Martyn Moxon, Yorkshire CCC’s director of cricket from Barnsley, is satisfied with a season of mid-table finishes for his ‘transitional’ team.
The Headingley club finished fifth in Division One of the County Championship, sixth out of nine in Northern Group of the 50-over One Day Club and fifth in their Twenty20 Blast group, two points off the quarter-finals.
Moxon, who played for Yorkshire and England after learning his trade at Monk Bretton CC, said: “In all three formats we have finished in mid-table. I think the table doesn’t lie and that is a fair reflection of how we performed this season. We haven’t been a million miles off the top teams but we have just lacked a little bit of quality.
“In the Championship, we have probably had four disappointing performance out of 14 games – particularly the home matches against Warwickshire at York and Kent at Headingley. We played some good cricket and were in contention for the title until the last three weeks and had a chance of coming third until the last game. In the 50-over and 20-over competitions, we tied three games and lost one by a run – so we were in a lot of games but couldn’t quite get over the line.
“We’re going through a transitional period and we have found out a lot about our young players this season. In 2020, they will be a year older and a year better and hopefully we can strengthen with a couple of signings and go from being a mid-table side to one that competes for titles.”
This summer has seen England win a World Cup on home soil then draw the Ashes 2-2 with Australia as Headingley hosted an extraordinary Test in which Ben Stokes scored a century to secure a one-wicket win for the hosts who chased 359 having been bowled out for 67.
Moxon said: “The Test Match was unbelievable and showed both cricket and Yorkshire in the best possible light with the crowds, the weather and the drama of the game. We knew it would be a big year for cricket, with the World Cup and the Ashes, and it’s been an opportunity which has been taken perfectly. The sport has been opened up to a new audience.”
The domestic cricket schedule will have to accommodate a new 100-ball competition, the Hundred, from 2020. The Headingley-based Northern Superchargers is a separate entity from Yorkshire CCC but Moxon and his staff will work with the Hundred team’s head coach Darren Lehmann.
“It will be busier. As Yorkshire staff, we will be working with the Hundred coaches so it is a bit more work for us. But it’s something different and there will be live cricket on the BBC which is massive for the game and will help to grow new audiences. It will be very interesting to see what the crowds are like.”
Moxon is hoping to watch his hometown club Barnsley FC regularly during the winter. He said: “I have some work to do still with Yorkshire then I will go on holiday but, from November, I should be able to go to a fair few Barnsley matches. It’s been a tough start but I have heard we have played well recently so hopefully they keep belief and they can stay up.”
