Somerset press conference confirms reasons for success

 There were smiles all round at the press conference at the Incora County Ground today, to which I was grateful to be invited by Zoom.

A smile is never far from the face of Mickey Arthur, while both Wayne Madsen and Hilton Cartwright laughed and looked happy as they faced an array of questions from those attending and doing so remotely. 

'We're daring to dream' said Arthur, 'we're taking it one game at a time and while it's great to be in the quarter final, it's just the start for us as a unit. We won't be happy until we get to Finals Day and then hopefully go one further'.

Arthur was bullish today and praised his team, reserving special praise for Mattie McKiernan 'perhaps the best spinner outside of The Hundred at the moment', while also lauding Mark Watt's 'exceptional' performance. 

'We have planned for Shan (Masood) going away and it offers an opportunity for someone else to come in and make a mark for himself' he added, conceding nothing in a suggestion that it might impinge on the performance of the team. The replacement is known to the coaching team, but understandably he would not go public on that.

Listening to Arthur it is clear why Derbyshire have so much improved this year - the focus on his own team's performance and, while doing the research on the opposition, not worrying about them unduly. Bring our A game and we will give anyone a battle is the mantra, being prepared for the next day of cricket and striving to make that the best of the season. It is enlightening and motivational for even the casual observer, so for those working closely with him it is no surprise that their individual games have been galvanised.

There was also time to praise George Scrimshaw and he stressed both his and the squad's work ethic, as well as their fitness and technical improvements. Yet he also said that we had only seen the tip of the iceberg and there was much more to come from this squad . I asked if he felt that more could follow George into international recognition and the response was swift and certain.

'A hundred per cent. We are seeing improvements across the group as they strive to better themselves. Making them believe in themselves and what they can do was an early message and tapping into that extra 3-4%, making them believe in the process'.

'We've told them to focus on the next ball, whether batting or bowling, because that can be the one that changes the game'. Sage advice, likely well-used by George Scrimshaw in the momentous final over against Lancashire. It was all very impressive, slick, believable.

Hilton Cartwright came next and spoke impressively, thanking Wayne Madsen, sat alongside him, for helping him with sweeping and reverse-sweeping in his short time at the club. The two seemed close, smiles rarely leaving their faces and he praised the players for the way in which he had been welcomed into the group and how they had all learned from the way the Indian players had approached the game last week.

Then came Wayne Madsen, who again stressed that the message drilled home was that 'we can beat anybody and anyone in the team can win us the game'. 

'We go into this quarter-final with a lot of belief as a group, all supporting each other and knowing that we all need to contribute. We are on a high and full of confidence, playing good cricket'.

Both players responded well to a question about Leicestershire being docked points for indiscipline, Cartwright  saying that since he had joined he had been impressed by how Masood, Madsen and vice-captain Leus du Plooy stressed the team focus on our game and what we could control, not getting dragged into other things that we couldn't. It confirmed a well-drilled squad that was prepared to play tough cricket but not cross the line. I was impressed by both of them.

I was pleased to get the final question, asking Wayne to what he attributed his golden form this year. The answer was, as so often, accompanied with a smile .

'A determination to come back from the injury last year and do my best for the county. Mickey has instilled belief and Shan has been a big factor too. To go in and bat with someone playing with such confidence and scoring so quickly rubs off on you'.

He's done pretty well, eh?

As they all have. The excitement is mounting and while Taunton will be a pressure cooker on Saturday night, they sound like they will be ready.