Half hearted cricket training is as bad as no training at all.

Low intensity training is a waste of time because a few knock-ups on the outfield are not going to prepare for a searing drive heading straight for you at cover.

Here are some ways to ensure you are training hard enough:

• Keep drills short. Whatever drills you are doing keep them short in duration with plenty of participation. This way you can do everything at a faster pace: Hit the ball harder, run faster and go at game speed.

From time to time, guests will give you a slightly different take on cricket. This post is by Jason Jones.

Catches don't come much better looking than a full-stretch dive: Something that is still a dark art at club level. Why is this?

A large parcel delivery company in America has a central warehouse that moves thousands of parcels through every day. Delivery on time is their business so any failure in the conveyor belt means massive losses in profits.

You can guess what happened: The conveyor belt failed.

The company tried to fix it, but everything they tried failed. Time is money so they called in a consultant.

Do you find you have problems with team standards and discipline at your club?

Many teams do, it's the nature of recreational sport. Club players are there to have fun as much as to win games. Teams can be collections of individuals rather than a unit with shared values.

There is often little time or motivation for club players to practice fielding. That means doing everything possible to maximise what chance you have.

Good practice can give a club the edge. Based on experience and the advice of South African fielding coach Jonty Rhodes here is how you can do it:

• Keep it short and intense. Never drill for the sake of it. The intensity of your fielding practice should be close to game intensity. Do a few drills as hard as you can then move onto something else when the quality starts to go.

It's very easy to overcomplicate your bowling and it's even easier to get too simple and just wang it down without any tactics at all. As a keeper I have seen both sorts of bowling get the same result: punishment by the batsmen.

In reality there are only a few things you need to think about on the pitch and as soon as you keep it simple you have a clearer mind and are more likely to get wickets. Here are the 3 elements I always advise bowlers to think about:

What can club cricket teams learn from the story of Ireland's victory over Pakistan?

The proud minnows against the apathetic giant perhaps?

"They just wanted it more" the commentators will no doubt say.

Many will compare the passion of the two sides. For me this, Irish win is about something a lot more down to earth.

They were better prepared.

Lighter nights, warmer days and flowers blooming everywhere.

Spring has arrived around these parts and that means pre-season training has begun in earnest.

How can you make the most of this critical period in your preparation?

Pakistan warmed up for the World Cup by having a practice match between themselves. It's quite a change from the normal nets, nets and more nets.

Why did they do this?

As David Gower says in his autobiography, there is a world of difference between having a net without any of the pressure of a game and actually being out in the middle.

This is part 4 of the "Cricket Fitness for Older Players" series. To go to part 1 click here.

Balance and mobility are two often overlooked factors for all cricketers. For older players they are even more important.

Balance is vital because it is the starting point for both power and technique. Mobility is needed to reduce the risk of injury and increase power through having a greater range of motion through your hips, trunk and shoulders.