If Somerset couldn't win it this year, then lowly Northants got my vote, so it was heartwarming to see Alex Wakely's team brush Essex aside then smash Surrey to win the Friends Life T20 Cup. It was not only their only domestic T20 title but also their first trophy of any kind for more than two decades!
Often it's the big names who win matches but with Northants in this and the other two competitions it's been a real squad effort. Overseas stars Richard Levi and Cameron White have made important contributions but throughout the season, it has been the ex-Bradford League Pakistani Azharullah who has shone with the ball. Club captain Andrew Hall handed the responsibility to 24 year-old Wakely for the short stuff and he has responded in fine style, gelling the team and striking a brilliant unbeaten 59 in the final at Edgbaston.
Stephen Crook has been a revelation in 2013, coming from nowhere to being one of the most effective all-rounders in county cricket. His semi-final blitz then brave flurry of slow balls at the death tonight destroyed first Essex then any faint hopes Surrey may have harboured of an unlikely victory. Kyle Coetzer has been consistent with the bat while Lee Daggett and James Middlebrook are proven experts at mixing things up and disrupting batsmen's rhythm in mid-innings.
Nevertheless, the decisive figure in tonight's final was David Willey. A promising left-arm seamer for a few years now, he has come into his own with not only the new ball but also as occasional opening batsman. In T20 promoting a bowler to bash some Powerplay boundaries doesn't always come off but Willey's 27-ball 60 created a magnificent foundation for the Steelbacks' final innings. He credited Levi and White for 'talking him through' but must surely deserve plaudits for the way he attacked the usually mean Azhar Mahmood and the wayward Jade Dernbach.
Yet he had a lot more to give. Northants' success was sealed by his bowling at the death. Ansari and Lewis chipped good balls to fielders, then 'keeper David Murphy's smart catch to dismiss Tremlett gave Willey a fairytale hat-trick and the Wantage Road outfit a memorable win.
No Smith, no Ponting, no Pietersen, but Surrey had the personnel to hurt their considerably financially poorer opponents but, as Willey said after the game, Northamptonshire are a tight unit who "enjoy each other's company on and off the pitch". They are going great guns in the YB40 and in the promotion places of Division Two in the Championship. They are the team of the county season so far, and hopefully will not collapse as they did last year. They look a stronger squad than Derbyshire so, if they advance to the top tier, they could be a match for any of the more prosperous counties.
Unlike most years, spinners have not dominated the bowling lists. Instead, the wicket totals and averages have been led by seamers, including both experienced pros and youngsters eager to prove their worth. So what about my FL T20 team of 2013? Well, quite a few Northants players featured in my thinking, and here's my final selection. Well done to them all, and the Northamptonshire faithful who were at Edgbaston to witness the night of their lives.
Carberry (Hants), Kieswetter(Somerset, +), C White (Northants), Allenby (Glamorgan *), Willey (Northants), Stokes (Durham), Crook (Northants), Yasir Arafat (Somerset), Azharullah (Northants), G White (Northants/Notts), Topley (Essex).
Surrey's disgraced Gareth Batty is my nomination for licking their boots and clearing up the litter in the car park....
