On The Circuit

Schofield out for six weeks

Chris Schofield faces six weeks on the sidelines after having surgery on his broken left thumb. He sustained the injury while fielding to his own bowling during Surrey's Friends Provident Trophy win over Sussex at Hove.

Plunkett hit by injury blow

Liam Plunkett, the Durham quick bowler, could be out of action for as long as six weeks after picking up a side strain.

It is a blow for Plunkett who has been trying to re-establish himself among the next batch of England quick bowlers after slipping off the international radar since last summer.

Poonia to the rescue for Scotland

Navdeep Poonia will help Scotland by filling in for their captain Ryan Watson in the FPT double-header at the weekend, away at Derbyshire and Lancashire. Warwickshire agreed to loan the big-hitting Poonia, who has played for Scotland's international side, as Watson is expecting the birth of his first child any time.

Journalists get on their bike

How do you get from the Brit Oval to Lord's without crossing the Thames? Six intrepid cyclists are about to prove it can be done and all in a good cause.

They are cycling from Kennington to St John's Wood the long way round, taking in all 18 first-class county headquarters - a trip of more than 1,000 miles over 16 days.

The tour has been devised by two cricket writers who spend most of their time pedalling opinions on the game: David Lloyd of the London Evening Standard and Colin Bateman of the Daily Express.

]]> They will be joined by former Sun cricket scribe Ian Todd, and making up the peloton are Alan Dracey, a keen cricket fan and civil servant from Lewes, and two of Colin's sons, Tom and Jack.

Because of their cricket connections they are raising funds for two charities with close links to the game: Heads Up, a cancer-research programme supported by England managing director Hugh Morris, who fought throat cancer, and the Laurie Engel Fund set up in memory of the son of cricket journalist Matthew Engel.

Anyone who fancies joining them for a leg of the trip is welcome - former England and Glamorgan batsman Steve James is threatening to do the Cardiff leg - and they would be delighted to receive any sponsorship coming their way.

The itinerary is: September 13 to Surrey and Kent; 14th to Sussex; 15th to Hampshire; 17th to Somerset and Gloucestershire; 18th to Glamorgan; 19th to Worcestershire; 20th to Warwickshire; 21st to Lancashire; 23rd to Durham; 24th to Yorkshire; 25th to Derbyshire; 26th to Nottinghamshire, Leicestershire and Northamptonshire; and 28th to Essex and Middlesex.

Full details of the trip can be obtained from colinjbateman@hotmail.com.

Those wishing to support the team can donate on: www.justgiving.com/davidtofflloyd and www.justgiving.com/colinbateman.

Walters suffers fractured cheekbone

Stewart Walters, the Surrey batsman, will miss five to six weeks of the season after suffering a fractured cheekbone while playing for the second team against Essex.

Walters wasn't part of the first XI in the early-season games, but was hoping to push for a spot after a promising winter playing club cricket in Australia.

Hildreth extends Somerset deal

James Hildreth has signed a new deal with Somerset which will keep him at the club until 2011. He is considered one of most promising up-and-coming batsmen in the country and toured India with England Lions during the winter.

"I am delighted to have signed a new contract and am pretty excited about the prospect of where Somerset are going," he told Somerset's website. "I love it here and I am always going to play here. I feel that this squad squad can take Somerset forward, not just in the coming season but also in future years."

Yorkshire wait on Gough

Darren Gough is hoping to find a league match this weekend to try and prove his fitness after a stiff back has hampered his early season. He missed Yorkshire's FP Trophy match against Durham and has been ruled out of the their opening Championship match against Hampshire.

"We are hoping that Darren will be able to bowl in practice at some time during the Hampshire match," Martyn Moxon, the Yorkshire coach, told the Yorkshire Post. "He hasn't done any bowling because of stiffness in his back and he is looking, hopefully, to get a game next weekend in the leagues."

Matthew Hoggard, meanwhile, has overcome the stiff neck which also caused him to miss the FP Trophy match.

Yorkshire's pace-bowling stocks are being stretched in the early weeks of the season. Along with the injury to Gough they are also missing Morne Morkel who is on Pro20 duty in South Africa.

