County Cricket

• Twenty20 Means Business
  Paul Coupar follows the circus around the country and learns how important T20 is
• No More Tall Tales In Smoky Rooms
  Ed Smith on how counties have changed and why the amateur ethos may return

NOVEMBER

A significant improvement in one-day performances was not matched by a Championship campaign in which the county hauled themselves back from the relegation precipice only in the final game of the season.
For the second year running they topped the table before the Twenty20 break before collapsing in a heap. They have now won only three of their last 28 Championship games.
In fairness the assertion of the outgoing skipper, Darren Gough, that Yorkshire played some decent cricket was not too wide of the mark. But before the draw against Sussex at Hove that ensured survival and was inspired by Adil Rashid they lacked the confidence or the bottle (or maybe just the ability) to turn a winning position into victory in several crucial games, notably against Kent
at Scarborough.
The top of the order was a problem all season, a series of unsuccessful opening partnerships producing only 399 runs in 24 attempts and passing 50 once. Thank goodness for the consistency of Jacques Rudolph at No.4.
Gough’s farewell season was blighted by niggles that restricted him to eight Championship games and nine wickets. The overseas man, Rana Naved-ul-Hasan, for whom a return to the ICL may raise a problem for 2009, managed 16 in seven matches.
On the positive side were the potential of Adam Lyth, Steve Patterson and David Wainwright, the continuing improvement of Rashid, Tim Bresnan and Andrew Gale and the one-day turn-around that brought Pro40 promotion and an FP Trophy semi-final. And a fair Twenty20 campaign was wrecked by not registering Azeem Rafiq, the academy offspinner, correctly.
Player of the season  Jacques Rudolph - 1,292 Championship runs at over 56 and vowing to do better next season.
In  John Blain (as assistant bowling coach and player).
Out  Darren Gough  (retired), Mark Lawson
Bottom line Need more Jekyll and less Hyde in the Championship but have they cracked the one-day stuff at last?

OCTOBER

Brophy’s view

Gerard Brophy has seen the rise and rise of Adil Rashid from the best possible vantage point. And, while the county’s wicketkeeper is convinced Rashid is destined
to have a long international career, he cautions against thrusting him into the England side too quickly.
“From a skill point of view he’s ready,” says Brophy, who attained a landmark of his own when he was capped at the end of May. “He’s special; a natural talent. But let’s not rush him. Let him mature and really learn what first-class cricket is all about first.”
Brophy was behind the stumps when Rashid made his sensational debut against Warwickshire at Scarborough in 2006, bowling unchanged for 26 overs for figures of 6 for 67.
And he says they have since developed an intuitive understanding. “I kind of feel the way Adil is thinking. I almost know what he’s going to do next. When a new batter comes in I can sense what his approach will be.
“We have a word after every over, although I never really say much until he’s bowled three or four because he’s such a natural cricketer and soon works things out for himself. 
“Sometimes he needs to relax and be more patient. He gets frustrated because he expects to come on and take five wickets in 10 overs. But that doesn’t happen, not even for Shane Warne.”
Top man  Rashid  Spinning back to form.
Bottom line Jekyll and Hyde.

SEPTEMBER

Gale blows in

A little help from a Red Rose friend helped Andrew Gale clinch a slot in Yorkshire’s batting line-up. His name? Ian Austin, the ex-Lancashire allrounder who spent two seasons as Gale’s skipper at Cleckheaton in the Bradford League.
“It was good to have a player of Ian’s experience around,” says Gale, who announced his intentions with two centuries in his first six innings of the season. “He was a massive influence at the club.
“Sometimes players neglect their game a bit when they go back to their club after playing 2nd XI cricket but Ian kept me on my toes. He showed me what I needed to do to take the step up into the county game.”
The departure of Younis Khan, the 2007 overseas man, allowed Gale to claim a regular place this season. “I’d been in and out of the side for a couple of years, turning up without knowing whether I’d be playing or not. But this time Martyn Moxon told me he would give me a chance in the middle-order. The early hundreds took away the pressure and instead of wondering whether I’d be playing I could start looking towards 1,000 runs for the season.”
Top man  Adam Lyth  High-quality maiden century against Notts.
Bottom line Alarm bells ringing.

