National Counties To Showcase Talent

The 20 National Counties will again have the chance to showcase their talent and test themselves against first-class opposition in a series of high profile fixtures this weekend.

Such matches were once a regular feature of the English summer, through the Gillette Cup, to the NatWest Trophy and ending with the 2005 Cheltenham & Gloucester Trophy when ten National Counties – then known as Minor Counties – competed in the first round.

There were several giant-killing acts along the way. Durham beat Yorkshire at Harrogate in 1973 – 19 years before they joined the first-class ranks – Hertfordshire reached the quarter-finals in 1976 after they beat Essex in the second round, Shropshire lowered Yorkshire’s colours again in 1984, Buckinghamshire ousted Somerset in the first round in 1987, Herefordshire knocked out Middlesex in the 2001 with a three wickets win at Luctonians and Devon edged out Leicestershire at Exmouth in 2004 by losing fewer wickets with a side that included a then-unknown Vernon Philander.

There have been few opportunities for cricket lovers in the 20 National Counties to see international and county cricketers in action close up since 2005 although some first-class counties have taken matches outside their traditional boundaries with Durham staging matches at the South Northumberland club in Newcastle, Nottinghamshire at Grantham, Glamorgan at Colwyn Bay, Lancashire at Sedbergh School and Northamptonshire at Milton Keynes.

But First-class counties have continued to mine National Counties cricket to unearth talented players, so much so that around a quarter of the players involved in the three major domestic competitions on any day will have played their formative cricket for a National County.

To strengthen the links between National Counties and first-class cricket the 50-overs Showcase matches have been introduced to demonstrate the strength of National Counties cricket and to give players with aspirations to become first-class cricketers to showcase their skills against full-time professionals.

The first scheduled Showcase matches in 2020 were cancelled in their entirety because of COVID-19 and around half of last year’s games also fell victim to the restrictions imposed by the pandemic.

But there will be a full programme of matches this year - 18 on Sunday July 31 and two on Tuesday August 2 – with Somerset and Middlesex playing two games each.

Somerset face Cornwall – who beat them at Taunton last season - at a sold-out Truro on Sunday and Devon at Bovey Tracey on Tuesday with Middlesex facing National Counties Trophy holders Berkshire at the Falkland club in Newbury on Sunday and Hertfordshire at the West Herts club in Watford on Tuesday.

There will be some familiar faces in opposition over the two days, notably at Sophia Gardens in Cardiff where Glamorgan face Wales NC on Sunday.

Wales beat Glamorgan in the corresponding fixture last season which led to Andrew Gorvin, one of their star performers being picked up by Glamorgan and he ended the season as a Royal London Cup winner and with a full-time contract.

Gorvin will play for Wales against his employers on Sunday along with two more Glamorgan staff-men, Alex Horton and Tegid Phillips.

Tom Bevan, whose early season form for Wales saw him picked up by Glamorgan for the Vitality Blast, is also in Wales’ squad along with former Glamorgan batter Connor Brown.

Sussex batters James Coles and Harrison Ward will play against them for Oxfordshire at Wormsley.

Coles and Ward are both products of Oxfordshire’s strong youth system and were signed by Sussex after impressing in National Counties cricket.

Both helped Oxfordshire to win the National Counties T20 competition in May and return to the side for the Showcase match.

Seamer Abhir Joshi, another to have progressed through the county age groups, is a potential Oxfordshire debutant.

At Eastnor, Herefordshire have former Worcestershire players Matt Pardoe and Zain ul-Hassan, who has been trialling with Kent recently, in their side against their old county.

Batter/wicketkeeper Henry Cullen, who is on Worcestershire’s Academy, is also in Herefordshire’s side along with Worcestershire batter Josh Dell will line up against his employers.

Northamptonshire will face two old boys, batter James Kettleborough and slow left-armer Tom Brett, against Bedfordshire at Dunstable.

Current and former Northamptonshire Academy batters James Cronie and Amrit Basra are also in Bedfordshire’s squad.

Dorset have included two Hampshire Academy players, batters Ed Jack and Joe Eckland, in their side to face Hampshire at Wimborne.

Jack will make his Dorset debut in a side that also includes former Hampshire opener Oli Soames.

Former Gloucestershire slow left-armer Ed Young leads Wiltshire against his old county at Cheltenham College.

Goatacre wicketkeeper/batter Toby Kershaw is set to make his Wiltshire debut with Gloucestershire Academy all-rounder Ollie Meadows also included in the side for a match that forms part of the 150th anniversary of the Cheltenham Festival.

Cumbria host Lancashire at Sedbergh School on Sunday which will become a home venue for the first-class county for their Royal London Cup match against Essex 48 hours later.

Cumbria’s side includes four players who have played for Lancashire age group teams – Evan Williams, Josh Stirling, Ben Walkden and JJ Fielding – plus slow left-armer Matt Siddall who has taken 35 wickets in three National Counties Championship matches this season.

Durham have the chance to familiarise themselves with Grantham’s Gorse Lane ground when they face Lincolnshire.

Durham are due back at Grantham for a Royal London Cup match against Nottinghamshire on August 14 but first they have to face a Lincolnshire side that currently sits top of Eastern Division One of the National Counties Championship.

