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England duo can stay at Yorkshire
YORKSHIRE'S chief executive Stewart Regan last night insisted the club could afford to pay the salaries of England discards Michael Vaughan and Matthew Hoggard should the pair miss out on the latest round of central contracts.
Yorkshire will find out next week whether Vaughan and Hoggard are to be given lucrative new 12-month deals which would see England continue to pay their wages.
In a worst-case scenario,
Yorkshire would have to find a substantial sum to accommodate both men in what would effectively be the equivalent of signing two new players.
But Regan said the club could cope with the added burden and insisted both men had an important future at Headingley Carnegie.
"The club will be able to accommodate the costs if Michael and Matthew are not awarded central contracts," confirmed Regan.
"The extra wages would obviously impact on us next year because both are currently on England contracts and well-paid.
"But they are also under contract to Yorkshire and we would certainly accommodate them.
"They have played for the county for many years and have been tremendous performers and tremendous ambassadors."
Hoggard is almost certain to miss out on an England deal having played no Test cricket since he was axed by Vaughan during the winter tour to New Zealand.
But Vaughan's situation is less cut-and-dried; the 33-year-old is averaging only 23 in first-class cricket since July 2007 but is not without his supporters within the England set-up and still believes he has much to offer following his decision to stand down as captain.
Regan said Vaughan's efforts in charge of the national team made him deserving of another central contract.
During five years at the helm, Vaughan was statistically England's most successful Test leader and inspired the unforgettable Ashes triumph of 2005.
"I would be very disappointed if Michael didn't get a new central contract," added Regan.
"To take him from England captain to being, effectively, thrown out of the central plans at a time when he is committed to getting back among the runs would be a bit of a kick in the teeth in all honesty, and he deserves at least another year to prove that he can make it.
"I think Michael's leadership skills alone would be immensely useful as England prepare to try to regain the Ashes.
"He showed as the last Ashes-winning captain that he has so many qualities that England can benefit from, and he's put an enormous amount of effort into developing the England team.
"Some people might think that the king is dead, long live the king, and that we should allow Kevin Pietersen the chance to get his own team and squad together and management style in place.
"That clearly needs to happen, but I think that having the experience of Michael Vaughan around and the leadership qualities he undoubtedly possesses wouldn't be a bad thing for another 12 months and certainly with a view to preparing for the Ashes."
Earlier this week, Vaughan played down speculation linking him with a potential move from Headingley and insisted his primary focus was scoring runs for Yorkshire.
Warwickshire, Lancashire and Hampshire are among a clutch of clubs rumoured to be interested in his services, although Yorkshire's lack of top-order runs means an on-song Vaughan could also be a priceless asset to the Headingley club.
Another factor as Yorkshire prepare to accommodate two extra salaries is that their wage bill for next summer will be significantly eased by the retirement of club captain Darren Gough later this month.
The former England fast bowler, who is sitting out the current County Championship match against Sussex at Scarborough, hopes to return for the final two Championship games as Yorkshire look to climb away from the relegation zone.
Yorkshire host Somerset at Scarborough on Wednesday week before rounding off their campaign against Sussex at Hove.
No play was possible on day three at North Marine Road yesterday following torrential rain.
The umpires bowed to the inevitable at 12.20pm with puddles of water all over the outfield.
Yorkshire are set to resume their first innings today on
133-7, 132 runs behind after Sussex posted 265 in their first innings. But the weather forecast is once again poor and the outfield has already taken a substantial soaking.
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Weather for Yorkshire
Saturday 26 May 2012
Today
Sunny
Temperature: 9 C to 23 C
Wind Speed: 17 mph
Wind direction: East
Tomorrow
Sunny
Temperature: 9 C to 23 C
Wind Speed: 15 mph
Wind direction: East
