Young trio sign new deals

There was good news for three young Derbyshire players yesterday, as Tom Wood, Nils Priestley and Mattie McKiernan were all awarded contracts for 2021.

For McKiernan it is a chance to show himself as more than a talented bit part player, an opportunity to stake a claim as a regular. We know he can bat a bit, bowl some useful leg spin and field brilliantly anywhere, but those disciplines need to kick on now, in much the same way showed by Anuj Dal in 2020.

For Priestley, it is a proper chance to show what he can do. A powerful batsman and developing spinner, he is made for the short forms of the game, but had little opportunity this year to enhance his claims in league and second eleven cricket. A winter of hard work around his studies could see him make the next step in 2021.

As for Wood, it is well deserved and some may say overdue. It is also reward for consistency at all levels below the first - class game over several years. His challenge, if you like, is to show that someone who doesn't look a natural athlete can still score heavily at County level. I am not saying he is fat, as he is some way from that, but he is a powerfully built lad and in an era where whippets are expected, he doesn't conform. Having said that, he has a good pair of hands and showed in two innings at Headingley this year that he is not fazed by status or reputation. He is, in short, a very good batsman. 

Tom, Alex Hughes, Nils, Brooke Guest and Harvey Hosein can all stake a claim for a place in the county top six, especially in the four-day game. Then again, with continued development so can Anuj Dal. With such healthy competition Derbyshire can continue to develop as a club. I think we are a couple of seam bowlers light, at present, but that recruitment likely lies ahead over the winter.

I just wondered if there might be interest in Graeme Wagg, who has rejected an offer from Glamorgan to pursue an opportunity elsewhere. While he is of comparable age to Tony Palladino and Ravi Rampaul, he is an experienced all round cricketer who remains in good form, based on last summer. He likely has two or three good years in him in all formats, or could do a Darren Stevens and go on still further. 

While not in favour of signing cricketers for one last pay day, as was once our raison d'etre, a return to the club where he made his name might make sense for player and club, if the money was right. We don't have experience among the seamers and an old head with plenty to offer them, as well as lengthening the batting, holds appeal. 

We'll see, but as the rain lashes down on our windows, next summer cannot come quickly enough. 

Next year's format announced

All things being equal, Derbyshire will have fourteen four-day fixtures next summer.

All we need now is a green light in the intervening period for supporters to attend, together with ECB scheduling that sees them played across weekends and there is much to like for the fan of traditional cricket. 

Groups have been worked out based on this year's performances, thus Derbyshire are in a group with Essex, the reigning champions, Durham, Nottinghamshire (of course), Warwickshire and Worcestershire. Each will be played home and away, with the top two going into the first division of the next stage, the next two the second, etc.

The final groups will see each team play four matches, with their average points against the team they played in the first group carried through. The final positions will decide prize money and if the same format is then retained for 2022, it will decide the seedings.

I am OK with it, even though it is yet another group with our dear neighbours, who seem to follow us around. Essex will be a challenging but nice change, while few would not enjoy a trip to Worcester. 

We now need to see how the next few months pan out and how the squad shapes up. By my calculation we currently have 16 on the staff, including the two overseas and two wicket keepers.

Decisions will need to be made on others in the near future, both existing staff and prospective incomers. 

Aitchison signs two-year deal

Spookily enough, within seconds of publishing my last post, news broke of a two-year deal for Ben Aitchison.

It is well-deserved. Once he had got a nervous early spell out of his system at Trent Bridge, Ben looked the business. He has a grooved action and looked in control of the ball at all times. I am sure he would have been an asset in the T20, but an ankle injury sustained in warm ups ended his season prematurely.

I have high hopes for young Mr Aitchison and expect him to take a lot of wickets in the years ahead. Under the shrewd tutelage of Steve Kirby he will only get better.

One to watch, for sure. 

Good work by Derbyshire in securing his services and it is good to hear how happy he is after his first summer with us. 

Planning begins with caution for 2021

Like other counties around the country, Derbyshire have begun planning for next season, our 150th, as early as ever but with caution.

They cannot do otherwise at present, with uncertainty on when off field income generation can resume and if spectators are likely next summer. 

One would hope that will be the case, but the lucrative concerts, the fireworks night and the festive parties will all be impossible this year. It has put a sizeable hole in finances and the club will doubtless be careful on what they do at present.

What they will almost certainly do is offer contracts to players who have impressed on short term ones. That being the case I will be massively disappointed if there is no announcement of a deal for Ben Aitchison soon. He could have done little more this summer to earn a permanent deal and I see him as a fixture in our side for the next few years. 

Likewise, if there is any justice in this world Tom Wood will get a deal. My astonishment at his lack of opportunity, especially in the T20, has yet to dissipate, but a season contract is right for both player and club. 

I still feel he has a role at either three, with Wayne Madsen dropping to five, or at five himself, where his power would be useful against a tiring attack. Of course, both Alex Hughes and Matt Critchley will have designs on that berth, but competition is seldom a bad thing. 

There are a few players being released around the country, but question marks on finances will preclude new signings for many at this stage. I think both Luke Wells and Harry Finch will get a deal elsewhere, having surprisingly been released by Sussex, while Toby Lester is too talented a left arm seamer to not get picked up after his Lancashire release.

If not signed elsewhere, he struck me as a 'Derbyshire' signing. He will be well known to Mal Loye and several members of the staff, with only a question mark over his fitness in the past. A talented bowler though, for sure.

Several Kolpaks have been released around the shires, but my understanding, as I have written before, is that both Michael Cohen and Leus du Plooy will be fine. They have European passports and can continue to work towards being England - qualified.

The case of Dustin Melton is less clear. While he qualifies on grounds of residence next year, I understand that this may be too late for him to be considered for a deal in 2021, other than as an overseas player. 

I like him a lot and rate him, but think that is unlikely at this stage, so we may need to wait to see him in county colours again-- if there is still interest, of course.

With Palladino and Rampaul both presumably gone and McKiernan and Priestley at the end of deals, we look to be low on numbers at this stage.

Expect things to happen,  but apart from those already on the staff, perhaps not yet.