About last night...and the Head of Cricket role

It was nice to see a lot of comments after last night's fine performance, for a change. Too often in the past it has been a rush to get in first with criticism and I like it when people are even-handed in the praise and criticism. Thank you for that.

Was it a perfect performance? Is there such a thing? It was very impressive and fully justified the signings of Calum MacLeod and Lockie Ferguson, that is for sure. Every catch that went up in the air was held, some of them far from easy, though they were made to look so. Derbyshire looked up for it in the field, where fast, keen bowling was backed up well.

I thought our hosts looked dreadful. I know there are plenty of examples in cricket history of players not conforming to the athlete stereotype, but I smiled when the commentator said that Ben Duckett looked like he had lost a bit of weight. In that side I would do and they looked less fit than my erstwhile cricket club. Immobile and leaden-footed in the field, they were no match for a Derbyshire side that fielded very well.

I agree with some of you that we should even now be looking at a full-time contract for MacLeod from 2019. He has a sound technique and plays the ball late, his tremendous form coming from how closely he watches the ball. An excellent hockey player, it is no surprise that he and Wayne are the best two sweepers in the club, but it was the range of shots that caught my eye. He's not a 'six over cow corner' hitter, but a proper batsman, who can late cut and glide with the best of them. His fine catch at slip set the tone for the innings too, when Duckett was quickly despatched by the excellent Ferguson.

And irrespective of results before last night, he has been a stellar pick up by John Wright. I would go as far as to say he is the best one-day bowler we have had since the days of Charl Langeveldt. His nigh-metronomic ability to drop the yorker in on target is testimony to a lot of work and to do so while nudging or passing 90mph needs real talent. With Duanne Olivier for the first half of the summer, we have been well-served by our overseas players this year.

It was good to see Hardus Viljoen bowling better last night too. I have been critical of him in recent weeks, simply because he has bowled badly. When you are well paid, the tolerance of supporters to poor performance is less and expectations higher. He did well last night and with Ferguson and Wahab Riaz he made up an impressive pace trio.

Any watching cricket coach with ideas of applying for the Head of Cricket role must have ended the evening well aware that there is talent to work with at the club. Since I have had the question asked a few times, I will tell you who I would want in the role.

In short, ideally, someone new to the club, but my first choice would be John Wright, because I think his calm and genial manner might bring stability at a time when it is needed. He also has the gravitas and CV nonpareil.  My second would be Grant Bradburn, because he has made a reputation of doing well with limited resources around the globe, again an asset for this role, while having a useful insight to the club through this T20 stint.

I have no idea if either will apply, but they would be my first two choices.

After that, someone new to Derbyshire. That would exclude Chris Adams and Dean Jones for starters. Both will have their followers and both are extremely able men. They were terrific cricketers too and have had coaching success, but in each case I am just not sure. I think the blunt style of Jones might get a positive early reaction, but could see his abrasive manner being counter-productive over time, just as it was the first time around. One thing he would do would be to get the maximum from players, but I am not sure about him at this time.

With Adams, he had success at Sussex, when the club had decent money to play with, but did less well at Surrey where they had even greater resources. Could he manage on a shoestring budget? I am not sure. He will have his supporters, but I am trying to distance romance from reality

Going back didn't work for John Morris. It didn't work with Karl Krikken either (2012 notwithstanding), while Graeme Welch struggled with the demands of the job as opposed to being a bowling coach. Kim Barnett wasn't given the control he needed to make it work, nor the time.

All these men, good men, can point to success stories, but ultimately all were dismissed. Maybe our expectations for Derbyshire cricket are set too high, but for me we need fresh eyes looking at the club, from top to bottom and back again. An overseas coach would be fine, or a suitably-qualified professional from the county game.

Your thoughts, as always, are appreciated.