Former England and Sussex batsman turned Seaford head of cricket Chris Adams transformed a disjointed programme into thriving success
Capped 10 times by England, a three-time LV= Insurance County Championship-winning captain with Sussex, a scorer of more than 30,000 career runs and a coach with Sri Lanka, Surrey, Nottinghamshire, and Netherlands - there are no shortage of satisfying moments in Chris Adams' cricketing career.
So, it a tribute to his success as head of cricket at Seaford College that his delight regarding the growth of the sport on the south coast, not least the emergence of the girl's game, rivals any of the experiences in the senior ranks.
"In terms of satisfaction there is no difference and, in many ways, it is much more rewarding," he tells The Cricketer. "It is much harder coaching, by the way.
"Coaching elite players is tweaking tiny elements. It is about managing people and creating the right relationship with the players and creating opportunities for them to develop their game to reach their potential.
"When you come to age-group cricket the task of coaching and inputting technical skills and game-management it is far more exhaustive and takes a lot more from you. In terms of having satisfaction there is no difference.
"The only element of difference is there is a great deal more stress in the professional game. When I'm coaching professional the goals are very clear: win. If you don't win you tend to get moved on.
"The upside is when you do win at that level and elation and reward is at a very high level. The flip side is that when things don't go well it is quite painful.
"School isn't like that. It is about development and enhancing the five or 10 years they spend at school so that they have fulfilling experience end they've learning new skills, grow to love a sport and don't feel pressurised. It is about introducing a game as how it was meant to be."
Seaford College pavilion [supplied]
Adams, educated at Repton School in Derbyshire, honed his cricketing skills on the street, recreating classic Tests with brother David - who played National Counties cricket for Norfolk.
Upon arriving at Seaford in 2016, Adams encountered a disjointed programme containing one team per year group. Now, 42 represent the school each summer across the genders between years five and 13. That number will swell to 50 by 2024.
There are positives tales to be seen across the school. From the first XI reaching the South East Regional National T20 Final, three age group sides making it to the Langdale Cup Finals Day and former pupils Luc Benkenstein and Charlie Tear signing pro county contracts with Essex and Sussex, there is no feeling of standing still.
"When I first came in, there was one team per year group and we were playing against teams who weren't anywhere near the profile of Eastbourne, Bede's or Hurstpierpoint, and we were getting beat by them," Adams explained.
"We had to focus on that level and slowly as we've grown, we've had to then convince the likes of them to play us.
"And also, to make sure the cricket is of a standard and I feel that we are just about there with that. There is a lot of growth that can happen.
"The hope is Seaford become one of the top three cricketing schools in the county. We're probably just below that now."
Actin from Seaford College [supplied]
No advancement in a school's cricket programme is complete without an expansion of the girl's offering, which is Adams' primary achievement in recent years.
After rounders was replaced by cricket in the curriculum four years ago, the sport was introduced gradually to years six, seven and eight, making it part of the culture. And then, when Covid-19 hit, it became compulsory for years nine and 10.
"Evolution would see these girls come through and by the time all they would know would be cricket in the summer programme," says Adams. "We offered it to those that wanted to take it.
"Covid hit us, and we realised we needed to focus on mass participation.
"The boys’ game has been running well but girls’ cricket for me is starting to explode in a positive way. It is about opening as much opportunity and creating as much participation for all our students.
"We knew that when we went down the route of making girls cricket our main summer sport, we were doubling the programme. It was a brave move, but it is flying.
Seaford College girls' 1st XI [supplied]
"I've had some fabulous things happen this year, but I guess the shining light for me and the most exciting part of the journey that cricket in the school is going on has been the introduction of girls cricket.
"We've appointed two members of staff who have cricket as their first sport, so that is an indication of the growth of the programme.
"Once, it might have been that teachers would have cricket as one of their sports, but it wouldn't be No.1. Now it is the case."
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