After being appointed Head Coach of Kent Women in November 2019, Dave Hathrill has been in charge of ‘the Horses’ during a pivotal year of the history of women’s cricket in the county.

The Club announced a new Female Talent Pathway back in December: an updated roadmap of female players joining the county’s age group squads up to international level, to reflect recent changes across the ever-evolving female game.

And Hathrill is keen to see the fruit of the labours of a lot of behind-the-scenes work in the past few years.

“I think it’s something that the game’s needed for a while, and a change that we’ve been driving from a Kent perspective, too.

“It’s refreshing now to see what is available for players at the end of the Talent Pathway. If you’re coming into the setup as an 11-year-old now, your experience of cricket is an extended pathway that isn’t just a case of going up age groups and into Kent’s first team.

“It’s a positive time for the game that we now find ourselves quite closely linked to regional centres that can offer professional contracts to players, and already you see role models for younger players coming out of these regional hubs.

“It’s great to see younger players being able to associate themselves with these role models and we’re lucky that the South East Stars are so closely linked to Kent Cricket, with ourselves now being a direct feeder into their setup which gives our youngsters a clear path to becoming professional cricketers.”

With regional and franchise teams now becomign a huge part of a players’ career both financially and in a cricket, does Kent Women’s Head Coach still think the passion is there for players to play for Kent?

“100%. The culture that the current setup has created here, and the pride that they take in coming back to represent us, makes it clear to see how proud they are to represent Kent.

“The way that new players are welcomed in shows just strong how the culture that’s been built here is in the women’s game.

“We’re always looking at ways of keeping that sense of identity, so when our senior players go off and play regional, franchise or international cricket, they always still see the value of wearing the White Horse.

“We also have such a rich history of success that players take so much pride in how far we’ve taken ourselves in the county game, and having such a strong foundation to build success from.

“Our players still see the huge role that county cricket has in aiding their development, and they all can’t wait to get back and put that sky blue kit on again this Summer!”

“It’s a really exciting time for Kent Women. We have an established group of young, talented players that are blended with senior international players coming back in when available, and we now know what we’re capable of if we’re able to combine different skillsets, talent and experience.

“Let’s just say, watch this space – I’m excited in the huge potential that this side has.”

England representation: “It’s always been a model of success for us as a county, in how many homegrown players we can put in international colours.

“You’re seeing how integral Tammy has become in England’s top order, and the mentality and hunger that Tash has shown since her first England stint which I believe has kept her desire intact to such a degree that she’s forced her way back into the England side.

“I can’t put in words how committed Tash is behind the scenes, with the stuff that people don’t see, and it’s down to the hard work that she’s put in that she’s back where she is now.

“Fran also regularly leads the way as one of the best fielders in the international game full stop, and you can’t underestimate her game in that middle-order.

“We have such a rich history at Kent of producing international women’s cricketers and it fills you with pride and confidence in younger players that we have the potential to create more international players in the future.”

So who will be Kent Women’s next stars?

“I must admit we have a cohort of six or seven pathway players produced that have taken opportunities given to them.

“We all know that getting to the top level it’s about taking those opportunities when they present themselves, and I’m confident that with opportunities coming the near future and with the talent that they have at their age, it’s really important that we get them in a position to take them.

“As we’ve seen with the Horses in the England side currently, that route to the top is there for them.

“I don’t want to earmark anyone just yet, but I can certainly say that you will be hearing of players that will become household names off the back of being in the Kent setup from a young age!”

And as a young coach himself, Hathrill thinks that the coaching setup with Kent Women can only improve going into a new period for women’s cricket.

“The game keeps on changing all the time, and I think you’ve got to be prepared to change with it to keep up the pace with other counties and regions.

“It’s all about creating a clear philosophy for the players and the beauty of the coaching environment Kent is that I have a lot of big cricket brains to pick around me.

“If I can bring fresh ideas and blend that with conversations with senior coaches as well, I think it’ll have a positive impact on the players that we have coming through.

“Personally for me it’s about becoming the best coach I can be, and helping everyone as a team achieve the goals we all set down at the start of a season, and in the longer term.”