County Team of the Year 2014 - The Bowlers

Last week I selected my top four batsmen and wicketkeeper of the English domestic season, and now it's the turn of the all-rounders and bowlers. Samit Patel, Ben Stokes, Jesse Ryder, Tom Smith and Peter Trego were definitely in the running, but the Notts player was let down by his first-class bowling record (22 wickets at 45), Stokes by hs self-inflicted injury and terrible run of scores and the Somerset favourite only by his limited-overs bowling. Trego averaged more than 30 in all three formats and missed reaching the 50-wicket target in the Championship by a whisker. Smith was one of the few bright spots in Lancashire's season, but almost exclusively in the four-dayers. The former Black Cap Ryder was, perversely, a far more effective performer tthe ball than the bat, and he and Graham Napier bowled superbly for Essex. Jesse's lack of runs took him out of the running, though. Instead, the ever-dependable Kent man Darren Stevens and Glamorgan's Jim Allenby grab my five and six berths.

Had he been found guilty last winter of failing to report a corrupt approach Stevens could easily have missed the whole season and, at the age of 38, may have seen his career destroyed. Instead he continued to score runs and take wickets at regular intervals, especially in the Championship and T20 Blast. Glamorgan experienced another disappointing season. They have some fine players but didn't seem to win the games their squad deserves. There are none finer than Jim Allenby. Now 32, the Aussie is a mainstay at Sophia Gardens. He contributed nearly 1,700 runs and was one of the highest scorers in the NatWest T20 tournament, whilest taking 54 wickets at barely 20 apiece. Irreplaceable!

My two main pace bowlers both come from Division Two. Derbyshire's Mark Footitt's Championship tally of 84 wickets was by far the highest in the competition. At 28, the left-arm seamer has endured a stuttering career but 2014 has been his best year by a mile. He did OK in the 50-over competition, too, and amassed 106 victims in total for his county. Special mentions must go to Steve Magoffin (Sussex), Chris Rushworth (Durham, the only man to take fifteen wickets in a DAY) and Jack Brooks (Yorkshire). However, for consistent success in all three formats, another honorary Welshman from Down Under edges my decision. Michael Hogan makes my county Team of the Year for the second consecutive year. Despite missing the early matches, Hogan racked up 98 victims in all, averaging under 20 in four- and one-day cricket. Like Allenby he is always hard to score off and his long-striding run-up and high action make him a formidable attack leader.

Two spinners complete my Eleven. It wasn't a vintage summer for the slow bowlers - outside the T20 - but three stood out. Adil Rashid enjoyed one of his better seasons for Yorkshire but his batting slipped a bit. Saeed Ajmal may be facing an uncertain future with his unusual action but he was extraordinarily effective for Worcestershire in the first half of the Championship. In only nine fixtures, the Pakistani took 63 wickets at 16.47, including two ten-wicket games and a career-best analysis of 7-19 against Essex back in May. The county weren't quite the same without him but limped over the finishing line in second place.

My final selection was also officially the Most Valuable Player of the county season: Jeetan Patel. The 34 year-old Kiwi has been a revelation for Warwickshire in recent years and in 2014 took more wickets across all formats (107) than anyone else. He was particularly prolific in The Blast, taking 25 at 12.56, with a miserly economy rate of 6.11. With a swift first-class century against Middlesex, too, Patel's late-order runs also came in extremely handy. A most valuable player indeed!

In summary, my County Team of 2014 is: Hales (Notts), Lyth (Yorks), Joyce (Sussex), Vince (Hants), Allenby (Glam), Stevens (Kent), Foster (Essex + *), Patel (Warwicks), Saeed Ajmal (Worcs), Footitt (Derbys), Hogan (Glam).

Sad to see only three young Englishmen amidst the veterans and foreign contingent, and it will be interesting to see whether Hales, Lyth and Vince are rewarded with more international caps, thus making them less likely to shine for their counties in 2015. Could Jonathan Trott feature? What about the bunch of youthful Sams, Jacks and Bens who caught the eye? I can't wait for winter to pass and a promising summer of cricket to grab my interest once again.

Table-Turning County Finale

The ups and downs were confirmed before the last day of the county season but there was still time for the successful sides being taken down a peg.

Champions Durham lost more games than fourth place Warwickshire but they triumphed because they had an attack capable of bowling opposition out twice, winning an impressive ten out of sixteen matches. They failed to make it eleven despite amassing almost 500 in their second innings when Keaton Jennings and Michael Richardson each made three figures. On the last day, Sussex had a target of 295 in under seventy overs, but Luke Wells, Chris Nash and Ed Joyce got the better of Onions, Rushworth, Stokes et al to take the sixteen extra points and insodoing third place in the table. Joyce has been one of the top scorers all season in first-class cricket and should be remembered for that rather than his dismissal by another Irishman-turned-Englishman Boyd Rankin in the Dublin ODI!

Lancashire had swept most before them in Division Two but their unbeaten record was upset by struggling Kent. Despite the welter of runs, an exciting climax was forged at Canterbury, and it was the old guard who provided the steel. Robert Key struck his fifth Championship century of the summer, Ashwell Prince scored a hundred in each innings but an unbeaten 205 not out in 218 balls from 37 year-old Darren Stevens secured only Kent's third win of the season.

They just about held on to seventh place in spite of rivals Glamorgan's victory over Gloucesteshire. Murray Goodwin has confounded this critic by rediscovering his form in 2013, and he passed fifty for the eleventh time to take the Welsh side over the finishing line. However, Jim Allenby's 85 runs and 7-47 bowling analysis were the real match-winners. In a year of impressive all-round performances (think Patel and Willey), the Aussie has been possibly the pick of the bunch, and Glamorgan's near-miss in the YB40 also owed much to him. If only the whole side could put it all together more consistently in four-day cricket, they could win promotion next year.

Durham have demonstrated you can win the biggest title in domestic cricket without an overseas star, but Perth-born Allenby, another Aussie with a UK passport Michael Hogan and Zimbabwean Goodwin have largely carried the squad in the Championship. More runs from the openers and wickets from Cosker and Wagg are needed.

Anyway, I'll focus the next blog on the most memorable performers and performances of the county season. So many to choose from!