Picture by Allan McKenzie/SWPIx.com. Noah Kelly is wants to make his mark early on the new summer.
By Noah Kelly
Our pre-season tour to Desert Springs provided us with, I would say, exceptional preparation ahead of the new summer.
The wickets out there were pretty ‘English’.
They were slightly slow, green, and you couldn’t really drive on the up. That’s very similar to April wickets over here.
Especially as a top-order batter, it was ideal.
Yes, the facilities are very good in Abu Dhabi, but they are at Desert Springs as well.
We definitely made the most out of it. And, given the quick turnaround with everything that was happening in the Middle East, the club did a brilliant job to get that tour sorted.
I kind of knew what to expect because I’d been there before on a Bear Cricket tour when I was 13 or 14-years-old.
Picture by Thomas Facey Photography: Noah has played cricket in Australia and Spain this winter.
It’s a very cool resort. There’s a nice golf course there, and we played a lot of padel and tennis. There’s a bit less to do away from cricket than there is in Abu Dhabi. But a golf course and a padel court, that’s perfect for a cricketer!
I certainly enjoy the padel, that’s for sure.
Cricket wise, they have a main oval, and there’s also a Cricket Academy where the nets are.
It’s very picturesque as well.
The backdrop of the mountains reminded me a bit of Cape Town, actually.
After another winter in Australia, which I absolutely loved, it has been nice to be back around the lads again. It’s been great to hear more Yorkshire than Aussie accents.
I’m definitely ready for the first ball now.
Picture by Allan McKenzie/SWPix.com. Yorkshire’s class of 2026.
The excitement around the group is so high. We’ve made a few good signings on the back of a very good second half of the County Championship last year.
Everyone is confident we can get some wins in this first block of matches and build the momentum from there.
Success for me would be to put my name at the front of the queue when those selection calls need to be made. That’s the part I can control.
Realistically, I’m going to start in the second team. Our first game with the seconds is a three-day friendly against Leeds/Bradford University at Weetwood on April 7.
So it’s about putting in the good performances to make sure that when the chance comes, I’m there to take it.
Opening the batting and keeping – if that opportunity comes in the second team – that will be a nice challenge for me.
The wickets are going to be tough early doors as an opener. That means that if you get in and get into your thirties and forties, you’ve really got to make it count.
Picture by Allan McKenzie/SWPix.com. Noah can shine with the bat and wicketkeeping gloves.
When you look back on a summer, the chances are that you will score more runs towards the end. So, if I can start well, that will give me a lot of confidence.
I’ll still be around at Driffield Town as much as I can, but I probably won’t play quite as much as I have done over the last few years.
My dad’s chairman, and I like to get back there whenever I can. It’s a great place to play.
We’ve done really well in terms of recruitment. We’ve got Sam Drury back, who captained us to our first YPL North title in 2022. He’s come out of retirement.
We’ve also made a couple of very good local signings, including James Pick, who has played at Scarborough and Stamford Bridge.
We have a really good group.
We did very well last year to finish third given we didn’t have an overseas player and we had three new players. It was a very good effort. Fingers crossed, we can push on again.
