Under Magpies rugby coach Craig Philpott and Central Districts Stags counterpart Heinrich Malan, the hybrid seeds are sown.
The pair, with their loyal and diligent support staff, meticulously lay down plans that defy the vagaries of seasons to yield not just results but, more importantly, templates to ensure the cycle eventually becomes self-perpetuating.
The elite coaches aren't averse to the idea of feeding off each other.
"I think it's something that both of us have aspired to," says Malan.
"We share the same offices and ground so it shows a bit of carrot dangling - if one code does really well, there's pressure on another to follow suit," says the South African in his second term at the helm of the Stags.
"It's good rivalry and something Hawke's Bay sport is really good at in getting provincial coaches around to spend a bit of time while feeding off each other."
Malan enjoys the cross-trading between the codes in terms of preparation and motivation and what it really takes to be successful at a professional level.
The beauty of mentoring, he highlights, is that it's a never-ending process. It's about mustering 11 individuals from varying backgrounds and identifying their skills to perform in a collective environment.
"If we can develop them to become better people and cricketers then the trophies we'll win along the way will be nice but it's more about people and players," he says. "Craig will probably say the same. It's not a job, it's what we love."
While he has family and financial obligations, Malan has no qualms doing his job for free.
"I love seeing people become mature young men who will ultimately become international cricketers."
For Philpott and his tribe those human attributes are embedded on a dated 700kg Mauri boulder from Mohaka River.
"We have a very clear set of values and they are carved on a boulder at the entrance to our gym in Onekawa - six values that we measure everyone against, first and foremost, when they come in."
That yardstick of appraisal embraces family, passion, attitude, sacrifice, enjoyment and responsibility.
"As Heinrich talked about developing good young men - that's a massive part of what we're about so the first box to tick, when we're assessing anyone coming into our environment, is where they are character wise.
"Are they already a long way down the track where we want them to be or are they not quite there - so what sort of things do we need to take into account if we do go there with them."
Consequently Philpott and his think tank consider factors such as how long it'll take them to stimulate desirable traits and, what is paramount, whether it is worth taking that risk.
"You don't have people who are 100 per cent in those - you never will."
Ironically, in some respects, Philpott believes the secret lies in the imperfection of individuals who are in pursuit of a sense of perfection.
"You want one or two guys who are going to challenge and push you beyond the edge because that brings out the best in everybody."
In the cricketing world, according to Malan, Utopia is a catch-22 situation.
"My job is to develop players to play for New Zealand, that's the way I see it." says the Stags coach. "My job is not to win titles. The players do that."
He is at pains to stress when CD won the one-day domestic Ford Trophy this summer, it wasn't because of his coaching but because of the players' ability to perform under duress.
"Hopefully in a couple of years we'll have Will Young, Ben Smith, Ben Wheeler all playing for the Black Caps and the process then starts again with the new crop who will play for the Stags."
The way former New Zealand Under-19 captain Young has matured in the past 12 months, with the promise of an international stint as batsman, fascinates him.
"The funny thing is people don't always see that as the bigger picture of a coach's job."
Malan says the results-driven mentality tends to pixelate that bigger picture.
"A big part of it is about winning or losing so let's not kid ourselves - professional sport, it's the be all and end all.
"The fact that we won a trophy this year is nice because it shows we do have the players to really compete in all formats."
He is resigned to losing players who will graduate to higher honours but the challenge is in creating the next Tom Bruce, a talented Taranaki batsmen who burst into the scene this season with remarkable success for CD.
CD have identified some areas they want to improve in their Georgie Pie Super Smash Twenty20 campaign.
"We've always said for months we've got quite a young squad and this year when Kieran [Noema-Barnett] and Jamie [How] departed our squad got even younger," he says of How who retired while Noema-Barnett is plying his trade in England.
"Talented, naturally, but it's all about nurturing that talent now to make sure when they get across the line they become self-sufficient," he says, adding a lot of information is fed to the players from the CD coaching staff.
"I'm really trying to make them understand what it takes to become the next-level cricketer."
The key focus is to embark on a drive at the age-group level to make sure CD identify "next level potential".
Malan says spots always exist for "the late bloomers", especially from the bowling perspective.
"Kids bloom at 21 or 22 when they finish their growth spurts so from a bowling point it's important we keep the doors open for them."
Monitoring age-group talent in CD's geographically scattered catchment area "is not the easiest job in the world".
Malan says it's vital they understand how the Stags play and what CD want to impose on them.
"That ultimately becomes my role as coach and driving the coaching structure, which we'll be proud of and something I'm really passionate about."
That structure, he hopes, will be more defined in another year or two to close the gap between districts, A cricket and first-class level.
"Hopefully over time we can, through the Stags and other major associations, close the gap between franchise and international cricket."
