Derbyshire - A squad short on talent most likely will struggle again. Much will depend on overseas players Usman Khawaja and Martin Guptill to provide runs. Chesney Hughes is an exciting prospect but only in his second season it is a lot to ask to provide the runs required for Derbyshire to make any kind of push for promotion. Luke Sutton returns as captain but one of the more established names Graham Wagg has left for Glamorgan.
Prediction: Challenge for wooden spoon. Youngsters may show some improvement having gained another years experience but don’t expect miracles. 8th
Essex - Having being relegated last season, Essex will be looking to bounce back immediately and look in good condition to do that. Alastair Cook and Ravi Bopara are both available to play from the start of the season, and with so many fixtures in April and May should build a big lead. Owais Shah signed in the close season and with Ryan Ten Doeschate should return from the IPL when Cook leaves for England duty. The bowling does look lightweight and lacking penetration with Danish Kaneria not returning and may be their weakness.
Prediction: Should get promoted but a couple of injuries to bowlers and there attack looks threadbare and lacking quality. 1st
Glamorgan - Star performer and overseas player Mark Cosgrove has left and left a gaping hole (literally) but has been replaced by South African Alviro Pietersen who has taken over captaincy duties. Glamorgan are likely to be challengers for promotion again this year after last years near miss. In James Harris they have a quality opening bowler who bowls lots of overs. The arrival of Graham Wagg should give them more options in both bowling and batting and Jim Allenby may have to recreate his heroics of last season.
Prediction: Likely will be close to promotion, may depend on an odd result here or there and Harris staying injury free. 4th
Gloucestershire - I have a confession, Gloucestershire are my county, unfortunately this year anything other than the wooden spoon will probably be a decent achievement. Last year their bowling was first division standard whilst their batting was of minor county standard. Well now their bowling attack has been decimated by moves away from the club, their batting is also weaker. The experienced players that are left are average and not wanted by other counties; the youngsters who will play are playing through necessity rather than their quality. Kane Williamson is the overseas pro and should be available for the whole season, he is young and talented, but he will be expected to score thousands of runs and the burden may prove too much. On a personal note I hope they surprise a few and some youngsters come through the cracks and put in decent performances but it is hard to see any light this season at least.
Prediction: Wooden spoon; not competitive; hugely demoralising. 9th
Kent - Financially Kent have taken a real battering, with squad cuts and no overseas players, last season was a disaster. There is genuine quality in the squad, some of it too good for second division cricket but if there are injuries the threadbare squad will be shown up. Rob Key had an awful 2010, one double hundred apart, and it’s hard to see him performing so badly again.
Prediction: First xi is easily the strongest in the second division, unfortunately for them injuries will happen in any season and a middling position is more likely than promotion. 5th
Leicestershire - The winter has been a continuation of the 2010 summer ructions with plenty of political decisions happening off the pitch with not much change on the pitch. Thankfully for Leicestershire they have plenty of reasons to be cheerful on the pitch thanks to the plethora of quality young players in the squad coupled with a sprinkling of experienced pros. James Taylor is a run machine and will be needed to continue to produce runs in what is an otherwise average batting line up. The bowling looks strong, Nathan Buck and Mathew Hoggard are quality opening bowlers, Claude Henderson and Jigar Naik are competent spinners and overseas pro McDonald should play more than last year even with IPL commitments.
Predictions: Will be in the melting pot for promotion at the end of the season and have plenty of young players to watch. May just miss out through lack of experience and expect an exodus of some of their exciting talents at the end of the season if this happens. 2nd
Middlesex - A terrible season last year but there may be signs of improvement burgeoning this season. Chris Rogers is the new overseas pro and is used to scoring tonnes of runs for poor teams and is available for the whole season. Steve Finn may play more than expected with England having strength in depth in fast bowlers, and Corey Collymore will add depth and experience to the bowling line up. The batting does look thin with Owais Shah having left and Eoin Morgan unlikely to play much.
Prediction: Expect a much better season, Rogers will continue to plunder county attacks and if Finn gets in anywhere near to a full season they might be a surprise pick for promotion. 6th
Northamptonshire - A squad that doesn’t exactly evoke excitement will do well to even challenge for promotion. If someone had told me that David Sales and Mal Loye had retired I wouldn’t have batted an eyelid but these two are still around the team along with other gnarled pros such as Andrew Hall, Steven Peters and David Lucas. An experienced line up but is there the motivation needed for a promotion campaign? Chaminda Vaas is the overseas pro and should fit in with the rest of the geriatrics; you have to wonder how he’ll make it through a full county season? They have blooded a few younger players in recent seasons without much success, they will need one or two to step up and help the senior players if they are going to run the opposition close this year
Prediction: Unlikely to figure at the end of the season, neither batting nor bowling is particularly strong with no standout performers. 7th
Surrey- Plenty of talent and the bookies favourites to go up Surrey have underperformed for years and there is big pressure on them this season to return to division one. There is plenty of young talent involved, many of whom may push for higher honours in the future. Much of the pressure will be upon the shoulders of the captain, 23 year old, Rory Hamilton-Brown to mould a team together. With players such as Jason Roy, RHB and Stephen Davies there is plenty of extravagance in the batting, hopefully another season of Mark Ramprakash should mould the three into more consistent performances. Much of the bowling will rely on Jade Dernbach and Chris Tremlett if available, who are probably two of the best in the division.
Prediction: With young talented players it’s tough to predict exactly what happens, inconsistency may prove their undoing. If Dernbach and Tremlett get full seasons in though, they should make promotion. 3rd
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