Joe Leach says the entire Worcestershire squad are motivated to emulate the past glories displayed on the walls of the Graeme Hick Pavilion and is targeting LV=Insurance County Championship glory.
Club Captain Leach believes the squad are producing their most consistent cricket since he became a Worcestershire player, even though they have not fired on all cylinders this summer.
Worcestershire went into the current round of Group 1 matches just six points behind leaders and reigning champions Essex.
They have drawn five of their first six games and acquired the knack of hanging on for a share of spoils in games, as demonstrated twice against Essex and away to Derbyshire.
Leach said: “A big motivation for all of us is you go into the Hick Pavilion, and this squad has got pictures on the wall of when it was Vitality Blast champions in 2018 and other finals.
“But you look at the 1980s group of players, and they consistently won trophies – and that is what this group should be trying to achieve.
“The County Championship, and being at the top of the Championship, is something I’m desperate for this group to achieve because I think we can get there.
“We have been striving for consistency and, since I’ve been a Worcestershire player, this is probably the most consistent we have played even though it’s only been six and a half out of ten from us.
“Hopefully, we just build on that over a period of time, and six and a half becomes seven and eight out of ten, and you have that slow but gradual process and progress.”
Regarding the performances to date in 2021, Leach said: “At times we have not played our best cricket, that is pretty obvious, but at times we have played really well.
“But to draw games that we would have comfortably lost before shows a good nous of how to play four-day cricket.
“Worcestershire fans – and players – are used to playing lots of ‘win-lose-win-lose’ cricket, and everyone would have the attitude of ‘we have won a couple of games, great’ whereas now if we win two games, we will be top of the league.
“We have got to play well over the next three or four weeks, and what we wanted to install into the group was making us harder to beat. Draws with the current points structure are a lot of value for playing good cricket.”
Worcestershire are hoping for better fortunes with the weather today (Saturday) after only 15.5 overs play was possible on the opening two days of the Championship clash with Nottinghamshire at Trent Bridge.
