Force with Loudon

Alex Loudon's departure from Kent last winter did not attract the same attention as his friend Ed Smith's move to Middlesex but the loss of Loudon was just as keenly felt because genuine allrounders can be twice as hard to replace. Both left Canterbury in the winter, disappointed at the club's handling of Smith's well-documented falling-out with Andrew Symonds.

Loudon had a steady start with Warwickshire but his performances have gathered momentum. Six Championship wickets against Nottinghamshire showed that his offspin is much more than a mere adjunct when conditions are favourable. His statistics in the 2005 Championship are the right way round for an allrounder and excellent for a 24-year-old. He averages 34.25 with the bat and 31.83 with the ball after nine games.

But his contributions in one-day cricket have been especially useful as Warwickshire reached the semi-finals of the C&G Trophy and pushed for promotion in the totesport League, in which Loudon was the county's leading run-scorer after 11 matches. Two performances against his old club showed what they were missing: in the C&G quarter-final two cheap wickets and a composed 29; then an unbeaten 73 in the totesport League.

"Alex is very mature and he has settled in well," says Dennis Amiss, the county's chief executive. "His scores may not have set the world alight but there is hardly a game goes by when he does not contribute usefully. He has been a very good signing."

Moment of the month Neil Carter's barnstorming innings of 65 in 38 balls against Yorkshire in the League, bolstering his cause in contract negotiations.