Colson Smith: How Castleford rose to be champions

Colson Smith, Director of Cricket at Castleford CC, spoke to me for the Cricket Yorkshire Podcast ahead of the Yorkshire Premier League Final at Emerald Headingley on Saturday.

We discussed the five-year plan Colson devised with David Wainwright to bounce back from relegation out of Yorkshire Premier League North – which they won in 2021.

In this 20-minute episode, Castleford’s approach with its focus on spin bowling and a squad that has all contributed this season both feature.

Ex-county players like David Wainwright and Chesney Hughes will catch the headlines but Cas have most bases covered.

The Coronation Street actor, who plays Craig Tinker, has a long association with Castleford Cricket Club and I enjoyed his company on the podcast as we considered the challenge of Woodlands, who just lost out to Sheriff Hutton Bridge in the 2019 Final.

Bradford Premier League outfit Woodlands won’t have overseas star Brad Schmulian (see Brad’s interview earlier in the season) but match-winners like Chris Brice, Kez Ahmed and Muhammad Bilal with ball all pose a threat.

As do, Sam Frankland and Tim Jackson who combined have 2,000+ runs for the Bradford club this season across competitions.

It promises to be a cracker of a fixture to round off the Premier League club season. Well worth a listen if you have some time in the car, on your daily commute or back home.

Thanks to Ray Spencer for the image of Colson, you can visit Ray’s website https://rayspencerphotography.co.uk if you’re looking for a skilful photographer for sports or corporate events.

Castleford (Yorkshire Premier League North) vs Woodlands (Bradford Premier League) starts at 10.30am at Headingley Emerald on Saturday.

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