Watch out Warnie, Cameron’s coming

When you first meet Cameron Jeffers, the odds are he’ll be glued to his cell, headphones on.

Just a typical teenager right? Yet, Jeffers won’t be texting his mates or playing games, the 13-year-old will be rewatching video clips of his all-time favourite leg-spin bowlers.

Understanding the game’s most difficult and often mysterious art is already a life’s mission for this cricket-obsessed Saltus student.

At present, he has more than 120 video clips – dominated by his hero Shane Warne — on his cell. It’s guaranteed to be with him when he boards the plane tomorrow night set for South Africa as part of the 14-strong Bermuda Cricket Board’s Under-13 touring team.

The trip will see them play against a number of schools, explore the iconic Newlands stadium and  visit Robben Island as they learn about a culturally-rich country that is also one of the leading Test-playing nations.

Warne’s mentor

Jeffers’ journey will also see him train with a renowned South African spin coach, who had close ties with Warne’s mentor, the late Terry Jenner.

It’s something he has taken upon himself to organize. Jeffers told the Bermuda Sun: “Harry Shapiro picked up some stuff when he worked with Terry Jenner and created a coaching clinic. 

“I went on to Pitchvision [website] and took a trial test and got full membership. In their money it was 350 Rand – about $35. I’m going to have two training sessions out there and he’s going to film it for me. He’s probably going to work on my alignment.”

For the youngster, who gave up football last year to focus full-time on his cricket, the tour is a long time in the planning.

Each player was challenged by the BCB to raise $4,000 each to fund the trip. Jeffers sold $3,000 worth of punch cards and happily engaged shoppers outside grocery stores as he pitched for donations and sold them his ambitions.

He said: “My dream is to be a professional cricketer and play in England.

“Hopefully I can get out there [South Africa] and make a name for myself — I had that in my mind when I was fundraising for this tour.” He added: “I have a speech I say to them [potential donors] I tell them this tour is about getting Bermuda back on track and that it can help society.”

Jeffers was told by ex- national coach Dave Moore two years ago to forget about off-spin and keeping wicket and put all his energies into bowling leggies.

Jeffers, who plays for Warwick Workmen’s Club, said: “The mental side of bowling leg spin is the best part of it — to bowl three good balls and then see the look on the batsman’s face. I also like the challenge to improve and trying to master such a difficult art.”

Warne, he says, had ‘both the mentality, the smarts and the deliveries’ to outfox batsmen. The legendary Australian features in Jeffers’ stack of self-penned journals which, he says, are ‘full of drills, it’s not just for fun’.

Jeffers’ knows he has a way to go to fulfil his dreams but no detail is being left to chance. He wants to improve his footwork — he gave an impromptu demonstration — as well as his control. 

“It’s okay to spin it a great amount but to control the variation is definitely a valuable skill to have. I like to work with plans so the control is important — I am still working on it. I started from square one again.

“I have a slider, small leg-spinner, big leg-spinner and the top spinner. The slider looks the easiest because it does nothing but the leg breaks are my stock deliveries.”

In South Africa, Jeffers, who credits Moore, Under-13 coach Lorenzo Tucker, friend Samson Douglas, Joshua Gilbert and Lionel Cann as being major influences in his progress, will be co-captain alongside Jade Morrissey and Kacy Greene.

And he’s already researched the conditions. “I’m expecting more bouncy and sunbaked wickets,” he said. “I’ll be looking to bowl more top spinners  in which the seam is more 11 o’clock so it bounces as well as spins. I have confidence I can outsmart the batsmen.”