We're Not Here To Make Up Numbers!

Guy Williams visits New Road to see how Worcestershire are shaping up for their Division One assault

- Guy Williams

If the relaxed and amusing banter between new head coach Kevin Sharp and skipper Joe Leach is an authentic guide,then the mood in the dressing room at New Road is optimistic and genuinely positive as Worcestershire prepare for their return to Division One of the County Championship.

Unfortunately for last season’s Division Two champions, their two opening games are both away in April against Hampshire and Somerset, so Leach won’t lead his team out at New Road until towards the end of that month when Nottinghamshire, the other promoted side, provide the first home opposition.

Before then, the preparations continue with indoor nets at nearby Malvern College and, importantly, next month a 10-day trip to Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates to play a one-day game, probably against an English county, and a two-day match against Cambridge University.

Sharp, the former Yorkshire left hander who scored more than 13,000 runs in first-class cricket and limited overs games between 1976 and 1991, is also occupied recruiting a Second X1 coach as his influence prevails following the much-publicised departure before Christmas of Steve Rhodes, the director of cricket.

“I don’t feel threatened or fazed by the job. We all know there’s a difference between the two divisions. The players in Division One are generally more experienced and stronger in depth. The challenges will be massive. Worcestershire are traditionally a club that punches above their weight and we’ve fluctuated between the two divisions. My aim is to ensure we stay in Division One,” explains Sharp, who took over last month.