Battling through the pain barrier in Yorkshire’s cause

Yorkshire missed out on a first County Championship title since 2001 on the final day of last season and also reached the semi-final of the CB40 competition, but the White Rose has wilted under the expectation this season.

Languishing second from bottom and embroiled in a relegation fight, the club’s senior batsman and a survivor from their championship-winning team of a decade ago has called on his team-mates to do everything in their power to give themselves another shot at glory next summer.

“Survival is everything for the club,” said the 35-year-old. “I know people are disappointed we haven’t made an impact at the other end of the league but we believe we’ve got the team to be in the First Division and we want to make sure we stay in this division to come back strongly next year.

“Division One is the place to play. People who say there’s no difference between One and Two are completely wrong, everyone wants to be in Division One, and we’re no different. On the back of last year we wanted to be contending this year, but surviving this year gives us a chance to get back up there next year.”

McGrath has found his touch at exactly the right time following a summer-long battle with a knee injury. He made 115 in the tiresome draw with Hampshire at the Rose Bowl and made 63 last week in the CB40 victory over Middlesex at Lord’s.

McGrath said: “It’s been a frustrating season, trying to play through injury and trying to feel like my old self again, but I’ve had some good hit-outs in the second team over recent weeks, I felt good against Lancashire, and it was nice to get three figures down at the Rose Bowl.

“I started the year getting my cartilage cleaned out which is only supposed to be three or four weeks, but since then I’ve picked up sciatica, the nerve-root irritation, and that’s been with me for a few months.

“When it comes on it’s just like a knife being stuck into your knee so any type of movement results in sharp pains through your knee. It’s more or less impossible to finish a game once I start with it.

“But I haven’t been getting it just in cricket, it’s been in every day life, walking around, sleeping, anytime really. It’s been the proverbial nightmare.

“I’ve tried to play through it then have a break, then start again but it looks like I’ve finally got on top of it and, hopefully, in the few remaining games I can score heavily and help the team.

“The last two or three weeks have been fine and, as well as getting the runs under my belt, I’m just happy to be back playing without any pain. Hopefully, now this is the end of it.”

Despite describing the injury as the ‘worst of his career’ the former county captain does not believe it will be prove a death-knell to his playing days.

Far from it, for the man who started his career with Yorkshire at age 19, intends to go on for a lot longer yet.

“I’m as committed as ever and enjoying it as much as ever, so given that I’m injury-free, I’m very happy,” he said.

“I’ve not wanted to play anywhere else; I’ve been here all my career and this is where I want to finish it.

“One of the disappointing things over my career is we haven’t won too many trophies, apart from the 2001 title and the C&G (in 2002). We’ve been close on a number of occasions. We were close last season and a club of our size should be competing for trophies at the end of a season.

“It would be great to get those times back but we know how much hard work goes into achieving that.”