How to Captain a Village Cricket Team

Captaincy makes a much bigger difference at the lower levels of the game. A good captain can make a poor team good and a good team great.

Steps

1. 1
   Make sure you have 11 players on the field at the start of play! You can never take anything for granted. 14 players on a Thursday night quickly turns into 9 on Saturday morning. Have everyone's phone number and make sure you confirm participation with everyone in good time.
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2. 2
   Give priority in selection to those who come to nets and turn up religiously to matches. If players are rewarded for doing the right thing, they'll do it more often. Always chose youth over age in close selection calls.
3. 3
   Know what you'll do if you win the toss. Think about the conditions, the points system and the relative strength of your team. If in doubt then go with your teams strength, if you've lots of good bowlers then bowl first. If you all bat then bat first. Once you're on top, you'll probably win.
4. 4
   Attack in the field. Bowlers bowl better with attacking fields. Always attack the new batsman. If a batsman hits two similar shots into the same place then put a fielder there. Always have a plan - or look like you have one. Never keep the same field for two different batsmen. Be a
   5
   Have a team plan when batting - improving everyone's running between the wickets will win you every close game.
5. 6
   Move quickly. The fielder to the point gully should be quick. Practise catching and throwing more than any other team at the nets and before a game. Catches really do win matches. No-one means to drop a catch so encourage everyone to go for everything and praise everyone for every genuine attempt. Keen fielding teams win most of their games.
6. 7
   Make sure your whites are clean and pressed before a game. This will always give a good impression. There is nothing worse than looking like slobs on the field.