Date-stamped : 18 May94 - 22:25 Nottinghamshire 1994 Preview More class than depth at Ormrod's disposal County Prospects By Neil Hallam That old tailoring joke - "Never mind the quality, feel the width" - has been revamped by Nottinghamshire's new coach Alan Ormrod as he assesses their prospects for the new season. For Notts, he believes, it is a case of "Never mind the depth, feel the class". "Depth is the main concern for us," admits Ormrod, appointed on a six-month contract following the departure of cricket manager Mike Hendrick late last season amid whispers of "player power". "With the likes Tim Robinson, Paul Pollard, Paul Johnson, Bruce French, Chris Lewis and Andy Pick - not to mention Jimmy Adams - we've got players of proven quality. "But behind them we've got a young squad short of experience so if we're go- ing to challenge in any of the competitions the senior players have got to have a virtually injury-free season." With Adams, one of the new batting stars in the West Indian firmament, replacing all-rounder Chris Cairns as Notts' overseas player, the lack of depth is especially acute in the seam bowling department. "A great player like Cairns is going to be missed," admits Ormrod. "He's a very aggressive competitor, he took 53 wickets to top the bowling averages last summer. "If, as seems likely, Chris Lewis is away on England duty for much of the summer, Andy Pick and Kevin Evans will be left as our only experienced seamers." Since injuries limited this pair to only 500 overs and 46 wickets between them in the championship last season, it is an under- standable concern. Pick is seen as a potential match-winner but he is in need of a big season to relaunch a career which earned international recognition on England A tours to Sri Lanka in 1990-91 and the West Indies the following winter. With Evans, the task for Ormrod is to instil assertiveness to add to his ability to make use of the conditions offering swing or seam. "We'll also be reliant on Lewis playing to his maximum," added Ormrod, "be- cause he's as gifted a cricketer as anybody in the English game." If seam bowling is thin on the ground, no such shortage applies to spin and Ormrod probably gives a hint of things to come at Trent Bridge in admitting: "I've always been a believer in pitches that offer turn at some stage." Andy Afford was the county's leading wicket-taker with 57 in the championship last year and with Mike Field-Buss taking 28 and second place in their bowling averages, this is certainly the stronger suit. In left- arm spinner James Hindson and off-spinner Richard Bates, Notts have promising cover for both varieties and Ormrod believes Adams, yet another slow left-arm bowler, will get plenty of op- portunities to bowl. "He's obviously a very accomplished crick- eter who has looked impressive with the bat but hasn't had many chances in international cricket to show what he can do with his spin bowling," added Ormrod. It is when discussing the batting that Ormrod's voice develops a distinct purr. "I don't see us go- ing short of runs too often," he said. "The skipper, Tim Robin- son, has always impressed me. He's as reliable as anybody in the game." Paul Pollard, the opener who scored 1,463 first-class runs in 1993, has also earned Ormrod's admiration for his willingness to work at his game. "He's a left-hander, which helps, and he doesn't think he's cracked it just because he's had one big sea- son." Paul Johnson was the other batsman to top 1,000 runs in the championship and with his power, range of strokes and ability to improvise he represents the most likely source of match-winning innings in limited-overs cricket. After resigning the vice- captaincy amid allegations of a breakdown in communications with Robinson and Hendrick last summer, Johnson was assumed to be at the centre of dressing-room unrest. It was only after the depar- ture of Hendrick that Johnson agreed to sign a new contract. But Ormrod said:"The mood seems very postive now, and that's impor- tant if we're going to achieve anything. To have any chance of winning the championship you've got to be thinking of winning at least 10 or 11 games. If that means losing the rest, so what? De- feat is sometimes the price you have to pay for the chance of victory." Nottinghamshire's hopes could well rest on Ormrod's ability to get that message across. (Thanks : The Daily Telegraph) Contributed by Vicky (VIGNESWA@*umass.edu)