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Gloucestershire take on Middlesex in a Blast encounter at the picturesque College Ground in Cheltenham; the visitors prevail but Gloucestershire ultimately progress to the quarter-finals for the first time in four seasons

PHOTO BY DAN ISTITENE

Derbyshire

NEXT MATCHES: Glam, CC (H), Aug 22-25; Sussex, CC (A), Aug 29-Sep 1; Northants, CC (A), Sep 9-12; Middx, CC (H), Sep 17-20; Leics, CC (A), Sep 26-29

Cork laments Derbyshire’s doldrums

Dominic Cork has described it as “ridiculous” and “just not acceptable” that he remains the most recent Derbyshire player to represent England’s men’s side at Test level.

Cork made his first-class debut for Derbyshire in 1990 and represented the county for 14 seasons, captaining the side between 1998 and 2003 before leaving for Lancashire. After retiring from playing in 2011 he returned to Derby as a specialist T20 bowling coach, helping the Falcons reach the Blast quarter-finals in 2017, and then took over as T20 head coach, guiding them to their first ever Finals Day in 2019. He was let go by the club after Mickey Arthur became head of cricket ahead of the 2022 campaign.

“It starts from the grassroots,” Cork tells WCM. “Something is happening with the academy, with the junior age groups and with recruitment that is just not good enough. They need to look at the coaching aspect. A lot of the coaches that Derbyshire use, and I don’t know whether other counties do this, but they are unpaid people that do it for the love of it. I’m not at all knocking them, they are brilliant and committed people, but it needs to be more professionalised.

ABOVE: Dominic Cork wants change at Derby

“Derbyshire has often been seen as a place where players go to finish their careers. That is a problem. Those players are also on too much money and long-term contracts and as of yet they haven’t brought any success to the club, and talented younger players have left. The likes of Matt Critchley and George Scrimshaw should still be there, they shouldn’t have to feel like they need to go elsewhere to further their cricket.”

Asource connected to the club said all coaches on Derbyshire’s pathway are minimum Level 3 ECB qualified and that all are paid for their work.

The 53-year-old feels he has unfinished business at the club and believes a change of direction is required if performances are to improve in the long term. “I would cut the wage bill significantly and build a side around young players, players in the academy. Bring new young players in and build success in short-form cricket as a starting point. “I’ve given 20 years of my life to the club that I love and I feel like I’ve still got more to offer. Whether there is a way back in the future I don’t know, but I’m always hopeful.”

JW

NEW SIGNING: Middlesex all-rounder Martin Andersson will join Derbyshire on a two-year deal at the end of the season. The 27-year-old had a brief loan spell at Derby in 2018.

Durham

NEXT MATCHES: Notts, CC (H), Aug 22-25; Somerset, CC (A), Aug 29-Sep 1; Surrey, T20 (A), Sep 3; Lancs, CC (H), Sep 9-12; Surrey, CC (A), Sep 17-20; Kent, CC (H), Sep 26-29

Durham’s dynamism pays off

They did it the hard way, but Durham have reached the Blast quarter-finals for the first time since 2018 after an eight-wicket victory over Derbyshire secured their place in the last eight.

Having won only two of their first six matches, a three-game winning streak put them back in contention before three defeats in four left them needing a victory on the final night of the group stage to stand any chance of qualification.

Needing 81 from the last 10 overs to overcome the Falcons, skipper Alex Lees (72*) and Colin Ackermann (54*) completed the chase with seven deliveries to spare as Durham jumped from seventh to fourth to set up a visit to The Oval to face Surrey on September 3.

The performances of Ben Raine and Nathan Sowter were key to their win at Derby, as they had been throughout Durham’s muchimproved group-stage campaign, the club having finished seventh, eighth and seventh in the North Group across the last three seasons.

Raine took 2-19 against Derbyshire, upping his wicket tally to 20, while Sowter, the Australian-born leg- spinner, claimed 2-18 to finish the group stage with 19 scalps and an economy rate a touch over six.

ABOVE: Nathan Sowter starred in the Blast group stage

In the lead-up to the competition, head coach Ryan Campbell had promised his side would be “fearless” and “go harder than we’ve ever done before” in a bid to transform their insipid T20 form and while consistency has proved hard to come by, they remain in the hunt for a firstever trophy in the format.

JH

NEW ARRIVALS: Two highly thought of batters are reportedly set for a move to Chester-le-Street ahead of the 2025 season: Emilio Gay, the Northants opener who has rejected a new contract at Wantage Road, and Will Rhodes, who has done the same at Warwickshire.

Meanwhile, Kiwi left-arm seamer Neil Wagner has been signed for Durham’s final five Championship fixtures and will also be available throughout the One-Day Cup.

Essex

NEXT MATCHES: Hants, CC (A), Aug 22-25; Worcs, CC (H), Aug 29-Sep 1; Notts, CC (H), Sep 9-12; Warks, CC (A), Sep 17-20; Surrey, CC (H), Sep 26-29

More upheaval as Stephenson departs

Barely a month goes by without more turmoil at Essex. This time it’s John Stephenson, the club’s former opener who took over as CEO in 2021, choosing to take up a new role with Western Australia because Essex are unable to pay a salary commensurate with the role of a chief executive.

Financial woes beset many non-Test match venue clubs. But Essex’s necessary decision to commission the Newton Report to investigate historical allegations of racism at the club has hit them especially hard.

“This has been a difficult decision to make as Essex has been in my bloodstream since the day I walked through the doors at Chelmsford in 1984,” Stephenson said. “I am proud of what I achieved here. I have loved my time as chief executive and particularly enjoyed working with our diverse and talented board and our close-knit team of professional staff.”