Maybe we were hiding behind the clouds after all.

So the wheels seem to have come off Yorkshire's fine season with back to back defeats against a good Lancashire side and bottom of the table Worcestershire. The weather has certainly given Sussex the chance to win the title, but they still have to grasp the opportunity and win matches, something Yorkshire have failed to do recently. Blaming the weather doesn't hold water if you get beat.

At least the equation for Yorkshire is now straightforward. Gough and his cohorts most likely need to win their three remaining matches. Warwickshire blow hot and cold, Sussex are top and Hampshire are the form team of the Division. However with Hoggard, Vaughan and Inzi in the team, on paper we should be able to compete.

Alas cricket is not played on paper. Gillespie should tear county batting line ups to shreds, yet he doesn't. Younus Khan, despite two matches of brilliance, has not had the consistent match winning effect that was hoped for. Bresnan, a player with all the attributes to succeed, has rarely bowled match turning spells. Yet Pyrah and Wainwright have come through and done well when given the chance.

Is it now time to give these youngsters a run out? Pyrah, after spending a few years on the fringe, has now begun to really shine in limited overs cricket. Wainwright has burst from nowhere and has already nudged ahead of Lawson in the pecking order. His lower order batting shows promise and he offers Gough some control with his bowling, something Rashid seems to have lost this season. Poor old Lawson has really gone off the boil. His season never really got started. Out of the team on early season pitches, the rain then disrupted the mid summer fixtures and now his form seems to have deserted him. A loan spell would do him good, or a winter tour down-under.

Still, there is still hope. Vaughan's return should shore up the opening partnership. Inzi may offer more consistency than his countryman. Rashid has finally begun show his all round capabilities. Brophy is still churning out runs and Mags, after slowly moving through the gears, is up to full power.

However wickets will be needed. Sixty of them.