Steven Patterson signs on for longer with Yorkshire CCC

VETERAN Steve Patterson looks set to achieve his dream of playing his entire career at Yorkshire after signing an extension to his current deal that will keep him at Headingley until the end of 2018.
HAPPY DAYS: Yorkshire's Steve PattersonHAPPY DAYS: Yorkshire's Steve Patterson
HAPPY DAYS: Yorkshire's Steve Patterson

The Beverley-born bowler whas been awarded a testimonial by the club for 2017, recognition for having taken more than 300 wickets for the White Rose afteer making his debut back in 2005.

The 33-year-old - often referred to as ‘Mr Reliable’ – said he was as desperate as anyone else at the club to regain the County Championship title they won in 2014 and 2015 under former first-team coach, Jason Gillespie.

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“It’s always been my dream to play my entire career at this club,” said Patterson on Friday. “To continue for an extra year is delightful.

Steve PattersonSteve Patterson
Steve Patterson

“This is the only club that I’ve wanted to play for, the only club I’ll probably ever play for. I’ve obviously got a testimonial this year in recognition of how long I have played, so to know I’m going to be playing a little bit longer after that is brilliant.”

Patterson is keen to play his part in ensuring that the current crop of White Rose players to go down in club history.

“The exciting thing for us as players is to be part of a team that could go down in history as one of the great Yorkshire teams – that’s pretty special in itself,” added Patterson.

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“I’ve thoroughly enjoyed the success we’ve had over the last few years. I think if you see where the team were when I first started to where we are now and the standards we have set, we’ve certainly moved in a positive direction.”

Steve PattersonSteve Patterson
Steve Patterson

Patterson admitted Yorkshire fell below the high standards set in previous years under Gillespie last year, leading to them misssing out on a third straight four-day title in dramatic circumstances at Lord’s to eventual champions Middlesex.

Now, under new first-team coach Andrew Gale, Patterson insists the team are desperate to respond in positive fashion after missing out on silverware on three fronts last season.

“I think if you look back at it, we had two fantastic years and then last year we weren’t at our best for whatever reason,” he said. “We admit that and accept it.

“Whether we were too laid back or took it for granted, I don’t know, but this year will be a test for us to see how we respond to that.”