County Cricket / Andrew Hughes / 19 February 2009 / Leave a comment

Since Durham celebrated their first ever win in the County Championship a lot has happened in the world of county cricket including the retirements of Graeme Hick and Darren Gough and the appointment of Peter Moores as Lancashire coach. Andrew Hughes talks us through the rest of the news.

The county game has its critics, but 2008 was one of the best seasons in living memory with Durham triumphing in a thrilling final day. Attendances were up by 30 per cent on 2007 and the theory that the first class game has been improving in recent years was given credence by Somerset captain Justin Langer who said he believed that the Championship was now more competitive than the Australian version. So with spring almost upon us, it's a good time to take a look at the contenders for the 2009 title. Can Durham retain their title?

They will probably start as favourites. They have a host of seam bowlers and a gritty batting line-up, boosted massively by their coup in retaining the services of Shivnarine Chanderpaul for another season. They have also signed the economical spinner and useful batsman Ian Blackwell who will help their one day game too. The only fly in the ointment is the resignation of Dale Benkenstein, one of the better captains around and it remains to be seen how new skipper Will Smith will measure up to his predecessor.

Lancashire endured a traumatic season last year, with top flight survival only secured in the penultimate game. There was an acrimonious conclusion too, with the release of both Dominic Cork and captain Stuart Law. But the time had come for the younger players to be given a chance and with a new captain in Glenn Chapple and coach Peter Moores, they should do better this year. The signing of VVS Laxman as overseas player is a shrewd move.

Over the Pennines, the retirement of the great Darren Gough has seen Anthony McGrath step into the breach and he will be hoping to improve on the familiar pattern that Yorkshire seasons tend to follow. Last year's roaring start was soon followed by by the familiar crashing halt and this time, relegation was only averted in the final game. They also need their younger players to grow up fast and are likely to struggle again in the batting department, with only Kolpak player Jacques Rudolph a consistent scorer.

It was the end of an era last season at Sussex, as Chris Adams stood down from the captaincy and Mushtaq Ahmed's final season at the county only ran to six games. Michael Yardy has the task of breathing new life into a slightly tired squad, which will also likely be deprived of one of its two batting foundations, Matt Prior, for much of the summer. It remains to be seen how much Yasir Arafat and Ed Joyce will boost them, but it is hard to see them challenging for the title.

Of the newcomers, Warwickshire's promotion push was built around a couple of veterans: Tony Frost and Ian Salisbury and they will need more new faces than just Derbyshire refugee Rikki Clarke to make an impact at this higher level. Though Worcestershire have lost the irreplaceable Graeme Hick and are always at risk of having their season wrecked by the River Severn, their bowling attack of Simon Jones, Kabir Ali and Ashley Noffke looks a potent one and of the two promotees, they are the better bet.

The two teams to watch this year are those that finished second and third last time around. Nottinghamshire surprised many people by remaining competitive in all four competitions despite losing five players to international call-ups. The retention of promising Aussie youngster Adam Voges, along with the signings of hard-hitting veteran Ali Brown and dependable off spinner Jason Brown suggest a determination to build on last year's achievements.

Hampshire recovered from a nightmarish start and were finishing very strongly. Their pre-season plans were thrown into chaos by the decision of Shane Warne not to return for the 2008 season and manager Paul Terry struggled in his absence. The stepping down of Terry and more significantly, the acquisition of young Pakistani leg spinner Imran Tahir was the turning-point. Tahir took 44 wickets in 7 games and he will be available this year. They are probably a batsman short, though the emergence of 18 year old Liam Dawson was a real bonus, as is the presence of Duncan Fletcher, who may be able to coax new levels of performance from the existing line-up.