WHEN the chips are down and things are looking bleak, a cricket dressing room can be a dark and lonely place. That’s why July has come at the perfect time for everyone involved with Northamptonshire County Cricket Club.
It has been a topsy-turvy season so far, and it has been a season which, for the most part, has left the boys disappointed and disheartened. Despite wins against Nottinghamshire and Lancashire, we know we haven’t delivered the performances we are capable of, and that has left us with a lot to prove.
As a captain, I am in a unique situation at this club. My role in the club insists I lead by example, rally the troops and pick their heads up when things aren’t going to plan. But this group of players has never needed that from me. As a group, we are one of the strongest, and it never falls to me to pick everyone up, we carry each other.
That sense of unity and togetherness has always carried us through, and it is those traits we are counting on for the remainder of the season. As I said before, this season did not get off to the perfect start, but we know that, and between us we want to do everything we can to ensure that we finish on a high. We have done it before, and we are determined to do it again.
With only two months of cricket left of the season, I believe, as does the whole of Northamptonshire County Cricket Club, that is important for everyone to rally behind the team as we enter the final furlong of the season. We have a lot of cricket to play across July and August, and we want to have the best finish to our season possible.
As far as we’re concerned, we have washed our hands of the first half of the season and our sights are firmly set on performing in the T20s and playing some quality cricket across all four days in our remaining Specsavers County Championship fixtures. There may be a bitter taste left in the mouths of our fans after the start we had, but things will only improve if we have bums on seats at the County Ground and we have the full support and backing of our loyal Steelbacks fanbase.
Whether you are pressed up to the boundary or you are taking a seat in one of our hospitality boxes, we want as many people cheering us on under the lights in our Vitality Blast fixtures and following us in the sun for our last few Specsavers County Championship Fixtures.
The season is not finished for us. Far from it. As a team, we can compete with any team in the country, and that philosophy and that mindset its what we will carry in to each and every remaining fixture. The fans have seen us play some amazing cricket over the years, and they deserve to see it again.
We know it has been a rough ride so far, but it isn’t over just yet. Stick with us, we’ve got a point to prove. To you, to ourselves and to the whole of Northamptonshire.
Alex Wakely,
Club Captain.