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Ed Cowan
Behind Enemy Lines
Nottinghamshire turned heads from around
the cricketing world when they announced the
signing of Australian international Ed Cowan.
Eyebrows were raised from the England
camp, the county giving him the chance to
acclimatise to conditions here but before July,
his eyes are focused on county cricket.
Nottinghamshire has had a long association
with Australian overseas players: AdamVoges
and, of course, David Hussey are the most
recent to have signed up at Trent Bridge.
“Part of the decision process is about talking
to the likes of David Hussey and AdamVoges
and those guys couldn’t speak more highly
of their time with Nottinghamshire,” he said.
“I played a lot of cricket over the years with
StuartMacGill who also had a great time here.
It’s about the cricket club first and foremost
but bringing a family over here means that
you need to find a great town as well.”
Even with the testimonials from the players,
Cowan found it was the reputation of
Director of Cricket Mick Newell that
proved the deciding factor in his move to
the county this year.
“Mick was a huge factor because he has a
reputation as a great operator, a real man-
manager and a guy who knows cricket inside
out. Part of my motivation was to come here
and learn from him,” he said.
“I’m sure he could coach internationally
but when you’re at a great club with a great
venue I’m not sure that Bangladesh would
be all that appealing.”
This season will only be Cowan’s second
taste of county cricket in England, after
spending a portion of last summer
with Gloucestershire. This follows four
years with New South Wales, and he is
currently contracted to the Tasmanian
Tigers. For a man who has played
across the world on a variety of different
wickets, the challenge of building a
strong individual innings at Trent Bridge
is Cowan’s number one goal.
“I’m here to score as many runs as I can
and to contribute at the top of the order,”
he said.
“Trent Bridge is very different to Delhi
and Chennai so getting accustomed to the
conditions is important.
“I moved from the SCG to the Bellerive
Oval, which is known as a graveyard for
opening batters, but my argument was that
if you can score runs there then you stand
out more because it’s hard work.
“Big hundreds stand out here and they
tend to be match-winning innings. I like
that battle.”
The 30-year-old has progressed steadily
since his four years at New SouthWales and
is fast becoming one of the most respected
players at every level.
“It’s important that all good teams have a
variety of leaders and I’ve always prided
myself on being honest with anyone and
setting an example in training and during
games,” he said.
“I try to be a natural leader and I want to
help younger guys to improve because I was
well looked after when I was a young player.
“Good cricket teams have six or seven
players that lead in their own right and
that’s certainly the case here.
“It’s a good mindset when you walk on the
park expecting to win but you have to back
it up with good cricket. Belief is the biggest
commodity in sport and if you display belief
in yourself and your teammates generally,
success has to follow.”
After tasting success throughout his career,
Cowan is keen to play his part in helping
Nottinghamshire achieve more silverware
in the form of this summer’s LV= County
Championship. Even though Cowan’s time
with the county is short, there will be no
lack of motivation for him.
“I’mmotivated by winning games of cricket,
it’s not about personal glory but I’ve had no
better feeling in cricket than winning the
Sheffield Shield,” said Cowan.
“Three months is a good slice of the season
and if I can help to set something up then
I’d be just as proud if the team goes on to
achieve success while I’m away.”
all good teams
have a variety of
leaders and I’ve
always prided
myself on setting
an example
Ed cowan