AUGUST

Home-grown vigour

It was almost like old times as Yorkshire powered to the top of the Championship and prospered in the FP Trophy with no fewer than nine home-grown players in their side, most of them 25 years old or under.
In fact, the overseas signings Rana Naved and Morne Morkel bowled only 39 overs between them in two Championship games before the Twenty20 break.
And while the return to fitness of Rana and Deon Kruis may tip the balance slightly, the Second XI coach, Kevin Sharp, is proud of the way the young guns have answered the call. “We took a squad of 22 to Abu Dhabi pre-season and all the young players contributed,” says Sharp, who played for Yorkshire in the days when outsiders were barred. “The problem has always been making the step from the seconds to first-team cricket but this time there have been opportunities and young players have responded well.
“Of course we’d all love to see a Yorkshire side consisting of local lads but there has to be a balance; you have to remain competitive. But we were the first to have an academy and long may it continue.”
Introducing  Ben Sanderson - Academy seamer.
Top man  Tim Bresnan - outstanding with bat and ball
Bottom line Top of the tree at the Twenty20 break, as per last season. But will it fall apart again?

LVCC D1  W Som 40r   FPT Nor  W Glo 6w   T20 N  L Der 47r; L Not 4w; W Der 11r; W Lei 6w; W Lan 2w; W Lan 4r; T Dur; L Dur 39r; NR Lei; W Not 9w

RUNS  A McGrath 392 @ 132.43 SR   wkts  RM Pyrah 14 @ 6.96 rpo

JULY

Taylor’s tale 

The fates could scarcely have dealt Chris Taylor a worse hand on his return after two seasons at Derbyshire. No sooner had he recovered from a hamstring injury sustained pre-season in Abu Dhabi than a torn calf muscle ruled him out for another lengthy spell. His enforced absence has at least enabled him to fine-tune courses for the Pro Coach Cricket Academy he runs with Andrew Gale.
“We have always had a passion for coaching,” says Taylor, 27. “We each ran our own school for a bit but merged at the start of 2006. We saw that, while there’s a lot of coaching around, not many courses involve current players, people who are heroes to youngsters. “All our regular coaches are professional players and internationals like Rana Naved-ul-Hasan, Anthony McGrath and Tim Bresnan will be coming along, too.”
The academy runs courses in Yorkshire, Derbyshire, Lancashire, Durham, Staffordshire, Lincolnshire and Cumbria for two age groups, six- to 11-year-old and 12 to 16. There are also elite courses in Yorkshire and Derbyshire, featuring state-of-the-art technology, for would-be professional players.
 “Seeing youngsters progress is almost as rewarding as playing cricket myself,” says Taylor. AC
Introducing - Adam Lyth - England Under-19 batsman,  Ben Sanderson and Oliver Hannon-Dolby , academy-reared pacemen.
Crockwatch Hamstring horror, striking down pacemen  Morne Morkel,  Rana Naved-ul-Hasan, Deon Kruis  and Ajmal Shahzad.
Top man  Andrew Gale - Emerging force in the middle order.
Bottom line Injuries to front-line bowlers a real concern.

LVCC D1  L Dur 295r; D Sur; D Lan   FPT Nor  W Dur 5w; L Lan 3w; W Sco 7w; NR Der; W Sco 7w; NR Lan

RUNS  JA Rudolph 387r @ 64.50  wkts  TT Bresnan 18w @ 25.94

JUNE

Bresnan’s lucky break

Tim Bresnan can barely remember the last time he had a winter off but he reckons a spot of R&R could work wonders for his form this season.
Shortly after arriving in India for the England Lions tour he suffered a stress fracture in his back and had to return home. “I’ve spent the winter in rehab, working in the gym and taking it easy,” says allrounder Bresnan. “It’s given me a chance to relax and clear up a few more old niggles and I could certainly feel the benefit when we reported back.”
Even though Bresnan made his one-day debut for Yorkshire as long ago as 2001, he is still only 23. But while the Yorkshire coach Martyn Moxon believes he will soon be adding to his tally of four one-day appearances for England, Bresnan is happy to wait without pretensions.
“If England come knocking, I’m not going to turn them away. But I don’t think I warrant a place just yet,” he says. “Right now the important thing is to perform well for Yorkshire and help them win a trophy this season.”  AC
Behind the scenes A portrait of Len Hutton has been loaned to the club by his family. It will be on display in the old pavilion to mark the 70th anniversary of his then world record 364 against Australia at The Oval.
Top man  Matthew Hoggard - flying start with match figures of 8 for 97 against Hampshire.
Bottom line Early days but promising.

LVCC D1  W Ham, i&27r; D Not   FPT Nor  L Dur, 5r; W Der, 25r

RUNS   JA Rudolph 195r @ 97.50   wkts   MJ Hoggard 10w @ 18.90

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