Association of Cricket Officials Issue 28 | Page 30

An Update From the Scorer Education Manager (SEM) Stern and introductory courses have all undergone a revamp. If anyone would like scorer training, please get in contact with your County Scorer Officer, who should be able to help you find a suitable course in your area. This winter has proved a busy time for scorer training, with most scoring courses undergoing an overhaul. At entry level, the Club Scorer course has been completely rewritten and is accompanied by a restocked Scorer Training Pack, including the acknowledging paddle that many of you were given at last year’s ACO Conference. Umpires beware – you should see an upsurge of these being waved from scoreboxes around the country. If anyone else would like one, they are available to purchase from the ACO merchandise website. The above picture shows scorers Freddie Sheffield and Jo Potter in action with the acknowledging paddle at High Wycombe CC. A new scorer training video has been produced (see separate article), and the Linear Scoring, Duckworth Lewis In Issue 27, I posed the question of how to record a Handled the Ball dismissal, and, if you score electronically, if your software could cope with it. I had just one response, from Richard Truscott (Grampound Road CC in Cornwall), who says: ‘I can't say that I have had such a dismissal to record, so I checked with my scoring programme and was delighted to see it included in the options I am given when I key in a wicket fallen. You ask how we would have known; well, we would have seen the hiatus, and any helpful umpire would have looked in our direction, pointing to his hand. At the end of the innings we would have confirmed this with the umpires and could then correct the entry if necessary.’ Richard uses a computer scoring system called BICS, which, like all other scoring software I have come across, includes Handled the Ball on its dismissals menu. For the many paper-based scorers reading this, the bowler does not get credit for a Handled the Ball dismissal, The Scorer Sub-Committee ECB ACO has always been about officials, recognising their importance to the game of cricket. However, if you mention the phrase ‘cricket officials’, the focus is often on umpires, match referees, or even administrators. All of these roles are, of course, vital to the game, but equally so is that of the scorer, and the work of the Scorer Sub-Committee (SSC). Representing scorers and their interests is taken very seriously by all its members. The Committee is made up of the Chair (Nick Cousins), the National Scorers’ Officer (Sue Jones) and the Scorer Education Manager (Sue Drinkwater), along with the Regional Scorer Officers (RSOs) and a representative from the Association of County Cricket Scorers (ACCS) – Dr Andrew Hignell currently fulfils this role. Additionally, there are co-opted members who are brought onto the Committee for particular aspects of expertise and input, with Martin Gentle representing Membership Services. The Committee meets on a quarterly basis and is very much an ‘actions-focused’ group, keen to improve the profile of scoring, available resources, training programmes and opportunities for ACO members who are keen to score in other environments alongside their league cricket duties. The 30 Committee is very much the better for all its members being active scorers themselves, involved at all levels of the game and possessing that love for what they do that is the hallmark of mature and competent officials. Over the past 18 months, the Committee has worked together to ensure there is a cohesive and logical progression of scoring courses, which now mirrors the pathway undertaken by umpires. The first full course available to aspiring scorers – the Club Scorer course – does not require ACO membership, but aims to provide a comprehensive grounding in the rudiments of scoring, with a certificate of attendance available to all those who sit the course. There is no ‘exam’ as such, with the emphasis on the individual to take their learning further by undergoing an assessment process. Changes like this, as well as ensuring the pack provided to Club Scorer candidates is practical and good value, have been brought about after discussion, email group feedback, and the dedicated work of Committee members. The fruits of work such as this are then made available to County Scorer Officers (CSOs), who liaise with their RSOs, to ensure all taught courses and information being circulated are up to date. email us at [email protected] contact us on 0121 446 2710