Durham are back in Rothesay County Championship action this Friday [24 April], hosting Lancashire at Banks Homes Riverside from 11am.
Ryan Campbell has named a squad of 15 to take on the Red Rose as his side look for a second win after victory over Gloucestershire in Bristol in round two.
Callum Parkinson could make his first home appearance of 2026 after featuring in the West Country whilst Sam Conners and James Minto are in contention to appear in the Durham side for the first time this summer.
Luke Robinson is in contention to make his first-class debut, having impressed for Durham Second XI with a five-wicket haul against Worcestershire.
Lancashire top the Division Two table having gained 54 points from three games with victories against Derbyshire and Gloucestershire while Durham sit fourth on 37 points after two matches.
Squad v Lancashire (24-27 April)
Colin Ackermann, Kasey Aldridge, David Bedingham, Graham Clark, Sam Conners, Emilio Gay, Alex Lees*, Ben McKinney, James Minto, Callum Parkinson, Matthew Potts, Ben Raine, Kemar Roach, Luke Robinson, Ollie Robinson+.
Words from Ryan Campbell
We’ve had a week off, we’ve refreshed and that came at a nice time. I think there are so many good sides in Division Two, we know every game is a tough one. Lancashire will present us with a great challenge. We have really good players in our team and they have really good players in their team. We know our strengths and weaknesses, it should be a great challenge for everyone.
This is one of those rare occasions where we actually have had time to prepare for a side. What they have been very good at is obviously bowling with the new ball, with both the first and second new ball they’ve taken a lot of wickets. I think we all know the quality of Jimmy Anderson but we’re not going to let him dictate terms to us, we’re going to take the attack to him and then look to put pressure on their bowling attack.
We’re looking forward to welcoming Paul Coughlin back. He’s someone who has been such a good player for us over a long period of time. We wish him well but we also know that we are going to put him under the microscope too. They have a few former Durham players in their side so hopefully we give them a good welcome.
We haven’t named 15 for the sake of it, we have a really busy month ahead with four games in four weeks. We’re going to need to rotate our bowlers, so far we haven’t rotated anyone which is lucky. Parky has come in and helped out massively. We’re looking at Minto, Robinson and Conners to step up to the plate when we feel it’s time to go so we’re thinking about that as we speak.
Opposition Corner
Captain: Sir James Anderson
Head coach: Steven Croft
2025 finish: 5th
2025 leading run-scorer: Luke Wells (1,074)
2025 leading wicket-taker: George Balderson (40)
Key winter moves: Former captain Steven Croft has been appointed permanent head coach after an interim spell during the second half of 2025 and Sir James Anderson as Rothesay County Championship skipper. Ajeet Singh Dale and Paul Coughlin have arrived to bolster the fast-bowling stocks, with Australia A quick Mitch Perry signing an early-season overseas deal. Perry joins Victoria teammate Marcus Harris, the prolific batter who is halfway through a two-year overseas contract. Seamer Will Williams has gone to Gloucestershire.
What we’re looking forward to seeing: A promotion push. The Red Rose start the summer as favourites to win Division Two, and it’s no surprise. They struggled to get out of the blocks last season and, despite finishing well, had left themselves with too much to do. Keaton Jennings resigned as red-ball captain in May, while Dale Benkenstein left his role as head coach. Things look a lot more settled now, which should boost chances of a faster start.
Aiming to catch Test selectors’ eye: New recruit Ajeet Singh Dale, from Gloucestershire, made two England Lions appearances in 2024 and 2025. He’s within four wickets of 100 in his Championship career. With significant pace and skill, and at the age of 25, he has every chance of breaking into the Test match plans if he can hit the ground running at Emirates Old Trafford.
Final thought: Steven Croft, who has added ex-England quick Kabir Ali to his backroom staff as the new bowling coach, wants success across the board in 2026. He aims to convert an excellent record of reaching Vitality Blast Finals Days into silverware, for example. But he did recently admit one goal stands above the rest, saying: “We want to win the County Championship, and we can’t do that in Division Two. The main goal is promotion.”
Match Centre
The Club’s match centre will be in operation for the fixture with live scorecards, statistics & video highlights as they happen. You can watch the game live via Durham’s YouTube channel. Durham Cricket will have full coverage on social media, with a full match report at the close.