Former Nottinghamshire, Derbyshire and Surrey left-arm quick Mark Footitt, who took ten wickets in the match in the two-day victory over Bedfordshire earlier this week, will be a familiar opponent for Durham.

Nottinghamshire, who also host Middlesex at Grantham on August 12, head to Manor Park in Horsford to play Norfolk on Sunday.

Norfolk have made four changes to the side that would have faced Staffordshire in last weekend’s Championship match at Leek with Ben Wilcox, Jason Reynolds, Will Rogers and Callum Metcalf replacing Ethan Metcalf, Luke Caswell, Brett Stolworthy and Cameron Graveling.

Cambridgeshire have taken their match against Essex over the county border to Saffron Walden.

Although the ground is in Essex and has been used by Essex for Second XI cricket it has also been a regular venue for Cambridgeshire home matches since 1995.

Cambridgeshire’s squad includes batter Nikhil Gorantla, who has been in the runs for Essex’s Second XI recently.

Former Derbyshire, Leicestershire and Lancashire all-rounder Wayne White returns to the white ball side after injury ruled him out of the National Counties Trophy quarter-final defeat by Cumbria two weeks ago.

George Hargrave, fresh from a triple century for Oxford University in the Varsity Match earlier this month, is set for his seasonal debut for Shropshire against Derbyshire at Shifnal.

Shrewsbury seamer Harry Darley is also in the squad and is a potential Shropshire debutant.

David Wainwright, the former Yorkshire, Derbyshire and Hampshire slow left-armer, will captain Cheshire against Warwickshire at Chester Boughton Hall.

Wainwright deputises for Rob Sehmi, Cheshire’s 50 overs captain, who broke a finger against Herefordshire earlier this week.

Sehmi’s absence means that Charles Lowen will keep wicket with Widnes opening batter Ali Chughtai, who made a century on his county debut against Herefordshire, retained at the top of the order.

Batter Harry Dearden, who is back with Cheshire after six seasons with Leicestershire, returns for his first appearance since the National Counties Trophy win over Shropshire six weeks ago.

Batter Charlie Dunnett, who made his Berkshire debut in a T20 match against Buckinghamshire in May, returns to the squad for Sunday’s match against Middlesex at Falkland CC.

Dan Lincoln captains Berkshire against the county he played T20 cricket for in 2019 and 2020.

Cornwall welcome back player/coach Ateeq Javid, the former Warwickshire and Leicestershire batter, for Somerset’s visit to Truro.

Javid replaces Mat Robins in the only change to the side that clinched a thrilling one wicket victory over Shropshire at St Austell in the Championship on Tuesday.

Seven of Cornwall’s side were born at the Royal Cornwall Hospital in Truro and three of them – Christian Purchase, Den Lello and Alex Bone – are sons of former Cornwall players.

Northumberland host Yorkshire at South Northumberland where Durham UCCE seamer Seb Allison, who plays his club cricket for Felling, will make his debut.

Former Derbyshire batter/slow left-armer Nils Priestley is a debutant for Staffordshire against Leicestershire at Knypersley.

All-rounder Zen Malik returns to the Staffordshire squad for the first time in a month during which time he has been trialling with Gloucestershire.

Leicestershire last played at Knypersley in 1990 when they were beaten by 118 runs by Derbyshire in a Refuge Assurance League match with a side that included Paul Nixon, who is now their director of cricket.

Former Worcestershire and Netherlands batter Alexei Kervezee will captain Buckinghamshire against Surrey at High Wycombe as Tom Hampton has been ruled out by a heel injury.

Suffolk face Kent at Woolpit without Ben Shepperson and Leicestershire all-rounder George Rhodes who are unavailable. Left-arm spinner Freddie Heldreich, who is contracted to Northamptonshire, misses out through injury.

Devon have included Bovey Tracey leg-spinner Will Christophers in their squad for a possible county debut on his home club ground against Somerset on Tuesday.

Matt Skeemer will captain Devon as Jamie Stephens and Calum Haggett are both unavailable.

Hertfordshire have included former Middlesex Academy batter Charlie Scott in their side for Middlesex’s visit to the West Herts club on Tuesday.

Reece Hussain returns to captain Hertfordshire whose side includes 17-year-old wicketkeeper Cole Seggery and two 18-year-olds in Arjun Patel and Alex Gosling.

Showcase matches

Sunday July 31 (11am)

Dunstable: Bedfordshire v Northamptonshire

Falkland CC: Berkshire v Middlesex

High Wycombe: Buckinghamshire v Surrey

Saffron Walden: Cambridgeshire v Essex

Chester Boughton Hall: Cheshire v Warwickshire

Truro: Cornwall v Somerset

Sedbergh School: Cumbria v Lancashire

Wimborne: Dorset v Hampshire

Eastnor: Herefordshire v Worcestershire

Grantham: Lincolnshire v Durham

Manor Park: Norfolk v Nottinghamshire

South Northumberland CC: Northumberland v Yorkshire

Wormsley: Oxfordshire v Sussex

Shifnal: Shropshire v Derbyshire

Knypersley: Staffordshire v Leicestershire

Woolpit: Suffolk v Kent

Cardiff: Wales NC v Glamorgan

Cheltenham College: Gloucestershire v Wiltshire

Tuesday August 2 (11am)

Bovey Tracey: Devon v Somerset

West Herts CC: Hertfordshire v Middlesex