Great Expectations?

Another new cricket season.

Every year brings heightened anticipation and I'm always hopeful at the start of the year. It has always been the case since we signed Lawrence Rowe, the brilliant West Indian, for 1974.
I still recall lying in bed listening to Rowe wreaking havoc on the England side as he scored runs for fun in the Caribbean.
A DERBYSHIRE player scoring 302 in a Test Match! Not many have done that, but it never happened in Derbyshire colours. In fact, he never made a hundred for us, 94 on debut proving his best effort. Eye problems, hayfever and the English weather conspired to confine Yagga Rowe to brilliant cameos. To this day I've never seen a more elegant player. One televised game against Gloucestershire saw him make the most sublime 84 which was a masterclass in batting.
A hook sir? Here's one. Cover drive? There you go. Late cut? Absolutely no problem.
Thing was, apart from him, there was no batting. As my old man put it "the sublime and ridiculous were 22 yards apart" at Derbyshire.
Maybe that's a little unfair, but Rowe was on a different planet, albeit an under-achieving one. That day he got himself out with ten overs to go and the wheels came off in the time-honoured Derbyshire fashion and we still only made around 160.
Still, the bowlers did well and it came down to the last ball and four to win for the opposition. So what did the skipper, Brian Bolus do?
He brought in the field.
And we lost.
The point of all this is that you have expectations for a player. Some meet them, some exceed them, some don't get even close. For this season to be in any way successful, the Derbyshire players all need to do their bit - or in some cases, "lot".
So what must we hope for?

Chris Rogers - 1300 runs. I have always maintained that a decent County professional batsman should average 30-40 each season. For an overseas star to have been worth the money, they need to average 50 at least, with the very best (your Lehmanns and Husseys etc) finding 60 a doddle. If Rogers does this, and avoids injury, we should have a fair season

Steve Stubbings - a regular berth in the side and 1,000 runs. I like Stubbo, as a player and a bloke. He's always friendly, happy to chat and makes the best of his ability. He fully deserves this year's benefit and I hope its lucrative.

John Sadler - regular scores in all forms of the game. If he gets it right, he is a very good player. Leicester didn't want to lose him and his organised style gives us three in the top order who could bat all day.

Rikki Clarke - big runs and a few wickets. The game is so demanding these days that to expect the double is ridiculous. Few players manage the mini double of 500 runs and 50 wickets (though one could well do so - see below). Clarke is most needed for his stylish batting, and if he can score 1,000 and take 20 wickets at reasonable cost it will be a very good season for him. More would be a bonus, but I'm looking forward to seeing him in Derbyshire colours.

Greg Smith - Batting at six, he'll do well to make 750 runs, but if he does, and can add 20-30 wickets, he will push for A tour recognition. Not yet a good enough bowler to make 50, but his medium pace and off spin variety adds a lot to the side, over and above his explosive batting. Last year he batted at three a lot, which I thought was too high for him at present.

Graeme Wagg - capable of the mini double without doubt. If he could cut out the bad ball in most overs, and maintain his ability to take wickets in clusters, he has to be in the frame for England call up at some level. His batting is explosive and he is as clean a hitter as I have seen. he just needs to temper the shots with a little discretion at times.

Tom Lungley - fine season last year, and if he can reach 50 wickets again a good season will be within reach. Another nice guy, who last year stayed fit and reaped the rewards.

Nayan Doshi - if he can keep it tight when the wicket favours the batsmen AND bowl sides out when it turns, he'll be a huge asset. Ant Botha often scored runs when most needed, which Doshi won't do, but rarely bowled sides out on turners. In Wales and at Northampton we'll need spinners to do their stuff and both Nayan and Jake Needham will have pivotal roles to play.

James Pipe - a lovely keeper with great hands and a batsman who improves with every season. If he can add 500 runs at 7-8 to his excellent glovework he will be a great asset to the side.

Charl Langeveldt - he's not yet been named but the South African press say he's joined us as a Kolpak. Very good fast medium bowler with the ability to swing and reverse swing the new and old ball. If he stays fit, 50-60 wickets are well within his compass and his death bowling in one day matches will be crucial. One assumes he'll get the new ball, which means Tom and Waggy will have to arm-wrestle for it at the other end!

Finally there's this unnamed EU passport-holding highly talented young batsman. No matter how good he is, the likelihood is that our conditions will be a challenge to him, especially in April and May. If he can get somewhere between 750 and 1000 runs, we should all consider it a good first season that can be built on.

I've concentrated on those I see as regulars and pivotal to success, but others must all play their part. For the first time in my experience, we have managed to sign players that other counties didn't want to lose (Sadler, Doshi) and those that were chased by others too (Clarke, Doshi). That Morris has been able to sell the club to players of this stature is impressive. If he can now get the side to perform, this season could just be the start of a Derbyshire renaissance.