Rite of Spring still blooms

With the imminent arrival of the World Twenty20, swiftly to be followed by the small matter of the Ashes, it's hard not to feel the marginalisation of county cricket more keenly than ever. The Twenty20 Cup - the very goose, lest one forget, that spawned the golden egg - has been shifted from it's habitual June fortnight; May will see just one full round of Championship matches. Should England regain the urn in August, domestic results will be relegated to the smallest print known to broadsheets. In the far more likely case of an Australian victory, the corpse of county cricket will be dragged out for its traditional public flogging. As those who paid to witness barely persistent rain ruin the season-opener at Lord's might have felt, it can be hard to win as a county supporter.

But with the attention of the mass media elsewhere, not inconsiderable change is afoot in the domestic arena. New coaches and directors have been brought in to reawaken sleeping giants. Big names, too: Peter Moores at Lancashire, Angus Fraser returning to Middlesex, Chris Adams making what appears - though Yorkshiremen will need convincing - a lasting move from Sussex to Surrey. Moores and Adams know county success, although the needs and wants of two regional heavyweights may press them harder than seaside Sussex, where they needed and were given years to bring about success. Meanwhile, the minnows of a decade ago, now temporary wearers of what was once Surrey's unchallenged crown - rarely Lancashire's, a 'big club' akin to Newcastle United - look to build their own dynasty. A surfeit of seam bowlers, mostly locally nurtured, should boost Durham's chances of retaining their title, while their young turk captain, Will Smith, will have the support of gnarled old-pros Benkenstein and Chanderpaul and perhaps an additional weapon in Steve Harmison, to whom that description can still apply in county cricket.

Past the defending champions, the competition looks tight-knit as has increasingly been the case in the two-divisional system. Nottinghamshire's seam attack is tasty, but they look short of runs, especially if Samit Patel is required by England. Somerset are at the other pole: Langer and Trescothick continue to underwrite any batting deficit, but an attack which has still to move on from 40-year old Andrew Caddick should keep them stronger contenders for relegation than the title. Sussex have shopped shrewdly - bringing in Yasir Arafat and Ed Joyce - but the reality of Mushtaq's lost wickets began to set in last season, and there is no clear impression that they have addressed the issue. Worcestershire look just covered on bowling, but short on batting; fellow promotees Wawrickshire will have to do it the dull way, as was the case five summers ago, but look too anodyne, as exemplified by the unprepossessing acquisition of New Zealand's Jeetan Patel. Yorkshire remain too long detained by the process of bringing through youth; they will not get far unless they can identify a hardy pair of openers, a glaring deficiency in recent seasons, but otherwise the team has a nice balance, and will benefit from a refreshed Matthew Hoggard, eager to jerk the attention of the national selectors, who want to move on.

If Surrey, Kent and Middlesex think turning up will see them out of the Second Division, they could struggle. All are reasonable bets for promotion, but will be pushed hard by the more ambitious of the lower tier's accustomed residents: Essex have a bright-looking squad, albeit slightly lacking the substance for four-day cricket, as opposed to limited overs formats, where they are kings. Derbyshire too are upwardly-mobile, albeit slightly lacking experience in the bowling ranks. The remaining teams look set for continued struggle: some would say that Leicestershire and Northants, pushing the overseas quota as far as it is willing to go, deserve little better. But if some degree of predictability would be a blessed relief to county followers - being able to work out starting times for games without the aid of star-gazing equipment would be a start - the complete uncertainty across all four competitions should keep supporters interested , and the chance to witness the next generation of aspiring hopefuls - in healthy abundance despite the much-trumpeted influx of Kolpaks et al - is sufficient reason to remain hopeful however the national team fares.