Expert cricket coaching was one of the main attractions when Belle Vue Girls' School's Zara Sports Centre held an open day.

The tuition came from local coach Shiv Krishnan and the Yorkshire Cricket Board's (YCB) Numan Shabbir Syed, who honed the skills of both a boys' team and a girls' team.

Syed is currently involved in coaching promising youngsters at the Board's Pathways to Cricketing Excellence scheme.

He is also director of black and ethnic minority cricket development centres for the YCB and has previously been employed by the Pakistan Cricket Board on several coaching initiatives, the biggest of which was as co-ordinator and head coach of the Imran Khan Pepsi Cricket Clinics.

At the Lahore Clinic, for example, Syed, who has also coached the Pakistan women's team, had to pare down 9,000 juniors to a squad of 18!

Other attractions at the Zara Sports Centre were the free taster sessions in aerobics, yoga, dance, walking and football, as well as fitness training in the state-of-the-art gym.

The aim of the open day was to encourage greater sports and fitness in the community, and it undoubtedly spread the word about the excellent facilities at the centre.

* Claire Atkinson (Riddlesden), Katie Briggs (Denholme), Skipton sisters Anna and Laura Spragg and the Pool quartet of Phoebe Graham, Holly Richardson, Sarah Rigg and Rebecca Vernon have been invited to the Yorkshire Cricket Board's Elite Level Women's scheme.

Meanwhile, Joanne Wood and Shivanie Patel (Wibsey Park Chapel), Katie Wynn and Charlotte Boulton, both of Steeton, Caitlin Williams (Pool), Lauren Harker (Upper Wharfedale) and Naomi Pratt (Guiseley) are on the Women's Gold Level sessions.

Girls who have been selected for the Women's Silver Level scheme at Heckmondwike Grammar School on Sunday mornings include Aimee Bayliss (Burley-in-Wharfedale), Emma Bolt (Mirfield), Emily Daly (Yeadon) and Zoe Roberts (Pool).

The advantage of attending the Gold Level Men's course is that there is the possibility of an Academy scholarship with Yorkshire County Cricket Club, five of last year's intake being given contracts.

Among the hopefuls this time are Moin Ashraf and Adam Hopkins of Pudsey St Lawrence, Tinash Gomwe (Haworth West End), Michael Truswell (Burley-in-Wharfedale) and Robert Warriner (Spen Victoria).

Silver Level One places for sessions at Headingley have gone to, among others, Raheel Ahmed (Pudsey Congs), Niall Colman and Mohammed Shahid (Pudsey St Lawrence), George Ross (Burley-in-Wharfedale), Usman Salim (Gomersal) and Hafiz Ullah (Bowling Old Lane).

Boys on the Silver Level Two scheme, also at Headingley, include Roheil Hussain (Batley), Josh Inglis (Pool), Luke Johnson (North Leeds), Ramandeep Kang (Saltaire), Keegan Moodley (Pudsey Congs) and Ben Wainwright (Horsforth).

At Woodlands Sports Centre, Oakenshaw, the West One Bronze Level scheme is being held to which Guiseley have had Harrison Durkin, Thomas Pratt, Damon Reeve and Jordan Thompson invited.

Usman Arshad and Adam Butt (Great Horton Church) have also been selected, as have Pool's Redmond Bolton and William Carter.

Others picked include Dylan Budge (Thackley), Joshua Dimbleby (Thornton), Evan Edwards and Scott Richardson (Lightcliffe), Barney Gibson and Jack Murgatroyd (Pudsey Congs), Andrew Gorrod (Gomersal), Jack Harrison (Olicanian), Siraj Hussain (Undercliffe), Shahid Rehman (Cleckheaton), Connor Rowland (Liversedge), George Saville (Spen Victoria), Mustahsan Ali Shah (Idle) and Stuart Ward (Calverley).