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Stuart Thompson will jet out to Australia next week to hook up with the prestigious Darren Lehmann Cricket Academy (DLCA) in Adelaide.

Stuart Thompson will jet out to Australia next week to hook up with the prestigious Darren Lehmann Cricket Academy (DLCA) in Adelaide.

The 25 year-old Irish all-rounder has won 47 caps since his debut in 2012, but missed most of last season when performance anxiety issues necessitated a complete break from the game.

Cricket Ireland have forged a partnership with the DLCA and agreed a programme for Stuart which will continue through the winter until March 2017.

While there, as well as attending the Academy, he will play for Prospect CC – the club England Test player Joe Root played at when he attended the same Academy.

“I’m excited to be travelling out there, to work on my game in a different and challenging environment,” said Thompson.

“It’ll be a fantastic opportunity to attend the Academy and I’m certain it will benefit my game enormously,” added the North West Warriors player.

Ireland Head Coach John Bracewell welcomed the Cricket Ireland initiative and was certain it would help not only Thompson’s game but also enrich his all-round well being.

“What a great opportunity for an Irish cricketer to attend the Darren Lehmann Academy,” said Bracewell. “I have sent a number of players to this Academy and they have all returned full of great life and cricket experiences.

“Stuart Thompson is the ideal player to go out there, with great cricket and coaching available as well as brilliant team and character building programmes,” concluded Bracewell.

Thompson will join the growing number of Irish cricketers wintering abroad with Andrew Balbirnie at Randwick Petersham in Sydney, and Graeme McCarter in New Zealand.

There are also a quartet of Irish Women internationals in Australia – Isobel Joyce, Mary Waldron, Shauna Kavanagh and skipper Laura Delany are all playing there to help their preparations for the World Cup Qualifiers in Sri Lanka next February.

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