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Potential play-offs headache facing Yorkshire
YORKSHIRE will have to play at a neutral venue if they are involved in the end-of-season play-off in the NatWest Pro40 League.
The county, who would clinch promotion to Division One outright by beating bottom club Northamptonshire today, are unable to stage the fixture on September 21 due to complications at Headingley Carnegie and Scarborough.
Work is under way to install new drainage and irrigation systems at Headingley, while Yorkshire say Scarborough is ill-equipped to meet the needs of Sky Television.
The third-placed side in Division Two is awarded home advantage against the seventh-placed side in Division One and the Yorkshire Post understands any play-off involving Yorkshire would most likely be switched to Durham's Riverside ground, with Derby another possibility.
Stewart Regan, Yorkshire's chief executive, said no decision had yet been taken on an alternative venue but admitted Yorkshire would be forced to look elsewhere.
"The England and Wales Cricket Board have advised the club that they would require us playing the match at a venue capable of hosting the partner broadcaster, which obviously means that it's difficult to host it at Scarborough," said Regan.
"We are exploring a number of other options and are waiting on the outcome of the game in Northampton."
Yorkshire will fancy their chances of avoiding the prospect o f a logistical headache by defeating a Northamptonshire team who have not won any of their seven Pro40 games.
In the event of a no-result, tie or defeat at Wantage Road (12.45pm), Yorkshire would be sweating on the outcome of today's contest between fourth-placed Kent and Essex at Canterbury.
The mathematics are complex and Martyn Moxon, Yorkshire's director of cricket, said the simplest thing was just to win.
"That's what we need to do to make sure of going up, and the good thing is that the situation is in our own hands," he said.
"We've played pretty well in this competition and it would be nice now to finish the job off and get promotion.
Yorkshire (from): Gale, Rudolph, Rana Naved, McGrath, Lyth, Rashid, Pyrah, Brophy, Bresnan, Gough (captain), Kruis, Patterson, Wainwright.
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Saturday 26 May 2012
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