Cricket: County Championship Division 1

[kevshat]

The start of the English domestic county season is only 3 days away. This thread is for all things Division 1 of the Championship :ok

Best odds/All odds
Hampshire	3.5	3.5
Lancashire	3.5	3
Sussex	4.5	4.33
Surrey	5.5	9
Warwickshire	15	13
Kent	26	26
Yorkshire	26	17
Durham	34	26
Worcestershire	21	34
Each-way terms:		3 at 1/5

Preview Durham It's been all change behind the scenes at the Riverside with Durham's well respected and highly rated coach Martyn Moxon leaving to return to Yorkshire. Geoff Cook has been promoted from academy director to first team coach so continuity has been maintained. Durham have signed the classy Michael Di Venuto as an overseas player this year and his runs will be vital to the cause. Also coming in this season are Will Smith, an opening batsman from Nottinghamshire, Mitch Claydon from Yorkshire and Paul Wiseman and Will Gidman. Among those leaving Durham in the close season were Ricky Ponting's mate Gary Pratt, Graeme Bridge, Mick Lewis and Jimmy Maher. On the field a lot will depend on Durham's strong bowling attack, an attack which could well see Steve Harmison in it's ranks for the majority of the season. Leading the line with Harmison will be fellow England international Liam Plunkett and they'll be backed up by another English international in Graham Onions. They survived last year by the skin of their teeth when Notts failed to earn a single bonus point in the last game of the season and unless someone stands up alongside Di Venuto with the bat it will be another tough season ahead. Last Season: 7th Overseas Player(s): Michael Di Venuto Key Players: Michael Di Venuto & Steve Harmison Best Odds: 50/1 Sporting Odds Predicted Finishing Position: 9th Hampshire Shane Warne's side have all the ingredients to be successful in the Championship this year after 2 near misses in the last 2 years. The signing of Australian bowler Stuart Clark bolsters an already strong bowling attack and if Hampshire can get the best out of Michael Lumb, a batsman recruited from Yorkshire then they'll have a good player on their hands. There's no doubting Hampshire's bowling attack and with the likes of Tremlett, Bruce, Mascarenhas and Ervine as well as Udal backing the two Aussies up they've got a attack that can win the title. However I still have doubts over their batting lineup which still relies very heavily on John Crawley and the lower order. I think Hampshire are 1 quality batsman short to go to the next level and fear another near miss awaits the South coast side. Last Season: 3rd Overseas Player(s): Shane Warne & Stuart Clark Key Players: John Crawley and Shane Warne Best Odds: 7/2 Totesport/Coral Predicted Finishing Position: 2nd Kent Kent are a side who are rarely involved at either end of the table these days. Too good to go down and not quite good enough to push for the title. A lot will depend on captain Robert Key and his form with the bat. On his day there's not many better in the country but he had a poor summer last year and that showed with his team. Looking at Kent's squad, they'll probably be better in the 1 day environment than the 4 day game. Yasor Arafat could prove to be a good signing and in Martin van Jaarsveld they have a really gifted batsman but the bowling is a little weak and the loss for the season of Amjad Khan won't help the Kent cause. Last Season: 5th Overseas Player(s): Andrew Hall & Yasir Arafat Key Players: Martin van Jaarsveld & Robert Key Best Odds: 33/1 Sporting Odds Predicted Finishing Position: 7th Lancashire Lancashire traditionally are a side expected to win the County Championship however they are in a bit of a transitional period which makes their 2nd place finish last season all the more remarkable. There's little doubt there are talented cricketers at Old Trafford but a mixture of England call-up's and the weather will always hamper any chances Lancashire have of claiming the title. Their overseas stars, Brad Hodge and Mutiah Muralitharan are good signings and they've managed to keep last year's squad together which is another plus. However I think the Lightning are a wee bit young in areas and will always be battling the Manchester weather and that will stop them winning the title but there's nothing to suggest they won't have a good season. Last Season: 2nd Overseas Player(s): Brad Hodge & Mutiah Muralitharan Key Players: Brad Hodge & Glen Chapple Best Odds: 29/10 Expekt Predicted Finishing Position: 3rd Surrey Arguably the biggest name in the county game are back in the top flight after a quiet couple of seasons. The Butcher's - Mark and Alan have been pivotal to that occuring. Mark is now the captain and his father, Alan, the coach. A lot of what happens at The Oval this year will depend on the form of Mark Ramprakash. He was in supreme form last summer and ended up averaging over 100 for the Championship season. Surrey have good young batsmen in James Benning and Rikki Clarke to provide support for Ramprakash. However like so many in this division they don't have the best bowling attack now, particularly since Martin Bicknell has retired. Matthew Nicholson has signed as an overseas player and he'll add spice to the bowling attack but it's still not as strong as it was. In order for Surrey to mount a serious title charge they will need to ensure they win matches, particularly at The Oval however I can see too many matches ending in draws there and invariably that will ensure that Surrey spend the season nearer the bottom than the top. Should the batting lineup fail to fire, they could get drawn into a relegation battle. Last Season: 1st in Division 2 Overseas Player(s): Azhar Mahmood & Matthew Nicholson (Steve Magoffin for the 1st part of the season) Key Players: