Mark Davies (4th from left) Sussex CCC Club Coach with Sussex County Cricket Club players: Lewis Harchett, Ashar Zaidi, Chris Liddle, James Anyon, Steve Magoffin, Jon Lewis & Matthew Hobden.
Sussex County Cricket Club players are now back in England having completed a successful 12 days of warm weather fitness and cricket training between 26th February & 10th March at Desert Springs Resort, Europe’s only international award-winning luxury family resort and championship desert golf course with its very own dedicated Cricket Academy, in the Almanzora region of Almeria, Andalucía in south-east Spain.
Mark Davies, Sussex CCC Coach and his team of two staff accompanied eight players who completed bowling, batting and fielding practice as well as strength and conditioning training sessions as they stepped up their physical preparations for the upcoming 2014 season.
Mark Davies, Sussex CCC Club Coach said:
“We have experienced and benefitted from great hospitality, top quality food and excellent cricket practice facilities here at Desert Springs Resort. In my opinion the Desert Springs Cricket Academy has the potential to become an extremely sought after location for elite cricket training camps.”
‘Spinning Practice Session’ at the Desert Springs Cricket Academy
‘Batsman Practice Session’ at the Desert Springs Cricket Academy
‘Batting Practice Session’ at the Desert Springs Cricket Academy
Sussex CCC player Matthew Hobden remarked of the Cricket Academy:
“Desert Springs Resort is excellent for a pre-season training camp. The food was excellent and the Gym had everything we needed for working out; the wickets played very well and most importantly gave us a chance to get used to bowling on grass in advance of the start of the season!”
The training camp worked on a specific and carefully planned programme covering technical skills, strength and conditioning and both individual and group activity.
Sussex CCC player James Anyon remarked of his experience:
Desert Springs is both a great location and facility for a pre-season winter training camp.
The food and hospitality provided to us all was fantastic and I look forward to returning in the future!”
Accommodation for the Sussex County Cricket Club players and coaches was provided in the Townhouses and Pueblo Villas available at Desert Springs.
- For details of Cricket, Golf & Sports Training Camps, Corporate Golf Events and Meetings at Desert Springs call 01242 680 116 or visit the website, www.almanzora.com
- To find out more about Sussex County Cricket Club visit the website www.sussexcricket.co.uk
- To find out more about the Desert Springs Cricket Academy visit the website:
http://www.almanzora.com/en/holidays/activities/desert_springs_cricket_academy.php
Additional background Information
Warm weather winter training camps at Desert Springs
Desert Springs, Europe’s only international award-winning luxury family resort and championship desert golf course, is already known as a resort specialising in family holidays, however it has rapidly gained popularity as a centre for warm-weather training for cricketers, athletes, and footballers, as well as golfers and is proving to be one of the most popular destinations for sports warm weather winter training camps.
All sports camps to Desert Springs are bespoke. If desired, the programme can include time away from the resort for some local sightseeing in what many regard as ‘the real Spain.’
During their stay attendees have opportunities to swim, play tennis and use the gymnasium, trim trail, jogging tracks, paddle tennis and beach volley ball courts.
Desert Springs is easy to reach from the UK, thanks to three international airports. They are: Almeria Airport, around 40 minutes away by road; Murcia Airport, 80 minutes by car, and Alicante Airport which is a drive of less than two hours. Airlines currently flying to the region from the UK include easyJet, Monarch, Ryanair, Jet2, Jetair Fly and Thomas Cook.
Accommodation is provided in the apartments and villas available for holidays and short breaks at Desert Springs. Meals are served in the resort’s Croc Restaurant, part of the family-friendly Crocodile Club that is geared up for a wide variety of leisure activities and the award winning El Torrente Restaurant at the Club House.
A spokesman for Desert Springs said that, depending on the size of the group and its requirements, the total cost of a four-day trip for warm weather training, including flights, would work out at between £350 and £400 per person.
The Desert Springs Resort & Golf Club
Facilities already completed and in use at Desert Springs include:
- a par 72 -18-hole USGA Indiana golf course designed by former Great Britain and Ireland Golf Team Captain Peter McEvoy who was inspired by the desert courses of Arizona and California;
- a golf academy whose PGA qualified teaching professionals cater for several international teams, for the women’s elite squads of the Golf Union of Wales and for many of the English County Union’s elite squads; PGA European Tour and LET players.
- two hard tennis courts, two paddle courts, beach volley ball and two football pitches – one is a full-size grass pitch; the other is designed for five-a-side games;
- Cricket Academy training facilities comprise; a six bay grass wicket and run up with nets, a two bay artificial wicket with nets, a full length artificial grass wicket, a Professional Bola Bowling Machine with 28 ball feeder, a slip catch cradle and a specific hard standing area, which provides outside space for facilities such as a free weights gym, stretching mats and a medical area.
- a Spanish colonial style Golf Club House with a lounge, bar, restaurant, locker rooms, TV and reading rooms, and a Ralph Lauren Golf Boutique;
- The Crocodile Club which provides family fun at the heart of the resort with pools, equipped sand play areas, a kid’s battery powered John Deere Gator circuit and a games room as well as a jacuzzi, sun lawns and a pool bar;
- a health and fitness club and spa.
Awards
In 2005 Desert Springs won the Daily Mail Best Almeria Award and the Bentley International Property Awards for the Best Spain Development and Best Architecture. In 2006, it was awarded the Spanish National Madera Verde Prize for Environmentally Sensitive Development. In 2007, the El Torrente Restaurant received the New Millennium International Gastronomy Award for the Tourist, Hotel and Catering Industry. This award was created by the Trade Leaders Club with the aim of distinguishing companies from all countries, for the outstanding quality of their products or services.
The climate of the Almanzora coastal region
Desert Springs takes it name from the region’s desert microclimate, which is unique in Europe. It has the warmest winter weather on the continent with an annual average of more than nine hours of daily sunshine and maximum daily temperatures of between 16°C (60°F) and 30°C (86°F) throughout the year. Annual rainfall is less than 200 mm. The Almanzora’s coastal waters are among the cleanest and warmest in Europe, attracting both fish and diving enthusiasts.
Reader enquiries:
NOTE: High Resolution Images available upon request.
Simon Coaker
The Almanzora Group Ltd
The Manor, Boddington, Cheltenham,
Gloucestershire GL51 0TJ
Tel: +44 (0) 1242 680116
e: tag@almanzora.co.uk
