England disabilities team heads down under

The England learning disabilities team have arrived in Australia for a tri-nations tournament also involving South Africa, Australia and New Zealand and are aiming to settle a few scores.

It is the third time the event has been held, with South Africa hosting the inaugural series in 2005 and England the second in 2007. On both those occasions England have not reached the final but Ian Martin, the national manager, believes their time may have arrived.

"We're a much stronger outfit this time around because we've been able to throw a lot more resources behind the development of our talented players," he told Cricinfo. "The head coach is an ECB level-four coach, and there are not many level four coaches in the country, so it's fantastic to have this guy working with us. We've thrown a lot more resources into coaching expertise for developing this group of players. The squad is a much stronger unit now than it was in the previous two tournaments."

The event involves each side playing each other twice in 40-over contests and the two teams with the most points after their four games progress to the final. England play their opening fixture against the hosts, at the MCG, on December 3rd a dream fixture for any England cricketer and something that the team are eagerly anticipating. "The boys are absolutely looking forward to it, really excited and looking forward to the challenge," Martin said

For the senior players who have been involved with the national team for a few years this is their chance to exorcise a few ghosts and with new faces in the squad, the mood in the dressing room is positive ahead of the series.

"Those who have been there since the outset in South Africa and the follow up in England feel they have a score to settle," Martin said. "The addition of the new players as well has made them really confident. There's a great atmosphere, they're great fun to be around and we're really looking forward to getting out there."

As with any contest involving England and Australia there is bound to be a bit of needle and Martin is not worried if his players are unpopular, sounding distinctly Australian, when he said his only concern is to win games.

"There's a social side to a degree, but at the end of the day it's an England cricket tour, we're going out there to win cricket matches. The social side can come after we've won the tournament."

Disabilities cricket in England has been given a boost since 2006, with the ECB playing a more active role in developing the game, something that Giles Clarke was keen to point out when the row about free-to-air Ashes erupted. But Martin suggested that the extra funds are felt more at county than England level.

"In terms of fundraising for the national squad [the money from the Sky deal] has not made a difference because the ECB supported the national squad anyway," he said. "But if you take the national County Championship for physical and learning difficulties, the British Association for Cricketers with Disabilities (BACD) used to have to fundraise to run that competition. What's different now is that the ECB underwrite the competition in its entirety, so all the administrators have to do now is put on a quality competition.

"It's about having the ability to invest in it really. If you take the question of facilities it's impossible to avoid the debate [about TV rights]. But the important thing is that with the support the ECB has provided, we've seen a 66% increase in participation at grass-roots level from last year and we hope to keep that trend going."