Yorkshire Vikings are to give the cream of the county’s club cricketers the chance to impress against Jason Gillespie’s professional squad as they combine the countdown to the NatWest T20 Blast with their drive to reconnect with the recreational game.
They will play fixtures against five representative teams from Sheffield to Teesside, reviving memories of the days when Yorkshire would take County Championship matches to outgrounds in all parts of the county.
“We experimented with the idea last year, as part of our programme to reintegrate Yorkshire County Cricket Club back into the county, and to have a better rapport with the clubs,” explained chief executive Mark Arthur.
“We played our warm-up matches for the Blast in Harrogate, York and Sheffield. The clubs which staged the games seemed to enjoy it, and it provided a more meaningful way for our team to prepare for T20 cricket, against the best club cricketers from the county, rather than just playing in the nets.
“So this year we have expanded to five games, returning to Harrogate, York and Sheffield, but also playing a Bradford League XI at Pudsey Congs, and a North Yorkshire and South Durham League XI at Marton, near Middlesbrough.
“We are lucky with the way the fixture list has fallen to give us this opportunity. We don’t have a Championship game in the first full week of May, when we play in Sheffield on the Monday and Marton the Tuesday, ahead of our first Blast game against Derbyshire under the new Headingley floodlights on Friday 12 May.
“Then we have another free week which means we can play in Bradford on the Monday, Harrogate on the Tuesday and York on the Wednesday before our second Blast match against Notts Outlaws at Trent Bridge.
“It’s a chance for the best club cricketers in Yorkshire to pit themselves against the Vikings first team, because we’ll only be playing people in these games who we see being involved in the NatWest T20 Blast itself.”
Arthur and the Yorkshire club have identified the Blast as a priority for improvement this summer, investing in big-name Australian signings Glenn Maxwell and Aaron Finch as well as the new floodlights, which will allow later starts on a Friday night allowing supporters more time to reach Headingley from Leeds city centre and further flung parts of the county.
“The lights look spectacular,” Arthur added. “The fourth one went up on Monday, so they will be available for the first time should we need them for our home LV= Championship games against Warwickshire and Hampshire before the Blast opener.
“We have been lagging behind in terms of our ability to stage floodlit cricket at Headingley but now we’ll have the best lights in the country.
"Jason and his coaching staff have been working hard on our T20 cricket with some encouraging performances in the Emirates tournament in Dubai before the start of the season, and the aim is to put on a show for big crowds at Headingley – and so far ticket sales are very encouraging.
“Taking these warm-up games out to club grounds, just like the roadshows we have been holding during the winter and the creation of a new pyramid structure for league cricket in the county, is all part of the drive to reach out to everyone interested in cricket in Yorkshire.
"With 110,000 people playing the game, we appreciate they’re not all going to become members. But if they come down to one T20 match, and one day of international cricket at Headingley, that would make a huge difference in turning things around.”
South Yorkshire Select XI vs. Yorkshire Vikings - Tuesday 5 May, Sheffield Collegiate Cricket Club
North Yorkshire & South Durham League XI vs. Yorkshire Vikings - Wednesday 6 May, Marton Cricket Club
Bradford Cricket League XI vs. Yorkshire Vikings - Monday 18 May, Pudsey Congs Cricket Club
Harrogate CC Select XI vs. Yorkshire Vikings - Tuesday 19 May, Harrogate Cricket Club
Yorkshire Vikings vs. Yorkshire League Select XI - Wednesday 20 May, York Cricket Club