Welch a rare hit

Graeme Welch: batting or bowling allrounder? © Getty Images

Five players left the county ground at the end of the season and the coach David Houghton is pretty near to assembling a side that he expects to compete more strongly next summer. Michael Di Venuto returns after a year-long back injury together with Jon Moss. Ian Hunter, formerly of Durham, and Ben France, a left-hander, are two new faces and Ben Spendlove, having left the club in 2000, returns for a second spell.

"Michael will be playing again in Australia this winter and we need his runs," Houghton says. "With the staff we had we competed fairly well but were short of the necessary ability in a few departments. I've now got the number of bowlers and batters that I need and it's up to them to perform."

Graeme Welch, the allrounder, did a terrific job, enjoying his best season with the bat while bearing the brunt of a depleted attack. His 609 runs at an average of almost 30 represented a huge improvement and, if he did not take as many wickets as in 2003 - down from 53 to 45 - that was because he was given the new ball rather than coming on first change.

But Houghton's big success was the introduction of Hasan Adnan, whose 1,200 runs were nearly twice as many as anyone else in the side and justifiably brought him the supporters' club Player of the Year Trophy. That form allied with a run spree from Di Venuto should go a long way towards turning the county round simply by giving the bowlers something to bowl at.

Player of the Year Graeme Welch
High Bowling out Durham for 91, the lowest score by anyone last summer, to record their only win.
Low Just about all the other county games