Hick out for a fortnight

Graeme Hick is to have an elbow operation that will keep him out of action for two weeks. He has some floating bone that needs to be cleared out of his elbow and a decision has been made to sort it now rather than later in the season.

Prince Philip to open new Notts stand

The Duke of Edinburgh will officially open the new £8 million stand at Trent Bridge on the first day of the third Test between England against New Zealand on June 5.

It is the first Royal visit to the ground since Prince Phillip accompanied the Queen on a tour to mark her Silver Jubilee celebrations in 1977.

Nottinghamshire chief executive Derek Brewer said: "We are delighted. Given his love of cricket, we hope His Royal Highness is looking forward to visiting our refurbished venue."

Bedson elected Sussex president

Bryan Bedson has been elected as president of Sussex. He was chairman of Brighton & Hove Albion for five years, and he told the BBC that he was "delighted and honoured" with this appointment. "I'm a lifelong Sussex fan and to hold the presidency in a year when we are defending our title as county champions makes the post even more prestigious."

Nottinghamshire bolster seam attack

Nottinghamshire have added another pace bowler, David Pattinson, to their ranks for the new season as cover for Ryan Sidebottom and Stuart Broad who will be on England duty from mid-May.

Pattinson, 28, is a swing bowler from Grimsby who spent his childhood in Australia. He has had spells in the Nottinghamshire second XI and penned a two-year deal. It follows the signing of 19-year-old Luke Fletcher.

Derbyshire close to batsman deal

Derbyshire are set to announce the signing of a young overseas batsman on a Kolpak deal after the player went for a registration interview with the ECB.

The name has yet to be released, and Derbyshire will have to wait until the ECB have a board meeting on April 9 for confirmation, but Tom Sears is confident the deal will go ahead.

“It went very well and we don't anticipate a problem," Sears told the Derby Evening Telegraph. "All being well, we expect to announce our new signing at the press day on Wednesday."

The club also hope to sign a Kolpak bowler in the near future as John Morris, the coach, completes his squad for 2008 after Wavell Hinds had his registration turned down by the ECB.

Hogg misses start of season

Kyle Hogg, the Lancashire allrounder, has been ruled out of the first four to six weeks of the season after breaking a finger on his right hand during fielding practice.

The injury doesn't require surgery or a cast and Mike Watkinson, the Lancashire coach, said: "It's a blow, but these things happen. We'll just have to cover for it."

And, in an interview with the Manchester Evening News, Hogg admits that a lack of opportunities at Old Trafford might force him look elsewhere if this season doesn't go well.

Underground Lord's

The tunnels beneath Lord's, two of which used to carry tube trains, could be converted into indoor nets or used as walkways to cope with pedestrian congestion which is expected to increase dramatically in the next ten years.

David Batts, the MCC deputy chief executive, said: "It would be great to turn them into something useful.One of the main planks of our masterplan for Lord's is to create a cricket academy. We need new indoor nets and there is no reason why they shouldn't be underground like the ones at the Oval. advertisement
"There are alternatives: the tunnels could become a storage facility, a car park, or a health club. We are receiving proposals from architects and we will come up with a shortlist over the next couple of weeks."

The tunnels used to house trains on the Metropolitan and Jubilee lines. A third tunnel still functions, carrying trains from Marylebone to Birmingham.

Read the full story in today's Daily Telegraph.

Glamorgan report healthy profit

Glamorgan have entered the black for the first time in nine years, reporting a profit of £14,688.

"We're delighted that after such a difficult summer, with the stadium under construction and the appalling weather affecting the Twenty20 matches, we've managed to return an operating profit of £268,500," Mike Fatkin, the club's chief executive, said. "Having recently announced major sponsorship agreements with SWALEC, The Really Welsh Company, Paramount Office Interiors and others, we're seeing an increase in sponsorship income from £90,000 back in 2005, to a projected £1.1million in 2008. We have recruited several players from other counties and I know the players and our supporters are looking forward to the 2008 season with a real sense of anticipation."