Northamptonshire Steelbacks are looking to build on back-to-back Vitality Blast wins as they welcome Gloucestershire to the cinch County Ground.
The Steelbacks have started the competition brilliantly, beating Glamorgan last Friday by just three runs, then connivingly beating Worcestershire Rapids by 100 runs on Sunday.
The win against Worcestershire was the Club’s second biggest T20 win by runs, only falling short of when the Steelbacks beat Surrey in the Blast Final in 2013.
Play is set to start at 6:30pm tomorrow, with gates opening at 4:30pm. Tickets can be bought in advance online or on the gate. The Blast+ Stand is sold out for tomorrow’s game, meaning that there are only general admission tickets available.
From 4:30pm-5:30pm, you can enjoy our Carlsberg Happy Hour, with Carlsberg available for just £3.50 a pint.
Concessions:
Tempeo Foundation FanZone: Rocky Gelato & Will’s Garden Kitchen
Standing area: Mem Saab, Nuts For Your Coffee & Hey Spud
Steelbacks Bar: Joshua – Firecooked lamb asado served with wraps and fries
Water is available at all external bars at the ground for £1.
The Tempeo Foundation FanZone will be open, with plenty of things to do for our younger fans. We’ll have a bouncy castle, a speed tunnel, face painting and plenty of food and drink options. The FanZone is located behind the Briggs & Forrester stand.
Squad news:
There are no new injury concerns or changes to the Steelbacks squad, with Darren Lehmann naming the same 15-player squad from the Worcestershire game.
Steelbacks Men’s squad to face Gloucestershire:
David Willey (c), George Bartlett, Justin Broad, Calvin Harrison, Louis Kimber, Chris Lynn, Lewis McManus (wk), Nathan McSweeney, Luke Procter, James Sales, Ben Sanderson, George Scrimshaw, Ricardo Vasconcelos, Raphy Weatherall, Saif Zaib
We spoke to Darren Lehmann about the comprehensive win over Worcestershire, the importance of early momentum in the tournament and playing in front of the Northamptonshire crowd.
Opponent preview:
Gloucestershire
Previewed by Richard Latham, ECB Reporters Network supported by Rothesay
Captain: Jack Taylor
Overseas players: D’Arcy Short (Australia, all), Duan Jansen (South Africa, opening six group matches), Cameron Bancroft (Australia, all)
Finals Day appearances: Four (2003, 2007, 2020, 2024)
Titles: One (2024)
2025 finish: 7th in South Group
2025 leading run-scorer: D’Arcy Short (515)
2025 leading wicket-taker: David Payne (17)
Key winter moves: News that D’Arcy Short would return for the 2026 Blast came as a huge boost after the Australian’s impact on the competition last season. After a slow start, Short scored five half-centuries, with a top score of 83 off just 48 balls against Middlesex at Bristol. His tally of 515 runs was 239 more than Gloucestershire’s next highest scorer.
The big question: How will Gloucestershire’s bowling attack fare following the loss of Josh Shaw, Ajeet Singh Dale and Zaman Akhter to rival counties? They will also be without overseas signing Liam Scott for the first six group games following his selection for Australia’s ODI tours of Pakistan and Bangladesh.
Wildcard watch: Ben Charlesworth. The 25-year-old left-hander, who began the season by announcing his intention to leave Gloucestershire at the end of it, had a disappointing Blast campaign last year, registering eight scores below 20 in 13 innings. But he has the power and talent to mark his last T20 campaign at Bristol with a much better return.
Final thought: Momentum is a powerful force in Blast cricket and Gloucestershire’s last campaign was a perfect illustration. As reigning champions, they made a disastrous start, losing their first five group matches. Four successive victories were then chalked up before hopes of qualifying from the group were dashed by four defeats in the last five games. A good start this season would build confidence and could make the team the force they were in 2024.