My College Experience - James Coombes
“Myerscough isn’t just great for the cricket and the high standard of work – it’s the people you meet along the way”
James left us last year and is now studying Global Sports Management at The University of Birmingham. He has been kind enough to share his college experiences with us as well as some advice for students who are thinking about studying with us in the future.
James’ first year was affected heavily by the COVID-19 outbreak meaning that no cricket could be played throughout his first summer, he then came back from injury to play in his final summer with us. He averaged 24 with the bat with 5 victims behind the stumps.
So, Myerscough – where to begin. My two years at Myerscough were hands down the best two years of my life. Thinking back to September 2019 embarking on a new start in a new environment was rather daunting. However, the transition from that awkward first day feeling to becoming part of the Myerscough family was seamless. Nevertheless, the reason anyone goes to Myerscough is for the cricket, right? The cricket and training at Myerscough gives you a very professional feel in state-of-the-art facilities, one minute your training hard in the hall and then the next minute Jimmy Anderson comes in and starts bowling in the adjacent lane. No other place in the world gets you that close to the top level without actually being at the top level.
The training itself started with our winter fitness program, everyone’s favourite time of year… There’s nothing like walking down to training at 10am to be told we are doing a 30-minute run followed by a strength and conditioning session. As much as everyone hates doing fitness work (especially Ben Walkden) the benefits from it are unrivalled. Each session is tailored to help us as cricketers not just as people who like watching and playing the sport which may be the sort of thing you have come from during time in a school environment. These sessions really put you in good stead to be ready for the start of cricket training around the time of the new year. Most of the cricket sessions are led by Brett. Brett’s insight and coaching is invaluable to anyone who is serious about wanting to get better as a cricketer. However, steer clear of talking about football as some of his opinions are rather unique!
Moving onto the studying, from Leanne, Andy, Dan and even the legend himself Adam McGladdery lessons are made to be interesting and most of all enjoyable. Alongside the studies, work experience is a big part of the Myerscough culture. Take all the opportunities you can when it comes to work experience. Not only does it look good on your CV but some of the work you can get involved in with establishments such as the Lancashire cricket foundation is extremely rewarding. My best advice to someone who may be starting at Myerscough would simply be get the work done as soon as you can, because as soon as it’s done the more cricket you get to play. From over night stays to potential overseas tours, you really do not want to be that person who must sit out to finish off their essay.
Lastly, Myerscough isn’t just great for the cricket and the high standard of work – it’s the people you meet along the way. Our year was disrupted by the COVID-19 outbreak meaning we were set to studying online, this was made easy with the man himself Josh Knowles keeping us on our toes through the boring times of not being able to leave the house. Even though we weren’t all together on campus the good times didn’t come to an end. To sum it all up, I don’t have a bad word to say about Myerscough Manchester. My two years at college were unbelievable but not only this, they also give you a clear pathway to university setting you up for adult life. So, if you do get the choice to come to Myerscough then take it, it will be the best decision you make when leaving school. And who would want to pass up the opportunity to play at fortress AOM?
‘Up the Sco x’