Nominees Announced for PCA Awards – 2014 Two members of Yorkshire’s LV= County Championship winning squad have been nominated for the 2014 PCA Player of the Year Award. Jack Brooks and Adam Lyth have been shortlisted, alongside Warwickshire’s Jeetan Patel and Kent’s Darren Stevens, with the winner announced on Wednesday 1st October, when the PCA Awards take place at Old Billingsgate in London. 2013 PCA Young Player of the Year Ben Stokes is once again nominated in the category. Two members of the winter England Performance Programme are also in with a chance of lifting the trophy with Kent’s Sam Billings and Yorkshire’s Alex Lees joining Lewis Gregory of Somerset. The not-for-profit event, run by the PCA in association with ECB, sees English cricketers – both past and present – join forces with sponsors and stakeholders to reflect on the domestic season, with all monies raised on the night going to the PCA Professional Cricketers’ Trust. Nominees for PCA Player of the Year: Jack Brooks (Yorkshire): Brooks moved from Northamptonshire two years ago at the age of 28 to share the new-ball at Yorkshire with Ryan Sidebottom. His impressive tally of more than 60 wickets was crucial to their LV= County Championship triumph. The right-armer was a model of consistency, being one of only two players to feature in every four-day game for the champions. Nicknamed the headband warrior due to his on-field attire, Brooks also starred in a run to the quarter-final of the Royal London One-Day Cup, picking up 11 wickets at an average under 30. The fans’ favourite was a late-starter in the professional game, having started his career at Oxfordshire. Adam Lyth (Yorkshire): Played a key role in Yorkshire’s first LV= County Championship success for 13 years with consistently good performances – including a century in the title-clinching victory against Nottinghamshire. Whitby-born, the left handed opener contributed 1,489 runs at an average of almost 70 which included six hundreds and two double tons as he ended 2014 the leading first-class run-maker in the country. Lyth also performed admirably in the shorter formats of the game, including two half centuries in the Royal London One-Day Cup, ending the season just shy of 1,900 runs in all cricket. Jeetan Patel (Warwickshire): Patel’s performances in 2014 saw him win the FTI MVP rankings, due to his exceptional consistency throughout all three domestic competitions. The off-spinner claimed 107 victims and scored over 600 runs in a year to remember for the Warwickshire man who was the leading wicket taker in the NatWest T20 Blast and the Royal London One-Day Cup as the Bears reached both finals. The New Zealander helped his side to lift the t20 trophy on their home ground and also took 59 wickets in the LV= County Championship as Warwickshire finished as runners up in Division One to conclude a fine season for the 34-year-old. Darren Stevens (Kent): The experienced all-rounder led the way for Kent with 56 wickets in the LV= County Championship, taking five wickets in an innings six times, as well as scoring over 800 runs. In the NatWest T20 Blast, he hit 351 runs at a strike-rate of almost 160, including three fifties, and took 18 wickets. He ended the campaign with over 1,300 runs and 81 wickets across all formats, once again showing his pedigree in county cricket. Stevens led the overall FTI MVP rankings for a large part of the summer but was edged out by winner Jeetan Patel in the last match of the season which means he’s finished in the top three for two consecutive years. Nominees for PCA Young Player of the Year: Sam Billings (Kent): Has been viewed for three years as a wicketkeeper batsman with exceptional talent and this was emphasised in the Royal London One-Day Cup where he averaged over 100 in the competition. The 23-year-old hit three half-centuries in the 50-over format but his highlight was when he smashed a remarkable 135 off just 58 balls as Kent beat Somerset. Billings also featured in all 16 LV= County Championship matches this summer, scoring 755 runs in the process. Throw in 210 runs in the NatWest T20 Blast, the keeper ended the year with 1,496 runs while proving to be a safe pair of hands behind the stumps, with 74 dismissals in total which included nine stumpings. Lewis Gregory (Somerset): Devon-born, the former England Under-19 player took 63 wickets and scored 541 runs in all competitions for Somerset, despite only playing 22 games this summer. The 22-year-old particularly impressed in the LV= County Championship where he claimed one 10-wicket haul, averaged just over 26 with the ball and enjoyed an impressive batting average of just under 30. He also scored an unbeaten 105 in the Royal London One-Day Cup. Alex Lees (Yorkshire): At the age of 21, the left-handed batsman already has an LV= County Championship title success against his name and many shrewd judges believe he’s destined to make a huge impact at the top level. Born in Halifax, this product of Yorkshire’s Academy hit 971 Championship runs this summer – including two centuries. The opener also reached three figures in the Royal London One-Day Cup, a superb 105 against Northamptonshire as he ended the summer with 368 runs at an average of 46 in 50-over cricket. Lees proved his versatility in the NatWest T20 Blast too, scoring 315 runs in the competition to end 2014 with an astonishing 1,654 runs in all forms of the game. A year to remember was literally capped off by his county after being awarded his county cap. Ben Stokes (Durham): Injury affected the start of his summer but England’s loss was certainly Durham’s gain, while the powerful all-rounder worked his way back to fitness. The 2013 winner of the Award, he scored 410 runs in just seven Royal London One-Day Cup matches to inspire Durham to success – including a remarkable 164 in the semi-final, and an undefeated 38 in the final to guide his side to victory against Warwickshire. The 23-year-old played for his country in all three formats of the game this year while appearing in each of the domestic competitions seven times. Stokes ended the county season with 45 wickets and over 800 runs to his name to highlight his potential as one of the brightest prospects in world cricket. Recent winners of the Reg Hayter Cup for the PCA Player of the Year include Moeen Ali, Nick Compton and Marcus Trescothick. The last three winners of the John Arlott Cup for the PCA Young Player of the Year – Ben Stokes, Joe Root and Alex Hales – have all gone on to represent England. The full list of awards to be presented are: ECB Special Award PCA Special Merit Award, sponsored by Lycamobile NatWest T20 Blast Player of the Year Award Royal London One-Day Cup Player of the Year Award Sky Sports Sixes Award England FTI MVP of the Summer FTI Team of the Year Waitrose Women’s Player of the Summer Investec Test Player of the Summer John Arlott Cup for the PCA Young Player of the Year Reg Hayter Cup for the PCA Player of the Year The PCA Awards, universally supported by the players, is entirely not-for-profit. All monies raised are donated to the PCA Professional Cricketers’ Trust, part of the association’s ongoing commitment to supporting players and their dependents who might be in need of a helping hand to readjust to a world beyond cricket, as well as helping current and past players who may have fallen on hard times or are in need of specialist advice or assistance. Notes to editors All nominees are anticipated to attend the PCA Awards, along with county players and many current England internationals. In advance of the Dinner, there will be a Media Hour at Old Billingsgate when players will be available for interview. For further information and to request accreditation, please email simon@bowlesassociates.com or call Simon Cleaves or Sam Bowles on 0115 982 1210. Announcement of winners: The details of winners for each award will be announced to the media under strict embargo at 5pm on Wednesday 1st October. Photography: The official Awards photographers are Getty Images, who can provide images of the players arriving and winners collecting their awards. The PCA are the collective and representative voice of first class cricketers in England and Wales. Its role is to safeguard the rights of present, past and future first class cricketers. The PCA Professional Cricketers’ Trust is the registered charity of the PCA, charity number 1120088. ECB, the England and Wales Cricket Board, are the governing body of cricket in England and Wales. {{ak_sharing}}
