Near misses for improving Northants

Rob White fulfilled his talent with 1,037 first-class runs and big hitting in Twenty20

For David Capel and Northamptonshire, 2008 was a season of near misses.

Pre-season talk at Wantage Road was of promotion to the top tier of the LV County Championship, and Capel’s second full season as head coach saw Northants get closer to that objective than at any time in recent years.

Northants eventually finished 27 points back on second-placed Worcestershire in Division Two, a margin due in part to a comprehensive last-day defeat at the hands of Middlesex.

Capel is in no doubt as to the deciding moment - the demoralising two-wicket home loss to Warwickshire back in April.

Aside from leaving Northants with two defeats from two matches, it also determined that the title would be going to Edgbaston, and not New Road.

“If I look back, that match really cost us,” Capel told ecb.co.uk. “It wasn't just the fact that we lost, it was the nature of the defeat.

“We were in a strong game position for three-and-a-half days, but they chased the total down and won it in the last over with two wickets to spare.”

Just prior to lunch on the last day at Northampton, home skipper Nicky Boje declared on 240 for seven, setting Warwickshire an unlikely total of 383 in 83 overs.

A humdinger of a chase followed, with Darren Maddy scoring a brilliant century, and Northampton-born Ian Salisbury hitting the winning runs with a six off the penultimate ball.

“I don’t blame Nicky Boje at all,” Capel added. “It was a positive declaration and we tried to win the game.

“It was the sort of positive cricket that the division needed in order to separate teams, especially given the rain that scuppered so many of our games afterwards.

“We needed to win, but it wasn’t to be.”

Northants hauled themselves back into the championship race with impressive wins over Glamorgan, Gloucestershire and Leicestershire, before the return match with Glamorgan at Wantage Road at the end of August.

In a rain-affected encounter the Welsh county were dismissed for 238 late on the fourth afternoon leaving Northants with the task of chasing 38 in five overs.

In this era of switch-hitting Twenty20 pyrotechnics, it sounds a doddle. Not so, according to Capel.

Legendary all-rounder Lance Klusener straight drives Kabir Ali during his final season at Northants

“Thirty-eight from 30 balls sounds easy, but I can assure you, it wasn’t. Remember, there were no fielding restrictions like there would have been in limited-overs cricket.

“David Hemp could place every fielder on the boundary if he wanted to. And to Glamorgan’s credit, Alex Wharf bowled brilliantly.

"If there had been two more overs, we’d have won easily.”

Rob White, Riki Wessels and David Sales were all prised out by a miserly Wharf, who took an unlikely 3-10 from two overs, as Northants fell short by 10 runs.

The match ended in a draw and with it went Northants' promotion hopes.

Where do Northants go from here? Fans seem generally grateful for the stability offered by Capel as coach, and the retention of Boje as captain, especially after the turbulent years under Kepler Wessels.

But limited-overs cricket, thought by many to be Northants’ strongest suit, was a mixed bag this season.

The NatWest Pro40 was an unmitigated disaster, with the Steelbacks losing all six matches, while rain robbed them of a place in the Friends Provident Trophy knockout stages.

Capel's men were far more impressive in the Twenty20 Cup, qualifying just behind Warwickshire Bears in the Midlands/West/Wales Division, only to suffer a crippling top order capitulation to Essex Eagles in the quarter-finals.

It meant Northants missed out on the lucrative Twenty20 finals day for another year.

Progress has unquestionably been made in the batting department. The three middle-order giants - White (1,037), Sales (1,137) and Lance Klusener (1,095) - all passed 1,000 runs for the season in first-class cricket, and the new opening partnership of Stephen Peters (949) and Niall O’Brien (917) were not far behind.

Peters and O’Brien opened the innings 15 times in first-class cricket, and put on more than 40 for the first wicket on nine occasions.

The Irishman was particularly impressive, scoring two centuries and six fifties at an average of 45.85 while juggling the responsibilities of keeping wicket, a feat recognised by his being named player of the season.

Stephen Peters and Niall O'Brien forged an effective partnership in all forms in 2008

“All in all, our new opening partnership has been a success,” Capel added. “Niall was asked to open the batting, and take on a dual responsibility, and he’s risen to the task.

“Most importantly, when Niall or Stephen failed, the other usually went on to score a big innings.”

Capel and chief executive Mark Tagg have also been swift to secure new contracts for the bulwarks of the batting order, Sales and White, along with a number of other English players, including David Lucas, David Wigley and England star Monty Panesar.

Capel was keen to confirm that this is simply rewarding their performances and nothing to do with possible changes to the laws affecting Kolpak signings, of which Northants have a number.

The departure of Klusener, the longest-standing South African on the books, leaves a significant hole in the middle order.

Alex Wakely, Ben Howgego and Mark Nelson have all been tried while Riki Wessels scored well in one-day cricket but seemed to struggle in four-day matches until the final game against Middlesex.

Another to leave is off-spinner Jason Brown, after 15 years at Wantage Road culminating in a benefit year. Capel suggests that Panesar's England duties could lead to greater opportunities for young spinner Graeme White. But all three frontline spinners are now left-armers.

Capel admits the quick bowling looked threadbare at times, especially before South African duo Johan van der Wath and Andrew Hall were granted clearance to play in May.

Northants looked a different proposition when strike bowler van der Wath was leading the attack, and he finished as the leading wicket-taker for Northants in the championship with 43 scalps, including 8-91 against Glamorgan. The increasingly impressive Lucas was not far behind on 36.

Capel admits additions may have to be made, even in the event of van der Wath and Hall coming back.

“As far as I am aware, van der Wath and Hall will be allowed to return next year," said Capel.

“But I am looking to possibly supplement the attack with another strike bowler. That would be a priority going into next season.”