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For all those involved in buying kit!
Buying kit for junior players can be a headache - especially when you need to establish the sizes of everything from bats to batting gloves!
Kit – what do I need?
A note for parents/carers.
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Your youngster is just starting out in the game?
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You need to kit him or her?
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You have an idea where to go to source the kit, but you are not sure about quality, price and value for money?
Join the crowd - we’ve all been there!
Thankfully, most sports shops will offer good sound advice, although we would recommend that you visit a specialist cricket equipment seller. These people really do know their business, and in our experience will do their best to accommodate your child’s exact needs at a competitive price. Just make sure you tell them what those needs are!
Check your local business directories for details of specialists in your area. There are a number around the country, but they may not be sited conveniently on your local high street! Cricket magazines will have details of some shops, but if you are still unable to locate your nearest specialist, contact your county cricket club. Most will have a vendor within their grounds or will recommend one nearby.
Be very careful of kit, especially a bat, which is bought online as you won’t always get the quality that is promised. We know of one or two bat suppliers who claim they are selling high quality bats at bargain prices. These bats, which are manufactured throughout Asia are a classic example of the adage, “you get what you pay for!”
The top ‘known’ retailers who do sell via an ‘on-line’ shop, will offer you a guarantee, which is the same as you would receive if you had bought from their high street shop. But be careful of eBay auctions and such like!
Before visiting your local retailer, it’s worth applying the same principles to purchasing your child’s cricket kit as you would when buying day-to-day child’ wear, school clothes, etc.
Kids grow quickly, as we all know, so we would advise you against falling into the trap of buying top of the range, ‘named’ kit. The designer world is part of the cricket equipment scene as well as everywhere else, and especially where bats are concerned! So, keep your purchases to the basics. For a child just setting out in the game, a bat costing £25 will do the job just as well as one that costs £50. Cracking sixes into the club pavilion is a long way off, yet!
Your initial kit purchases will depend on the type and level of cricket at which your child is learning the game. He or she might be learning with a soft ball; or via ‘Kwik Cricket’. In such cases, certain pieces of equipment will not be needed. For example, a helmet and other bits of body protection might not be necessary at this stage but are a definite requirement as soon as your child starts playing with a hard cricket ball, or with some of the practice (hard rubber,) balls that are used frequently during training sessions.
Time to play with a hard cricket ball?
When the time arrives for a child to begin playing the game with a hard cricket ball, it’s important to recognise that he/she will need ‘protection’!
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Hopefully this basic guide to the 'dos and don'ts' of kit purchase will help with your selection. (Please note that all size guides below are approximate, although they should be close!) |
Buying kit 'on-line'?
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DO NOT USE ‘TRAINERS’ as footwear in a match situation and/or at net pratice!
Your editor has seen too many children with bruised and/or grazed toes! Can be extremely painful – believe me!
Trainers are simply not strong enough, especially at the ‘toe end’, as they do not provide the protection needed to prevent injury. That said, if simply exercising/running around then fine, use trainers.....but as soon as a match or net practice comes along use cricket shoes!
Children need to wear specially made cricket footwear. As with all clothing and footwear, the most important thing is comfort! This is closely followed by ensuring you select a shoe with an appropriate sole that provides ‘grip’. This may be in the form of spiked shoes, pimpled rubber soles or a combination of both.
Batting shoes will normally consist of spikes at the front for grip and rubber treaded heels. Fast bowlers will normally have shoes with spikes at front and back, and their footwear may be more like boots to give extra support to the ankle area. That said, we would recommend that children, say up to the age of 12-years, use ‘pimpled’ rubber soled shoes. Leave ‘spikes’ until later – they can be a tad dangerous and cannot be used in the nets, whether indoors or out!
Concerning playing in the nets. For the same reason as mentioned above, (i.e. toes!) we would suggest that trainers are not worn when batting in the nets. Use the ‘pimpled’ ones. Trainers are fine if your child is bowling, but as soon as he/she starts to bat, MAKE SURE THE APPROPRIATE FOOTWEAR IS WORN!
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UK |
USA |
Europe |
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3 |
3.5 |
34.5 |
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4 |
4.5 |
36 |
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5 |
5.5 |
36.5 |
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6 |
7 |
39 |
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7 |
8 |
40.5 |
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8 |
9 |
42 |
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9 |
10 |
43 |
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10 |
11 |
44.5 |
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11 |
12 |
45.5 |
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12 |
13 |
47 |
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13 |
14 |
48.5 |
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14 |
15 |
50 |
Again, the most important thing is comfort! Although batting pads are worn for protection, they need to fit comfortably and properly, as children will need to move quickly and freely in them.
Pads that are too large will interfere with batting strokes!
‘Traditional’ pads have vertical and horizontal panels on the front. For comfort, the horizontal panels should be at knee height, with the pad continuing up to the lower thigh. Ensure that the pads are securely fastened, which is normally by three Velcro straps.
OBO cricket!
This gear is based around three levels of performance, P1 for the elite, P2 for club players and of particular importance, P3 for youngsters and grassroots cricket. Often, children are badly hindered by ill fitting and cumbersome old-style ‘traditional’ pads, whilst the new OBO leg protection can yield an extra 9% to running speeds because the combination of lightness and anatomical fit gives such a vast improvement to agility. We recommend children trying this fantastic innovation. Your editor’s son thinks they are fantastic!
