Society cricket with the big boys, or a coaching batch for a 5 year old?

amber_wave_98913 Jun 2026

Our son has started going down to the society ground in the evenings with our caregiver. The older boys, mostly 9 and 10, let him field and occasionally bat. He comes back sweaty and thrilled and talks about nothing else. A colleague suggested a proper coaching batch at an academy nearby, three evenings a week, with children his own age. My worry is that formal coaching at five will turn something he loves into a class. On the other hand, the big boys will not always be patient with him. For those who have tried either, what did you see at this age?

1 comment

moss_bookmark_278314 Jun 2026
I can only speak for our elder daughter, who joined a football academy at five, not cricket. For the first year her coach mostly ran games, so it never felt like a class to her. I would assume cricket academies vary a great deal on that, so it may be worth asking what their youngest batch does in a typical session. In the meantime I see no harm in letting him keep the evening games.