The White man for the job?

In recent days I have written about the possibilities of Derbyshire making a move for Durham all-rounder Ben Harmison this winter. Harmison, as most people know, has been released by the county and should attract interest from elsewhere.

Yet the answer to one of Derbyshire's problems may lie closer to home.

I was reading through the Cricketer's Who's Who last night before going to bed and came across a name I knew very well and across a fact that I didn't. The entry said that the player had signed a two-year deal in October 2009, meaning that he would be out of contract next month.

The player is Wayne White.

In my opinion, White should never have been released by Derbyshire. Instead we have seen a lad who was a useful bowler and knew how to handle a bat blossom into a genuine all-rounder at our neighbours. He has only one century so far (against us...) but has a number of fifties. This year he had nearly 700 runs at 32 and 28 wickets at 35. Not spectacular, but improving, as he has done every season. He also did well in one-day matches and proved an important player for his county as they won the T20.

That being the case, why would he leave Leicestershire? Well, they have yet to finalise deals for White, Nadeem Malik and Matt Boyce, while conjecture suggests that James Taylor may yet be lured to Warwickshire. Such key players would take some replacing and Leicestershire will struggle to do so. Aside from the T20 silverware and some talented young players, the Foxes are an aging side in key areas and this might be a good time to lure White back to the ancestral home. They were, after all, bottom of division two by a country mile.

His brother is on the county Academy and he has plenty of friends at the club, many of them from Swarkestone, the club where he made his name. He would be an important addition too, offering us balance in the middle order at six or seven. White, Whiteley and Clare would be a good engine room. In addition, White is one of our own and therefore any appearance money for him, even at 26, will be ours.

It all adds up to a signing that makes a lot of sense on every level.

As always, I look forward to seeing your opinions...