Jon Lewis: Trio look to have a bright future with Gloucestershire

Jon Lewis column: With the season rapidly drawing towards a close, now is perhaps a good time to indulge in a spot of crystal ball-gazing.

And I have to say Gloucestershire CCC's future is looking brighter than it has for some time.

It remains to be seen whether the club invest in the squad during the winter, but what I do know is that we have an exciting crop of youngsters coming through the Academy.

The likes of Jack Taylor, Chris Dent and David Payne all fall into the category of promising young player.

All three have represented England at Under-19 level, while we saw Payne make his first-team debut in last month's Pro40 fixture against Hampshire at The Rose Bowl.

Director of cricket John Bracewell has earmarked these three as potential first-team players of the future and they can expect to work more closely with the senior professionals during the close season.

Knowing John as I do, he is sure to want to get hold of these lads and toughen them up, both mentally and physically. We have all been through that with John in the past and some of the younger lads could be in for a wake-up call this winter.

John is very good at taking cricketers, especially young ones, outside of their comfort zone and preparing them for the rigours of professional sport. Either they will prove tough enough to play first-class cricket or they will fall by the wayside.

If there is one thing any team needs to be successful, it is balance – and a good mix of youth and experience is essential. By that, I mean it is all very well throwing youngsters in at an early age but, in those situations, you need your senior professionals to be playing well.

If those guys are performing, then it makes it easier to blood the likes of Dent, Taylor and Payne. But there is little point in pitching them in if the senior players are not doing the business and the team is struggling.

Push them into a poor side and put them under pressure and they will come a cropper. That is something we have seen happen here at Gloucestershire in the past.

When it comes to the present crop, though, I feel we can afford to be a little more optimistic.

To be honest, I think they are a little bit better than what we have seen before. I haven't seen them in action that much but, having worked with them in the indoor nets, they appear to have the right attitude.

The lad Payne definitely has something about him and his performances for England Under-19s and in our 2nd XI have rightly earned him a lot of praise. Now he must show he can step up and reproduce those displays in a first-team environment.

I have not seen enough of Jack Taylor to make a judgment on his skill level, but he certainly seems to have the attitude required to make a good cricketer.

Dent is another one who I've yet to see much of but, once again, he comes with a good reputation. Let's face it, the fact all three have played for England says a lot. That means they must surely be among the top cricketers of their age in the country and, if that is the case, I see no reason why they should not make the step up to the next level.

If finances are tight at Gloucestershire CCC and the current squad is not strengthened during the winter, these guys might find they are given an opportunity sooner rather than later.

I believe the England and Wales Cricket Board have introduced special payments for those counties who field more young English-qualified players, so it will be interesting to see whether that affects selection.

I am not sure that is the way the side is going to be selected here, but I can understand county chairmen and chief executives pushing for young players to be given a chance.

I feel sure the young guys from our Academy will be given an opportunity and it will be down to them how they go about taking it.