By Michael Morris
Copyright jerseyeveningpost
It has been a whirlwind few weeks for Jersey cricketer Asa Tribe.
The 21-year-old has long been seen as one of the Island’s top young talents but he is now grabbing the attention the world over.
The Glamorgan professional has seen his club side gain promotion from Division 2 to the County Championship’s top flight, while closer to home, Tribe helped Jersey to the top of their International Cricket Council Challenge League group A with one round of fixtures to play.
At the heart of those successes was a freakish run of form from the former De La Salle student, which saw him notch consecutive scores of 73, 122 not out, 131 not out, 175, 53 not out and 206 across fixtures for club and country.
Suddenly, having quietly been winning plaudits for his batting, all eyes in cricket were on Tribe.
It was this run of form that saw South African side Paarl Royals sign the top-order batsman for their T20 franchise competition, the SA20, this winter, while he was being courted for podcasts and interviews with some of the top sports media organisations in the world.
And it even led to speculation about a call-up for the England Lions – the national team’s developmental squad coached by Freddie Flintoff – for a tour of Australia later this year.
“I just try to soak it all in and stay level,” he said. “It’s important that I don’t get too big for my boots. There will be times when I’m not going that well and struggling for form.
“My focus is on what I can control and less about listening to too much of the noise. I just want to keep taking my game forward and there are definitely areas where I know I need a bit of extra focus to keep progressing.”
Although remaining a key cog in Jersey’s national side, Tribe is not shy about discussing his ambitions for an England call-up for a Lions tour which runs in parallel with the full squad’s Ashes tour in Australia.
“I am aware that there a certainly some people who are mentioning my name [for the Lions squad]. Whether than means I’m there is another story – whatever happens it is good to have put myself in a position where I’m being talked about for those squads.
“It is up to the selectors now but I certainly would welcome a trip like that. I think you only find out when you get a phone call from Freddie Flintoff – I have not heard anything like that but I think Ben Kellaway [Tribe’s Glamorgan teammate] has a strong chance of being on that tour and he hasn’t heard anything yet so it is a bit of a waiting game. I’d love to get that call but I don’t want to spend too much time thinking about it for now.
“I still have some high-level cricket this winter whatever happens.”
This includes playing alongside and against some of the world’s best in the South African T20 competition.
Tribe admitted that he put his name forward for the South African draft – where clubs bid for players who make themselves available – as a bit of a punt and only found out he’d been selected after walking off the field for Glamorgan having made his maiden first class double-century earlier this month.
“It was a big shock – I put my name in the hat not really expecting too much.
“I had made it past the initial phase of the draft and that made me think someone must have been somewhat interested so I took that as a big positive. I came off the field at Northamptonshire and found out I have been picked up.
“I’ll get to pick the brains of some of the best cricketers in the world and that can only move my own game forward.”
Tribe’s rapid ascent also means a lifelong ambition of representing the full England side may not be as fanciful as he might once have thought.
“I remember when I was in Jersey being told I wouldn’t make it – or that it would at least be very unlikely – because I’m not around the county set-up and that people from Jersey don’t tend to get those opportunities. I always thought ‘well, why not?’ If you’re good enough you would play.
“I did dream of playing for England when I was younger but, at the time, they were probably pipedreams.
“If I get an opportunity to play for England that is something I wouldn’t be able to turn down, but that would stop me playing for Jersey.
“I have definitely got aspirations to play for England but I try not to look too far ahead.”
It is all a far cry from growing up in Jersey playing for Farmers Cricket Club alongside his older brother, Zak, who also represents Jersey.
And while Asa hopes of one day being part of the full England international set up, the Jersey team have lofty ambitions of their own, which will rely heavily on their star man.Qualifying for a major international competition like the T20 Cricket World Cup may seem like an incredibly tall order for an island with a population of a little over 100,000 and only four Premier Division clubs but Jersey, like Tribe himself, have made the improbable seem possible.
In the final stage of World Cup qualification earlier this year, Jersey missed out on a World Cup berth by the narrowest of margins, beating Scotland along the way and almost toppling Netherlands on their own patch, but missing out on qualification by on net run rate – used to decide standings for teams level on points.
