COUNTY_SIGNINGS_12SEP93

Walsh stays put as Richards thinks again By Charles Randall Courtney Walsh accepted a new three-year contract with Gloucester shire yesterday, while Viv Richards may postpone his retirement from first-class cricket. The relief was almost tangible among the Gloucestershire management in the refurbished corridors of the County Ground at Bristol when fast bowler Walsh confirmed his decision. He will also continue as captain. Walsh, 30, made his Gloucestershire debut in 1984 and has become a crucial member of the side with his bowling, but he admitted he would have left the county this summer if he had not been offered a long-term contract. He said: "The captaincy didn't really carry any weight in the negotiations. I wasn't happy with a one-year roll-over contract." Departure would have left Gloucestershire in severe difficulty. They would have had little hope of signing a replacement overseas seam bowler of international calibre, and there has been little sign yet that David Lawrence, Walsh's would-be new ball partner, will make a full recovery from his broken knee-cap. Viv Richards confirmed that he was interested in remaining in first-class cricket and "would consider any offer which came my way". Richards (41) had decided to retire at the end of the season when his contract with Glamorgan expires, but his performances during a successful summer for the Welsh county have prompted him to reconsider his future. The problem in signing overseas players has been exacerbated by next summer's two incoming tours by New Zealand and South Africa, while Pakistan's proposed tour of Sri Lanka next July has become an added complication. Surrey, with Waqar Younis, and Somerset (Mushtaq Ahmed) have resigned themselves to only half a season's service from their Pakistan Test players, and Lancashire will probably have to adopt a similar attitude with Wasim Akram. Essex remain the only county without a name linked to them. They were seeking a seam-bowler rather than a batsman to replace Salim Malik, though their options would widen if they signed Paul Jarvis, Yorkshire's out-of-favour England fast bowler. Peter Edwards, Essex's secretary, said yesterday: "We have a list of names, but I can honestly say we have spoken to nobody yet. It all depends on the domestic scene." Desmond Haynes, the West Indies opening batsman, is considering a new contract offered to him by Middlesex, the new county champions. Andrew Cottam, the Somerset and former England U-19 leftarm spinner, has signed a two-year contract with Northamptonshire. Cottam was born in Northampton and his father Bob, now Somerset's cricket manager, played for the county. Registrations for 1994 (West Indians unless stated): Derbyshire (Ian Bishop), Durham (Anderson Cummins), Essex (to be decided), Glamorgan (Ottis Gibson), Gloucestershire (Courtney Walsh), Hampshire (Winston Benjamin), Kent (Carl Hooper), Lancashire (Wasim Akram, Pakistan) Leicestershire (Phil Simmons), Middlesex (Desmond Haynes), Northamptonshire (Curtly Ambrose), Nottinghamshire (Jimmy Adams), Somerset (Mushtaq Ahmed, Pakistan), Surrey (Waqar Younis, Pakistan), Sussex (Franklyn Stephenson), Warwickshire (Manoj Prabhakar, India), Worcestershire (Ken Benjamin) Yorkshire (Richie Richardson). (Thanks: The Daily Telegraph and Muthu) posted by Vicky on r.s.c.