Arthur signs new two-year deal

Despite the fact that I have been critical of Mickey Arthur in his time as Head of Cricket at Derbyshire, I am neither surprised nor disappointed about the news of a 2-year extension to his contract. This will take him to the end of the 2028 season. 

He has made mistakes and there have been setbacks, as he freely admits. At the start of his time with the county, he was too bullish with his comments and perhaps not fully appreciative of the difference in level between the international and domestic game. 

He was also naive in suggestions of the timescale it would take to turn around the county fortunes. Rome wasn't built in a day and no one was going to turn the squad that he inherited into world beaters, certainly not as quickly as he suggested. 

He has also made mistakes in overseas recruitment, with Suranga Lakmal, Haider Ali and Daryn Dupavillon being underwhelming recruits. Yet he picked up gems in Shan Masood, Zaman Khan, Mohammad Ghazanfar, Caleb Jewell and (one assumes) Mohammad Abbas. Within the constraints of resources - which I think were ignored in his early assertions - the squad has been improved and the one for 2026 looks to be our strongest for many a year. Overseas recruitment for the coming season has been impressive, at least on paper.

Some of those players would have come nowhere near Derbyshire - nor probably been on our radar - had it not been for the presence of Arthur at the club. His name and reputation has helped in this regard, together with an evolution of the club board. I think he now has important support and also challenge at board level from Tom Poynton, whose own recent experience of the county game makes him an under the radar yet highly  important cog of the club's machine. He will himself know players, agents and the requirements of the county game and will be an excellent sounding board for Arthur.

The challenge now is to ensure the dressing room environment is right and the players are able to produce their best form as a consequence. Appointing Wayne Madsen to the red ball captaincy last year was shrewd, although there were not many options. The signing of Samit Patel for the white ball was more questionable and for me the negatives outweighed the positives in his time at the club. 

When the news was announced that we had signed Mohammad Abbas, I was sure his own extension was a consequence. Such a player would not sign a two-year deal without knowledge that a man who has had a major impact on his career would be there throughout. I would not be surprised if others had clauses in contracts to allow them to walk if there was a change of coach - it is far from unusual in the modern game. That Nye Donald, Zak Chappell and Martin Andersson signed extended deals this winter was another strong indication. So too that Matt Montgomery, like Abbas, left the county champions to move across the East Midlands

So hopefully a winter of recruitment that has been both heartening and exciting will translate into success on the pitch. Arthur has said many times that he will not rest until he has brought success to the county. I don't doubt that. And his recent interview was the best that he has done while at the club, honest, realistic and refreshing for that.

On signing his new deal, he said

Since the first day I joined Derbyshire, I have always said I feel at home with this club and that feeling is stronger now than ever. 

This is a special club and we are working every day to win silverware for our supporters and to get Derbyshire to that top table of county cricket. 

I’m immensely proud of the progress we have made, it’s not always been easy and we’ve had setbacks, but I truly feel we are putting the foundations in place for sustained success.

Our project is moving in the right direction, our players are getting better every single day and we will keep working tirelessly until we are showing those results on the field. 

Arthur has also established the Pathway, which looks set to bring through a higher quality of county-level talent than we have seen in years. 

It has taken longer than he asserted, longer than the less patient among the county support would have wanted. 

Yet perhaps, at last, 2026 might be the start of something special. The original three-year plan has become one of seven years, but stability is important in sport. 

And for a county with five pieces of silverware in 156 years that's nothing, in the grander scheme of things...

Yes, I am happy with that news. 

A nice way to conclude an excellent winter's business.