As the Yorkshire men’s pre-season tour of Abu Dhabi came to a close against Somerset earlier today, Anthony McGrath looked ahead to the new season and said with real confidence: “Anything’s possible.”
McGrath returned to Headingley at the start of November from Essex, taking on the role as head coach, and he has been clear right from the word go that he and his players are aiming high in 2025.
Everything that he has seen over the last fortnight in the Arabian Desert has only strengthened that belief.
“The last two weeks has re-iterated what a good squad we’ve got,” said the ex-England all-rounder. “We’ve obviously got the overseas and some other players to join us, but I think we’ve got real depth and quality in all positions.
“I think it’s shown in both T20 and red-ball cricket that we have real options in all areas.
“Overall now, we’re really excited to start the season because we have a lot to look forward to. We’ve said it all winter. I believe we can compete on all fronts.
“That’s only emphasised by the players we’ve got and the ones we’ve got to add.
“It’s about starting well, getting that momentum and belief. And if we get that with the squad we’ve got, there’s no reason why we can’t go on to achieve what we’re capable of.”
Yorkshire won two of their three matches in the Abu Dhabi Counties Super Cup T20 competition last weekend before their even two-day game against Somerset, which saw McGrath’s troops post 311-9 on day one and the Taunton side post 338-10 today.
The county return to Headingley early next week and will continue preparations for the Rothesay County Championship opener against Hampshire at the Utilita Bowl, starting on Friday April 4.
That includes a two-day behind closed doors friendly against Lancashire at Headingley on Sunday 30 and Monday 31 March.
McGrath added: “In the short-term, our focus will be red ball.
“We’ve had one week here of T20 stuff, but the next 10 weeks is all red-ball.
“Seven Championship games is half your season, so we have to really concentrate on that. The training and the two-day game against Lancashire will all be red-ball stuff.
“Hopefully by the time we come to T20 (late May), we’re in a really good position in Division One.”
