Yorkshire’s players prepare for staggered return to training
YORKSHIRE’S cricketers will return to training on Monday as plans intensify for an August restart.
The players will train in groups of six in line with government guidance on coronavirus.
Earlier this month, the government announced that groups of up to six people from different households can exercise outdoors as long as they observe social distancing measures. The Yorkshire squad has been on furlough since early April but will now return on a staggered basis.
Mark Arthur, the club’s chief executive, said: “The players will be coming back from Monday June 29 in groups of six.
“We might have a couple of groups in on a Monday, a couple of groups in on a Tuesday, and so on, so it’s all spread out.”
The players will stay on the government support scheme on those days when they are not training.
The furlough scheme allows companies to dip in and out from July 1 under a more flexible system.
All being well, county cricket will start at the beginning of August when it is hoped to play a regionalised Championship and T20 Blast.
“At this moment in time we’re confident,” said Arthur.
“If we’re allowed to use hotels then we’re looking forward to playing some Championship cricket.
“If we’re not allowed to use them, then it will revert to 50over regional cricket, I would have thought, alongside the T20 Blast.
“But, as things stand, we’re looking forward to Championship cricket in the main in August and then going into September too.
“We haven’t seen the schedule or the fixtures, but they’re being worked up, and there’s going to be a vote on the whole subject by the county chairmen on July 7.”
Some counties have been hostile to the idea of playing Championship cricket on the grounds of the costs involved in hotel stays.
However, Yorkshire’s preference is for some form of red-ball action, with the Championship likely to be split into three groups of six counties who would play each team in their group once, with the top two teams qualifying for a final.
Should a four-day tournament not prove possible, there could still be local red-ball friendlies when teams commute on a daily basis.
This could lead to matches between the great Roses rivals, for example, Yorkshire and Lancashire, or games involving Yorkshire and Durham.
Certainly it is an idea which would appeal to Yorkshire’s director of cricket, Martyn Moxon.
“We know there would be counties willing to set up friendly games, and with second-team friendlies it’s similar,” he said.
“If there’s no national competition for second XIs, we will also try and set up friendlies with counties. There is an absolute will around the country for that to happen.”
On the prospect of county cricket from August, Moxon said: “We can’t be 100 per cent sure (what’s going to happen) because things can change very quickly with the virus, etc. But there’s a real desire to have a couple of months of cricket.
“I’m hopeful that Plan A (Championship and T20) can happen, but we need hotels to be open and things to work that are out of our control, I suppose, but the signs are good that they will (be working).
“I’d like to think we will have Plan A available to us.
“But, whatever happens, as long as we can play some cricket, that’s the main priority.”