I see Mark Lawson has been released by Derbyshire. It's a shame it didn't work out for him because he's a very talented cricketer. Let's hope he manages to find another County for next season.

One of the best days of County cricket in recent years for me was watching Mark bowl in tandem with Adil Rashid against Middlesex at Scarborough. We did not win (rain on the last day!) but the two looked like they would become a force together with a twin attack. I was sad when we let him go and he appears to have had limited chances at Derby.

Whilst the Middlesex game (& the Notts game won by Lawson & Rashid's bowling) looked good Mark always gave away runs whilst taking wickets .... unfortunately the wickets dried up ... I Lawson's last game for the Yorks first team & he looked like someome who'd 'lost it'. Mates who watch the 2nd team say Lawson's bowling just got worse ... a shame but another young 'un who looked good but didn't make it

Since it hasn't worked out for Mark at either Middlesex or Derbyshire, I suppose it's likely he'll end up playing league cricket. If so, it would be interesting to know whether the county club will keep in touch with him.

Many things about modern cricket are more rational and rationalized than in the past, but casting young players entirely into outer darkness when they "fail to make the grade" is one of those modern tendencies that's a bit like the progressive elimination of "third man". More an unquestioned fashion than a sensible policy. And this goes especially for bowlers and, among bowlers, particularly for spinners.

Apart from Snell of York, who was given a run-out in the second XI while at Leeds-Bradford UCCE, I can't remember anyone getting a game recently from outside the "magic circle" of the fully employed staff. But not everyone develops fully by the time they reach Academy age - or even by 24 or 25. Surrey got some sterling service out of Ian Ward for several years after he'd failed to make it first time around. I think he even won an England cap or two. And but for second chances, Steve Kirby would still be laying floors and Pattinson of Notts would be working on somebody's roof.

This has always been a serious weakness in the game in this country. If you haven't been signed up by a county by the age of , let's say 18, then your chances of playing professionally are virtually zero. This means that the England team can only be picked from a pool of about 400 players. In Australia, you might be playing for the lowliest club team in the middle of nowhere, but the structure is there - if you play well enough, at any age (in theory at least) then you will progress up the grades and have the possibility of playing state and international cricket. So despite a much smaller population, Australia can pick from a pool of hundreds of thousands. In an ideal world I would be in favour of scrapping second team contracts, with the second team being picked from the leagues.
At one stage it looked like Lawson might be a better bet than Rashid, and it's a real shame that it hasn't worked out for him. If he can't find another county then I hope he plays league cricket and Yorkshire keep an eye on his progress - he's too young and talented to be lost to the game. Having looked at this year's stats, Pattinson should be getting out his ladders again.

Can't quite see how scrapping second team contracts would help. At Yorkshire half of the best players must be on second team contracts!
And I don't think the leagues are awash with unregarded talent, as you often see argued. Generally, clubs do a pretty good job of scouting - for obvious reasons. But it's odd to think that if Sayers had had his catastrophic year before he'd broken into the first team, he may by now have gone the way of Chris Marsden or Nick Thornicroft.

True. In Yorkshire's case it might be better to scrap first team contracts, but I don't think the system as it stands allows for late developers. If you aren't there at 18 then you'll never make it. And what about those who, for whatever reason, never played cricket in their teens? I know several superb athletes (all female) who have all the attributes necessary to play cricket at the highest level but haven't because they want to do all sports. One of them is going to be an olympic rower in a few years, even though she has only been in a boat once. I don't see how that sort of thing could happen in English cricket.
Getting back to Lawson - what he really needs is to play lots of cricket - northern counties have always been wary of leg spinners - find his form and then he would be a useful acquisition for a county.

look no further than Chris Schofield for a talented (but wayward) young leggie who had early success but then disappeared to minor county cricket only to then reappear as a more mature and successful bowler a few years later.

Perhaps Lawson may do likewise and reappear in 3 or 4 years time when he has matured, settled down and gained more bowling experience to boost his confidence.