Forget the England v India ODI series. If you’re looking for a little late-season excitement, you could do a lot worse than follow the final stages of the county championship. For a competition so often derided, it don’t half throw up some good finishes.
Three sides are still in the hunt for the pennant. Durham top the table, with a seven point lead over second-placed Warwickshire. Just three points adrift of the Bears are Lancashire.
But the north east county have only one more match to play – against seventh placed Worcestershire.
Their rivals each have a match in hand. Warwickshire are home to Nottinghamshire in the round of matches which begin today, and then travel to bottom-placed Hampshire next week. Lancashire also face Hants, at home, then Somerset away.
All romantics and neutrals, surely, will be rooting for the red rose county – who’ve not won the title outright since 1934, and last shared it in 1950. Seventy seven long years of hurt may soon come to an end.
We have nothing against the other contenders, as such, but Warwickshire have had plenty of success in recent times, while Durham have transformed themselves from minnows into Manchester United over the last five years.
At the bottom of division one, Hampshire – who meet two of the title-chasers in their final games – look a goner. They’re nineteen points from safety. Yorkshire, just five points above them in eighth, are also on the brink.
The division two promotion race is also intriguing. Middlesex look secure: they are in first place with a twenty six point buffer over Surrey in third. They in turn – with a game in hand – could still overhaul second-placed Northamptonshire, who would be gutted to miss out after leading the division for most of the season.
The only accolade not still up for grabs is the wooden spoon. Leicestershire, after a wretched season which has seen only a single championship victory, trail eighth-placed Kent by a whopping fifty nine points.
If you’re a supporter of any of the sides battling to win, stay up or get up – our thoughts are with you all. The very best of luck. An exhilarating fortnight lies ahead. It’s still far from perfect, but isn’t it interesting how the county championship – ridiculed and abused for years – has quietly become the most interesting and admired domestic competition in the world.
That’s two divisions for you. Has created a lot more meaningful cricket. Disagree about wanting Lancs to win though. That part of the world has enough champs in other sports. There’s another team that plays at a ground called ‘Old Trafford’ that wins far too many trophies ;-)
Certainly more interesting than the South African domestic season. Even a cricket tragic like me struggles to follow that.
Lancashire is in the North West not the North East. There’s something else in the North East called Yorkshite which vaguely resembles a cess pit. Please could you edit that mildly offensive error.
@Matt – I think the comment refers to Durham being in the North East, not Lancs. Yorkshire not the worst county to watch cricket it, that falls to Derby…
It does indeed refer to Durham – apologies for any ambiguity.
Warks title to lose at this rate, with Durham to be screwed by the weather for not the first time this season – see the farcical loss to Hampshire.
Morgsy you must be in wonderland with Worcs seemingly out of the drop race this year.