Giles delighted with triumph at Derbyshire

Ashley Giles has praised Lancashire's superb start to Championship cricket after he started his tenure as Head Coach with a commanding victory.

Lancashire's return to Division Two began with a trip to the 3aaa County Ground, where the Red Rose stormed to a 250-run win over promotion rivals Derbyshire, one which gave Giles a lot to be grateful for in a morale-boosting start to the season.

Giles said: "It’s a great start for the whole team because you do a lot through the winter and you talk a lot and you put hard yards in and you need to translate that into performances. I thought the all-round performance of the team at Derby was extremely good in that there were contributions from a lot of guys, not just a couple.

"All the way down they fought when it was difficult, when they had opportunities to make an impact they did and ultimately it was a tricky game because Derby played well. It was a good toss to win for them and it was tricky that first morning, but to come through that with a convincing victory with a lot of guys getting confidence under their belts, I’m over the moon."

The standout performance in a plethora of impressive displays came from Zimbabwean Kyle Jarvis who claimed 5 for 13 on the final morning as Derbyshire crumbled to 114 all out. Jarvis received a lot of criticism for his performances last season, but Giles believes that he not only has what it takes to make it, but also that he deserves every success that comes his way due to the amount of effort he has put in to work on his game.

Jarvis inspired Lancashire to victory at Derby.

The former Ashes winner said:"I can only go on what I see in front of me and in Jarv I see a very exciting bowler. He’s potentially still going to have a bad day here and there but when he gets it right he can do what he did, which is rip through batting orders. 

"He’s got pace, he bowls stump to stump and that’s going to be tricky. I can listen and hear what happened last year, but through the pre-season period he got better and better and became one of our frontline bowlers. I’m delighted for him because I know he desperately wants to do well for Lancashire."

Jarvis's incredible spell on the final day somewhat eclipsed the contribution of teammate, Tom Bailey, who claimed his best figures for Lancashire so far (3-38) in Derbyshire's second innings. With the departure of Kyle Hogg and Kabir Ali in the winter, many at Old Trafford feared that Lancashire would be short of bowlers this season, but Giles believes the Red Rose are very lucky to have such talented prospects at the club.

Commenting on the performance of Bailey, Giles said: "It’s the consistency in what he delivers. Tom’s job is quite a simple one really; to hit the top of off-stump or around that area, swing it when it’s swinging and if it’s not then just to hold his length.

"In the first innings I thought he started well and then he wobbled slightly, but in the second innings he did what he was supposed to pretty much all the way through. The figures he got were what you want from him in every match, I think he’s an exciting young Lancastrian prospect and we’re lucky to have him."

Bailey's figures were overshadowed by Jarvis at Derbyshire.

Another player whose impact on the game may have been forgotten somewhat was Alex Davies, who scored a total of 129 runs at the County Ground, including a career-best 89 in the second innings. He and Jarvis set a new record against Derbyshire, as the pair added 100 runs for the final wicket and in the absence of England wicketkeeper, Jos Buttler, Giles is delighted to have such a dependable player to call upon.

"I have been very impressed with his maturity. He works extremely hard at what he does and I can’t help but be impressed with what I have seen so far. He’s a very good game player and the sort of guy who is going to get under the skin of opposition and that’s what you need from your keeper. The way he batted down at Derby was fantastic and great for him," said Giles.

He then paid tribute to the destructive potential of Lancashire's other wicketkeeper-batsman, adding: "Jos is very talented. With the bat he’s an innovator but he is someone who in Test cricket could change the game where he bats at six or seven because of the ability he has to score so quickly. But he also has the ability to bat for long periods of time. His keeping I think improves every time he does it, so he’s a natural all-rounder really and to have someone like him, we’re very lucky.

Davies played a mature role in Lancashire's victory.

The opening fixture at Derbyshire signalled the debut of Alviro Petersen, who made a century in Lancashire's first innings, as well as Peter Siddle, who claimed a total of three wickets. Commenting on the acquisition of Siddle and countryman James Faulkner, Giles said: "Peter has settled in very well, he’s a typical Aussie in that he gets on with it. 

"He is solid and he is always there to share as well, he has got a huge amount of experience that he can impart on the likes of Bailey, Buck and Clark. It is a shame we’ve only got him for four weeks, but hopefully he will have a big impact while he is here.

"He [Faulkner] is similar to Peter in many ways in that he will come in and give us a bit of that Aussie mentatlity. He will give us all-round ability across all formats. A guy doesn’t get man of the match in a World Cup final without being pretty handy so we look forward to welcoming him."

Siddle celebrates with Bailey and Jarvis.