Mark Ramprakash & Rikki Clarke Best Odds: 8/1 Sporting Odds Predicted Finishing Position: 8th Sussex Defending champions Sussex have had an action packed winter, mostly revolving around their captain Chris Adams and his future. After appearing set to join Yorkshire, he u-turened and has remained at Sussex. That will be a relief to the Hove faithful as under Grizzly, Sussex have been very successful. They're not a team of huge stars and they play to their strengths but Mushtaq Ahmed has been a revelation and he is a key factor in their success. On paper you wouldn't think they'd have the strongest batting lineup but Murray Goodwin is a real class act. Michael Yardy averaged 50 with the bat last season and helped out massively in winning the title. A lot of that squad remain at Hove this season but a few of them are getting no younger. The key to Sussex's season will undoubtedly be Mushtaq Ahmed and how many wickets he picks up. If he has a good season then Sussex will to however if he isn't as influential Sussex could be subject to a season in mid-table. Last Season: 1st Overseas Player(s) Rana Naved & Mushtaq Ahmed Key Players: Murray Goodwin & Mushtaq Ahmed Best Odds: 4/1 William Hill & VC Bet Predicted Finishing Position: 5th Warwickshire Heath Streak's side have a huge hole to replace in their side in the form of the hole left by Nick Knight's retirement. However a couple of shrewd signings in Darren Maddy from Leicestershire and Kumar Sangakkara as an overseas player will ensure that the hole left isn't as big as it could have been. Moeen Ali has been allowed to move to Worcestershire but Scotland international Navdeep Poonia is still at Edgbaston. Depending on the results of a scan on his recurring hip injury, the Bears could well have Ashley Giles for the majority of the season as his England career looks to be behind him now. He'll provide good all round quality and Dale Steyn will provide real pace to their bowling attack. Warwickshire have some capable youngsters who could well be ready to produce the goods. Mark Greatbatch has formed a good squad at Edgbaston and they'll be looking to really go well in the Championship race this year. Paul Harris returns in June as an overseas player and he and Giles working in tandem could prove key. If the experienced players like Dougie Brown and Neil Carter make solid contributions the title could just be returning to Edgbaston once more. Last season: 4th Overseas Player(s) Kumar Sangakkara & Dale Steyn (Paul Harris from June 2nd) Key Players: Kumar Sangakkara & Ashley Giles Best Odds: 16/1 Sporting Odds Predicted Finishing Position: 1st Worcestershire Worcestershire are a county on the up under Steve Rhodes and Vikram Solanki. In Phil Jaques they have an absolute run machine and the Royals have plenty of youngsters to support him as well as the necessary experience. I liked Vikram Solanki as a captain last season and his captaincy will be vital this season. Kabir Ali is a good talent with the ball and the spin twins Price and Batty may well win games for Worcester. Graeme Hick is still going strong and well worth a place in the middle order. One thing that may not help Worcester is their home ground. Having been flooded 4 times through the winter it may not play into their hands, particularly when they like to play 2 spinners. However they have a good top 7, and in wicket-keeper Steven Davies, they have the countries biggest takent with the gloves. The loss of Zaheer Khan is a big blow but the New Road faithful will be hoping Doug Bollinger softens the loss. Many tip Worcester for the drop but I think there's enough there to ensure survival this season. Last Season: 2nd in Division 2 Overseas Player(s) Phil Jaques & Doug Bollinger Key Players: Phil Jaques & Kabir Ali Best Odds: 50/1 Sporting Odds Predicted Finishing Position: 6th Yorkshire It's been all change at Headingley in the close season with the return of Yorkshire's 2 sons - Darren Gough as captain and Martyn Moxon as coach. Shrewd signings have been made in Younis Khan as an overseas player and Jaques Rudolph as a Kolpak. These are 2 experienced international cricketers who are sure to help Yorkshire immensely. Anthony McGrath has signed a new contract too and things seem to be on the up for the White Rose. Adil Rashid is one of England's best up and coming spinners and as the season wears on he'll come into this own and Craig White is still performing well at this level. Yorkshire's season will depend on how Darren Gough takes to captaincy and the pressures that brings. His passion will be unquestioned but will he have the nous to lead Yorkshire to glory. Their batting line up will ensure a solid season if not a spectacular one. Last season: 6th Overseas Player(s): Younis Khan & Jason Gillespie Key Players: Jaques Rudolph & Darren Gough Best Odds: 33/1 Sporting Odds Predicted Finishing Position: 4th Scoring System Win - 14pts Tie - 7pts Draw - 4pts Loss - 0pts Bonus points are scored in the 1st innings of all matches as follows: Batting bonuses: 200-249 runs - 1pt 250-299 runs - 2pts 300-349 runs - 3pts 350-399 runs - 4pts 400 and over - 5pts Bowling bonuses: 3-5 wkts - 1pt 6-8 wkts - 2pts 9-10 wkts - 3pts Bonus points apply for first 130 overs of the first innings only. Each side plays each other home and away with the bottom 2 going down. Division 1 bets to follow........

[2hcb]

Re: Cricket: County Championship Division 1 who d'you fancy Kev? I think Hampshire rightly start favourites. They've come close the past couple of years and with Shane Warne and Stuart Clark bowling in tandem the bowling is certainly good (they also have Tremlett I think). Whats their batting like though once Pietersen is out of the picture? Still Crawley carrying the bulk of their hopes?