Taylor's new contract another positive pre-season sign

Seam bowlers eh?

They're like buses. You wait a long time for one to come along and then they all turn up at once.

We went through a spell at Derbyshire where the only seamer who emerged over a number of summers was Atif Sheikh, who never really made it, despite moderate success after being given opportunity by Leicestershire.

Now? Ben Cotton and Tom Taylor are at the forefront of a plethora of seam bowling talent that may just spearhead an exciting future. Both have now been signed on for extended deals which give them a chance to show what they can do and establish themselves as first-class cricketers.

To be fair, both had their challenges last year, through injuries and loss of form. The latter is often a consequence of the former and neither looked at their best as the summer drew to a close. A winter's rest and more coaching from Graeme Welch will have got them back on track though and I am sure that both will have key roles in our forthcoming summer.

They will need to be at their best though. Behind them, there's Greg Cork, Will Davis and Harry White, all of them young enough and talented enough to achieve their dreams IF they listen to the right people and are prepared to work hard at their games.

With wise professionals like Welch, Andy Carter and Tony Palladino to draw on for advice and experience, these lads have every chance of becoming the real deal.

I look forward to watching their development over coming summers.