G'day Bozza!

Nice to read on the club site that Paul Borrington is off to Perth this winter to play for Midland Guilford, the club where Alec Stewart played with success. With Simon Katich, Tom Moody and Brendan Julian as former players he is obviously off to a good standard of cricket which can only be of benefit to him as he prepares for an important season in 2010.

Bozza has had a stop/start career with the club so far due to his studies at Loughborough University. Having now finished there, he is able to play cricket full time and was rewarded with a contract to 2012 by John Morris for some encouraging performances.

In 29 first class innings for Derbyshire and Loughborough UCCE he has managed two centuries and four fifties for a very respectable average of just under 35. He appears well balanced at the crease and nothing seems to faze him unduly. He is slight of build but not, by any means small at 5'10". An early reputation as a "sticker" with limited strokes has seen him play little one day cricket, but the signs are there that he is starting to go for his shots a little more after encouragement from John Morris. Indeed, a century for Loughborough last season saw him score 80-odd before lunch, pretty good going by any standards.

He comes from good cricketing stock of course, with his Dad, Tony a fixture in the Derbyshire side in the 1970's. At times Tony could look a good player and played some fine innings for the club, but never with quite the frequency to set him apart as a very good county cricketer. He was a similar height to Paul, but my memory suggests he was of sturdier build. He and Harry Cartwright were the young players in Eddie Barlow's era, both of them capable of batting with aggression, but also digging in when required. Tony managed three first class centuries for the club with another one day ton, something that his son will hope to pass, if only for bragging rights!

At this stage Paul looks a genuine prospect but next year is a big one for him. Free from studies, he can devote his energies to becoming the real deal and with the new quotas on age group players he will start the season as a favourite for a regular place.

Although an opening batsman, it is more likely (for me) that he will bat three for Derbyshire in 2010 as we have what looks like a tremendous pairing of Madsen and Rogers "up top". That could mean that Garry Park drops to five and leaves Greg Smith at four with Redfern at six, but it's all hypothetical at this stage.

A good winter in Australia should set him up nicely and I look forward to reporting on his form as the winter progresses.