By Graham Hardcastle
Jack Brooks says the time is right for him to leave Yorkshire.
The 34-year-old seamer has signed a three-year contract with Somerset, who he took five wickets against in the Specsavers County Championship defeat at Emerald Headingley, which finished yesterday (Saturday).
Brooks, a two-time Championship winner with the White Rose, describes his five-year stay at Emerald Headingley as “special”, but admits the move to Taunton was too good an opportunity to pass up.
“I was never looking to leave coming into the season,” he explained, having been offered a two-year deal with Yorkshire.
“But the longer the contract talks went on, it allowed other teams to come in and have a chat when I wasn’t really putting myself out there.
“Somerset came in with intent, and they’ve impressed me quite a lot with how they’ve gone about their cricket this year.
“With Andy Hurry as the director of cricket and the coaches and players they’ve got, they look like they’re going places.
“It could be good timing for the end of my career just to get a fresh start and work with some different coaches.
“It will be tough to leave Yorkshire. It was a really, really difficult decision, and it took me a long time to come to it.
“It came down to a bit of a head v heart thing.
“I only made the decision the week before last because both clubs wanted to know.
“It just so happened that we were playing each other immediately after it was announced, which was a bit frustrating.
“I’ve had a lot of good feedback from people, and I think they understand it’s the right decision.”
