England U19s and the Power of Premier League Cricket
When the England Under-19s start out on their the ICC Under-19 Cricket World Cup campaign in Zimbabwe on Friday against Pakistan, they’ll do so with a squad that quietly tells a familiar story. Yes, this is an elite international group. But scratch the surface and you’ll find village greens, club teas, Premier League scoreboards, and a lot of Saturday cricket stitched into its DNA.
This isn’t an accident. For all the talk of pathways and performance programmes, the club game and in particular the Premier League game still plays a huge role in shaping England’s best young players. This squad is proof.
Captain, Vice-Captain, and the Club Cricket Backbone
At the centre of it all is captain Thomas Rew, a Taunton St Andrews product who has moved smoothly through Somerset’s pathway. Taunton SA runs deep through the Rew family, and Rew’s grounding there shows in the way he plays: organised, calm, already comfortable with responsibility but also as innovative and explosive as possibly any other player of the same age in the country. He’s a reminder that even the most polished academy products still benefit from the edge that high-level club cricket provides.
His vice-captain, Farhan Ahmed, comes via Cavaliers & Carrington, one of Nottinghamshire’s most productive Premier League environments. That club has long been a finishing school for young talent, and Ahmed’s development there reflects the modern balance: academy structure during the week, unforgiving league cricket at the weekend and playing alongside his brothers at his club has helped prepare him for the big stage.
Surrey, Kent, and the Southern Premier League Influence
Surrey’s Premier League footprint runs deep. Ralphie Albert (Banstead), Caleb Falconer (Sunbury) and Alex French (Esher) have both come through a league where you earn everything, all proper proving grounds, places that fast-track game awareness and resilience, and one of the most competitive Premier Leagues in the country.
Kent’s contribution comes through Ben Dawkins, who has of late played his club cricket at Tunbridge Wells. Kent League cricket has always valued technique and patience, and Dawkins’ game reflects that influence. He looks like a player who understands tempo, not just talent.
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Middlesex and the Value of Being Thrown In Early
The Middlesex Premier League is represented too with Sebastian Morgan (Ealing) and yet more evidence that these are clubs that trust young players early, often exposing them to senior cricket before they’re ready physically. It accelerates learning, quickly.
Strong Roots Across the Midlands and North
Leicestershire’s influence comes via Ali Farooq (Loughborough Town) and Alex Green (Peterborough Town). Loughborough Town, in particular, sits at the crossroads of university, club, and performance cricket, producing players who are tactically sharp and physically ready whilst Peterborough Town have been one of the leading Premier League clubs for a number of years and compete regularly to a good level in National Competitions.
Further north, the club game remains a vital finishing school. Luke Hands (Leyland) and Joe Moores (Macclesfield) come from leagues where cricket is played hard and watched closely. Yorkshire’s Will Bennison (Sheriff Hutton Bridge) and Durham’s James Minto (Norton) bring similar grounding from strong North East competitions.
Even those rooted primarily in academies, like Hampshire pair Manny Lumsden and Ben Mayes, remain closely connected to the club game, especially as Hampshire Academy play year in year out in the Southern Premier League – the only first class acadmey to do so! Their development therefore still runs parallel with Premier League cricket, reinforcing skills under very different pressures.
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Why This Matters
This squad is a quiet endorsement of English club cricket at its best. Premier Leagues aren’t just feeders anymore. They’re classrooms. They teach young players how to win, how to fail, and how to turn up next Saturday and do it again.
As England’s Under-19s get their World Cup campaign underway in Zimbabwe, they take with them more than talent. They take the habits, scars, and confidence forged in club cricket. Historically, that travels very well.
Fingers crossed and good luck to the group, we’ll be watching as we are sure all the Premier League and non-PL clubs they have developed their careers from!
