Cricket World County Player Of The Week - Stephen Moore

Cricket World County Player Of The Week

Stephen Moore guided Lancashire to their first Championship title for 77 years.

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The final week of the county season has seen a gripping Championship finale and a well-deserved Clydesdale Bank 40 triumph for Surrey; all of which makes the County Player of the Week a tricky decision.

Rory Hamilton-Brown, perhaps aptly, was the hero of the day in the final for Surrey on Saturday as he made a 62-ball 78 to guide his side to victory over Somerset. It marks the culmination of two years hard work for the 24 year-old who, along with Chris Adams, has taken Surrey from being a stale and tired club to one that is fresh and ready to challenge for the County Championship next year.

As far as the Championship goes, several players - Lancashire, Warwickshire or otherwise - had a hand in the destination of the prized pennant. Liam Dawson, perhaps unwittingly, did much to thwart Warwickshire's bid with a brilliant unbeaten 152 at The Rose Bowl, while Michael Carberry and Neil McKenzie's second innings centuries were equally crucial.

In the battle for promotion, Pragyan Ojha took six for 42 to help Surrey go up by a point over Northamptonshire who, despite the best efforts of David Willey (10 for 75), paid the price for their lacklustre end to the season by missing out; while Will Gidman completed the double of 1000 runs and 50 wickets in his debut season for Gloucestershire when he took five wickets in the first innings of their match against Northamptonshire.

Stephen Moore takes the award, however, after his final session heroics at Taunton helped Lancashire chase down the 211 they needed to take the title. His 71 from only 55 balls followed his first innings 68 and was played under extreme pressure as, by that stage, Warwickshire had already shook hands on a draw at The Rose Bowl, meaning that Lancashire's seven-runs-an-over target was all that they needed to take county cricket's ultimate prize.

The 30 year-old, who was born in South Africa, began his English cricketing career in Surrey's second eleven and also played for Sussex and Worcestershire's second string before making his Pears debut in 2003. He impressed enough there to earn an England Lions call-up in 2009 for their tour of New Zealand and made a century against the touring Australians the following summer. Since then he has slipped off the England radar after a disappointing 2009 season for Worcestershire, although he has proved to be a shrewd signing for Lancashire as Peter Moores looked to build an unheralded, but ultimately Championship-winning, squad.

© Cricket World 2011