Durham Cricket secured promotion into Division One of the LV= Insurance County Championship, taking an unassailable lead over Leicestershire on Monday 11th September 2023.
Head coach Ryan Campbell was at South Northumberland Cricket Club when he heard Durham’s promotion had become official, he said, “I was spending time with the second team, my phone kept buzzing in my pocket and had me thinking ‘What’s going on here?’.
“Then I switched it on and saw the news which is fantastic for everyone who has been a part of Durham Cricket.”
Despite leading Durham to their most red ball victories in a campaign since 2015, Campbell refused to take all the credit. “I think I took over a pretty good squad to be fair, a lot of hard work has gone into this team for a long time and I guess I came at the right moment.”
From day one Campbell expressed a desire to implement his brand of positive cricket, he added. “We wanted to play a different style than what had been played here previously; we knew the way we wanted to play.”
He continued, “That was always my vision but to get everyone to buy into it was going to be important and thankfully they’ve embraced it. We’ve seen a group of talented blokes go about their business with the bat and just as importantly with the ball.”
This is reflected with Alex Lees topping the run-scoring charts for Division Two accumulating 1,281 runs alongside Matthew Potts and Ben Raine who are tied at the top of the bowling charts with 51 wickets apiece. “I think when people walk away, they will be left thinking that they enjoyed watching our team play.”
Campbell said of the club’s ambitions, “All we can do now is take this team to where we think it belongs.”
He added, “I’m extremely proud of the club’s position and we’re not going to try and just survive, we’re going to try and win Division One. I reckon there is a lot more exciting cricket to come.”
Campbell said on his first summer in the northeast of England, “I have always loved the county game and always wanted to be a part of it. I have really enjoyed what I’ve seen so far. Hopefully I will be here for a long time and keep Durham Cricket where it belongs.”