Pope enjoying his winter

Joel Pope is another County youngster who has been a busy man since the season finished.

The wicket-keeper posed for a special calendar produced by Heart FM in support of the Prostate Cancer Fund, and has then started his training for the winter.

The calendar was the brainchild of breakfast presenter Amy Voce, whose father has suffered from prostate cancer for the last two-and-a-half years.

In order to raise money and awareness, she assembled a star-studded line of East Midlands celebrities to pose semi-naked in good taste in order to raise money.

Pope, along with team-mate Josh Cobb was only too happy to help out, before having a well-earned break in Portugal to unwind.

On arrival back in the UK, he moved back to his native London to begin his training for the winter.

The youngster, who joined County from the MCC Young Cricketers before the 2008 campaign lives close to a gym, which is ideal for his fitness training.

He also trains at Lord’s, where he still has links with the MCC and Ben Scott, Middlesex’s stumper.

Scott, who participated for Middlesex in the Stanford Series, is the uncle of Pope, so wicket-keeping is clearly kept in the family!

To gain specialist practice, Pope has also been part of the ECB Skill Set based at the national academy in Loughborough.

This has also been an excellent experience for him, in preparation not only for next summer, but also a trip to Australia in January.

He said: “I have been enjoying all the work I have been doing, and the Skill Set in Loughborough has been extremely enjoyable.

“It was good to have a break, but now I am back and raring to go. I am looking forward to going to Australia in January, and then getting ready for the season with Leicestershire.”

The trip to Australia will be the second successive winter that Pope has travelled Down Under.

The youngster played for Melville CC in Perth last year, and enjoyed the experience so much that he will sample another part of the country in early January.

Pope follows in the footsteps of Cobb by travelling to Adelaide, and the experience will stand him in good stead for next season.

The teenager impressed County coaches on debut against Derbyshire in the Pro40 last season, and also starred for the second XI and Earl Shilton in the Everards Premier Division.

His aim this campaign will be to continue to push Paul Nixon and Tom New for a place behind the stumps, and a hard winter’s work will be the ideal preparation for that.