His club commitments mean that Tribe is not always fully available for Jersey, but he hopes his experiences in the professional game will help guide the Island’s young side when he is able to don the red shirt.
“I have noticed a couple of things that I have seen playing over here in the UK that they do very well compared to Jersey – things I would like to bring back in terms of how we can improve.
“We [Jersey] are a relatively young side and experience in big games is certainly a factor. Even when we beat Scotland, which was the biggest win we have ever had as a side, we almost choked that game and it went right to the wire. Those big pressure moments are hard to gain experience for, but as we play more games and put ourselves in those positions that will come.
“We do need to be more ruthless – that is something we can work on, but it is a young side and we’re only going to get better. Guys in the squad are playing a good standard of cricket outside of the Island and that is massive. I hope, even if I’m not there all the time, I can help the guys push forward.
“We are not very far away in the T20 format – in the last one, we were a couple of decimal points on net run rate away. “Our focus will turn to the 50 over game – we’re just at the end of a cycle there and we’re in a good position to qualify from that next round of competition and from there getting a shot at gaining ODI status for the next round of three to four years.”
Should Jersey – as expected – qualify from the ICC World Challenge League, they would move on to the Qualifier Play-Off where a top four finish there would mean Jersey gains full One-Day International status for the first time and another crack at World Cup qualification, this time in the 50-over game.
That would bring with it more games against top-level sides and would likely mean that some of the Jersey squad would be signed to contracts to be able to fulfil their international cricket commitments.
“That would be absolutely massive for Jersey,” Tribe said. “That would mean more funding, more matches against high quality opposition, more infrastructure and would potentially mean some of the lads would be on contracts allowing them to train all year round.”Outside of that though, there are areas where Tribe feels Jersey can make small gains that could see the side take that next step.
In 2022, States Members turned down a proposition to build an indoor crickets and sports facility next to Farmers Field in St Martin as part of the Bridging Island Plan debate.
It was a blow for Jersey cricket and Tribe admitted he would like to see more support from the government to help the Island side take that next step and bring the next batch of youngsters through.
“We certainly could do with some better infrastructure in place, better training facilities. We ought to be asking ‘what do we need?’ and ‘what can be do more of?’” he said, adding that overseas players could be brought into the Jersey league to help build out the local scene and “improve the standard of the league”.
“We’re not far away and there are little things that could be done along the way – more coaches on-island that don’t just run alongside the national stuff but are in the clubs, some extra coaching for the younger age groups, that kind of thing.”
There is always a sense of Island pride for a local lad done good, and Tribe carries that with him when he plays no matter which shirt he is wearing.
“I do feel I have that support when I’m playing for Glamorgan. I feel that there are eyes on it and I hope people are seeing me in this position and that it inspires others back home to push themselves forward.
“I know people haven’t been in the position I have been in and I do feel people back home are willing me on. That fills me with confidence – knowing I have that support.”
Tribe admitted that, as a teenager in Jersey, he was not sure he would get a crack at the professional game. He moved to Cardiff for university and, after a series of strong performances for the uni side, grabbed the attention of Glamorgan.
“It certainly helped when moving away. I could see the transition of how I could make it from being a club cricketer in Jersey to playing professionally. That was coming over to Cardiff, getting into the university team and being able to get opportunities to play 2nd XI cricket. I could see a clear pathway for the first time.
“I picked Cardiff for the course but also because I didn’t know that many people there. It was an opportunity for a fresh start. It would have been easy to stay in Jersey but it is the things you don’t do that you regret. I always wanted to give it my best shot and if it didn’t work then at least I would have known.”
Now, Tribe is looking ahead to next season as a County Championship Division 1 player with a burgeoning reputation as one of the top talents in English county cricket.
“My goals for Glamorgan are to average something similar as I did this year but this time in Division 1. Those will be tougher runs to score because it is a better standard.
“I didn’t think I’d be in the position I am in now. Now, I have seen how fast it can spiral upwards. You always have to back yourself because if you don’t, others won’t.”
