Parkinson remembers his National Counties roots as he makes Test debut

Matt Parkinson did not forget the part Staffordshire played in his development when he made his England Test debut against New Zealand at Lord's. The 26-year-old leg-spinner may be a proud Lancastrian and a product of the Red Rose Academy but it was a season playing for Staffordshire, in what is now National Counties cricket, in 2014 that gave Parkinson his first experience of senior county cricket.

Ad/> Parkinson was summoned from his home in Manchester to Lord's to make his Test debut as a concussion substitute for the injured Jack Leach last Thursday. CricketNational Counties Trophy review — Appleby century breaks Northumberland duckYESTERDAY AT 18:36 Shortly after the news of the unexpected call-up was announced Parkinson's father, Dave, sent a text to Dave Cartledge, Staffordshire's director of cricket, saying that Matt had not forgotten the part Staffordshire played at an important stage in his career and that he would be forever grateful for the opportunity they gave him.

«We had a lad called Tom Steele, another leg-spinner, who was on the Academy at Lancashire and I made several trips to Lancashire to talk to John Stanworth, who was then Lancashire's academy manager, about Tom,» Cartledge said. «So, I got to know John quite well and when we were looking for a quality spinner I asked John whether he had one ee could borrow.

»He said: ‘we've got spinners hanging off trees up here. Give me a couple of days and I'll come back to you.' «When he came back he said he had two: Matt Parkinson who was then a 17-year-old leg-spinner or Mattie McKiernan, another leg-spinner who is now with Derbyshire, who was a little bit older.