Hall and Lucas commit to Northants

A familiar sight for Northamptonshire fans in 2009, as Andrew Hall salutes his hundred against Leicestershire

Northamptonshire have secured contract extensions for two key components of their pace attack, all-rounder Andrew Hall and left-armer David Lucas.

Hall, 34, the former South Africa international, has signed a renewed two-year Kolpak deal with the county, keeping him at Wantage Road until 2012.

He was voted Steffan’s Jewellers player of the year after scoring over 1,000 runs and taking 40 wickets in the LV= County Championship, as Northants missed out on promotion from Division Two by a single point.

Hall, who has returned to play South African domestic cricket with the Dolphins this winter, was also a key player in the Steelbacks’ run to Twenty20 Cup finals day.

Hall said: “I'm really happy with being offered this extension on my contract. Myself and Northants have had such a good year in 2009 and I’m looking forward to coming back and helping the club push on to bigger and better things.”

Lucas, who has had spells at Nottinghamshire and Yorkshire, came of age in 2009 and is rewarded with a one-year extension until the end of 2011.

He spearheaded the county’s attack in harness with Johan van der Wath, claiming 60 wickets in the championship with a career-best 7-24 in the win over Gloucestershire.

Lucas said: “I am ecstatic to get another deal, especially after my best season in the game. I will everything to help the team win some silverware in the next two seasons.

“We have a strong squad forming for next season and I’m looking forward to getting back out on the pitch.”

Northants head coach David Capel added: “I am really pleased that both Andrew and David have signed extensions to their contracts.

“They produced outstanding performances on a consistent basis for the club during the 2009 season and I look forward to continuing working with them during the coming seasons.

“We took some considerable strides forward with our cricket last season and we are keen to progress further and challenge for honours.”