson went on to earn his Test cap in 1998. In addition, Bray plans to connect with Jay Lenton, Lead Fielding Coach, and is keen to explore his philosophies on developing elite fielding skills, particularly focussing on youth development.

With the Sydney sun on his back and a full diary of high-performance insights ahead, Bray’s Australian adventure is only just beginning.

Stay tuned for Jeremy’s next Postcard from Down Under!