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To Fit |
Length |
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Small Boys |
30-32cm |
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Boys |
32-35cm |
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Youths |
36-38cm |
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Mens |
39-43cm |
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Large Mens |
44-48cm |
Important for youngsters to wear, especially when facing faster bowling. This lightweight piece of protection kit is attached to the thigh of the leg facing the bowler. That is, left leg if a right-hander, and right leg if a left-hander. There are two straps; one that wraps around the waist, and one around the inner thigh, thus holding the guard in place.
As with the thigh pad it’s important for youngsters to wear an arm guard, especially when facing faster bowling.
Dual layered high density foam and pre-shaped for comfortable fit. Secured with soft elasticated straps with velcro "touch" fastening.... ambidextrous.
VERY IMPORTANT!
A box should always be worn to protect the 'private parts' when batting against a cricket or other hard ball. Wicketkeepers and fielders positioned close to the wicket should also wear this protective equipment at all times. NEVER BAT IN THE NETS OR ANYWHERE ELSE WITHOUT WEARING A ‘BOX’!
One of the biggest problems young cricketers have is self inflicted - they are given a bat that is far too big and heavy for them. Juniors often want to play with a heavy bat to hit the ball harder; but if a bat is too heavy they won't be able to generate the bat-speed required to really give the ball a sweet hit!
There's a wide range of bats available that also come in different sizes, but most importantly children need to have one that is the right size and weight for them.
In order to select an appropriate bat, stand the bat upright next to the child ensuring that the top of the handle reaches the top of the child’s thigh.
Even at colts’ level, weights of bats vary. Thus, a good test to see whether the weight of the bat is right for your child is to have the child swing the bat with only the top hand (left hand for a right handed batter, and vice versa.) If he or she is able to produce a reasonably good straight and/or cross batted stroke, and a controlled backswing, then the weight of the bat is suitable.
Bat Sizes:
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Bat size |
Approx age |
Height of batsman |
Bat length |
Bat width |
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1 |
4-5 |
to 4’3” |
25 1/4”” |
3 1/2” |
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2 |
6-7 |
4’3 -4’6” |
27 3/4” |
3 1/2” |
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3 |
8 |
4’6-4’9” |
28 3/4” |
3 3/4” |
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4 |
9-11 |
4’9-4’11” |
29 3/4” |
3 3/4” |
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5 |
10-12 |
4’11-5’2” |
30 3/4” |
4 “ |
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6 |
11-13 |
5’2-5’6 |
31 3/4” |
4” |
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Harrow |
12-14 |
5’6-5’9 |
32 3/4” |
4 1/6” |
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Full SH |
15+ |
5’9-6’2 |
33 1/2” |
4 1/4” |
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Full LH |
15+ |
over 6’2” |
34 3/8” |
4 1/4” |
Approximate weights of junior bats - (can depend on whether the bat is made of English or Kashmir Willow. Kashmir Willow bats tend to be on the heavier side.)
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Size 1 |
Size 2 |
Size 3 |
Size 4 |
Size 5 |
Size 6 |
Harrow |
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1’11 - 1’13 |
1’12 - 2’0 |
1’13 - 2’1 |
2’1 - 2’3 |
2’2 - 2’4 |
2’3 - 2’5 |
2’5 - 2’7 |
With broken fingers being one of the most common cricketing injuries it is essential that batting gloves are worn.
Injuries are usually caused when the ball traps the fingers of the bottom hand against the handle of the bat. Each finger of both gloves has flexible padded areas, with the thumb of the bottom hand (right hand for a right handed batter) sporting extra protection.
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To Fit |
Length |
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Small Boys |
165mm |
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Boys |
175mm |
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Youths |
190mm |
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Mens |
210mm |
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Large Mens |
225mm |
The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB,) insist that a helmet, with a faceguard, is worn by all young players (up to the age of 18) whenever batting or keeping against a cricket ball or other hard ball.
Even if not batting against fast bowlers, the wearing of a helmet will protect against an accidental full toss or a top edge.
Make sure that the faceguard is properly adjusted so that the ball can not pass between it and the peak of the helmet. THIS IS VERY IMPORTANT. Also ensure that the helmet is securely held in place by the chin strap, as a player will be given out if their helmet is dislodged, falls and hits the stumps! In addition, BEFORE ANY USE, ensure that the faceguard is firmly secured at the sides by tightening the securing nuts.
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To Fit |
Head Circumference |
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Small Boys |
51-52cm |
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Boys |
53-54cm |
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Youths |
54-56cm |
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Small Mens |
56-58cm |
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Mens |
58-60cm |
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Large Mens |
60-62cm |
The wicketkeeper has the advantage of wearing gloves, but the fact he or she will be catching the ball more than anyone else means they are needed.
It will pay to wear a pair of cotton inners underneath the main gloves. The main gloves should fit snugly but still allow for movement so that the keeper can throw the ball when required. Gloves will feature extra protection around the ends of each finger and the 'join material' between thumb and forefinger will be a major help in catching the ball.
Shirts / tops; and shorts / trousers.
Essentially, cricket clothing, i.e. shirts and other whites, tend to be loose fitting for maximum comfort and ease of movement. Trousers are normally supplied with generous unfinished leg bottoms in order for adjustment to ensure correct leg length. Be careful. Like many items of childrens' clothing, sizes can vary from brand to brand.
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To fit |
Waist |
Chest |
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Small Boys |
24/26” |
26/28” |
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