Sussex still the team to beat: Another title thriller in prospect, but foreign invasion spoils show

The revelation that some 30 county players turned down Indian Premier League contracts to stay with their counties suggests the predictions of the end of domestic cricket as we know it have been exaggerated, at least for now.

The dramatic final day of last season, when Lancashire came within 25 runs of the 489 they needed to beat Surrey and claim the title that consistently eludes them, was a fitting finale and one that ended with the best team, Sussex, winning their second successive title and third in five years.

Now the bad news. The proliferation of Kolpak and EU-qualified players continues apace. The most depressing developments came at The Brit Oval and Old Trafford where Surrey and Lancashire jumped on the Kolpak bandwagon by signing Pedro Collins and Francois du Plessis.

Their justification? Everyone else is doing it. Which is what the lemmings said before walking over the edge of the cliff.

Each county are now allowed only one 'official' overseas player, but despite a welcome ECB crackdown — Justin Kemp, Johan van der Wath, Andrew Hall and Wavell Hinds were all denied Kolpak places — counties are becoming more inventive in finding ways of playing foreigners as non-overseas players. But let's put that aside for now and enjoy the return of the Championship when the main talking point will be Andrew Flintoff's comeback for Lancashire at The Oval.

Sussex will again be the team to beat but Lancashire will be revitalised under the captaincy of Stuart Law — not universally popular but a great leader — and, with Flintoff available for at least part of the season, they will mount a strong title challenge.

For the top three look no further than last year — Sussex, Durham and Lancashire, probably again in that order — but in a hugely competitive top division it is extremely hard to pick out which two counties will be relegated.

Sadly, Division Two is in danger of being consumed by mediocrity with too many counties relying on Kolpak players or thirty-somethings.

It is palpably wrong for Middlesex to sign Shaun Udal, 39, Essex to recruit Jason Gallian, 36, and Warwickshire to sign Ian Salisbury, 38, when their best days are long gone. County cricket, above all, should be a nursery for the England team and surely secondflight counties should have the guts to stick with younger players still learning their trade.

For example, Essex struggled after losing Darren Gough, Andy Flower and Ronnie Irani in quick succession.Yet they should have backed captain Mark Pettini to score the runs this season that deserted him in 2007. Instead, they will drop him down the batting line-up and will rely on Gallian, the former Nottinghamshire journeyman with an average that matched his age, to bolster the top order.

Middlesex do more than most to bring on home-grown players and last year finished top of the performance- related fee payments table, which rewards the promotion of English-qualified players, so why sign Udal at the expense of a promising young spinner?

It is a measure of the desperation for short-term success that Worcestershire have thrown a huge salary at Simon Jones with no conditions attached, though he looked a long way short of his old self while struggling through last season with Glamorgan. It is a gamble bordering on the reckless which can only be justified if they return to Division One with instant promotion.

Who will win Division Two is, frankly, anyone's guess but, under Ashley Giles and Allan Donald, Warwickshire must be among the favourites, even if they should have allowed Salisbury to bow out with Surrey rather than sign him on a two-year contract.

Signings like that signify a lack of foresight and ambition which gives ammunition to those who feel the huge profits generated by the England team are simply thrown away by myopic counties.