{"id":713728,"date":"2026-07-27T14:46:13","date_gmt":"2026-07-27T14:46:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/713728\/"},"modified":"2026-07-27T14:46:13","modified_gmt":"2026-07-27T14:46:13","slug":"match-preview-lancashire-v-kent-mens-metro-bank-one-day-cup","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/713728\/","title":{"rendered":"Match Preview: Lancashire v Kent, Men’s Metro Bank One Day Cup"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Match Preview: Lancashire v Kent, Men’s Metro Bank One Day Cup<\/p>\n

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Lancashire v Kent
Metro Bank One-Day Cup, Group A
Tuesday July 28, 2026, 11am
AO Farington Cricket Ground<\/p>\n

An historic occasion awaits on the outskirts of Preston.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Lancashire\u2019s brand new second home will host its first senior match tomorrow, a repeat of the 2022 final at Trent Bridge, which Kent won.<\/p>\n

After piloted second-team and age-group matches in recent weeks, George Balderson will lead out a Red Rose first-team for the first time at an impressive venue which has been a long time in the making.<\/p>\n

This is the first of four first-team matches through until the end of 2026 – two men\u2019s matches this week and then two women\u2019s Metro Bank One-Day Cup matches in September.<\/p>\n

The Red Rose head to Farington with a win and a loss to their name in Group A. After last Tuesday\u2019s defeat to Surrey at Sedbergh, they bounced back to beat Leicestershire Foxes at Grace Road yesterday in a game which saw both sides top 350.<\/p>\n

Keaton Jennings impressed with an opening 135 in 383-4 from 50 overs before Tom Bailey returned 3-48 from 10 overs as Leicestershire, 22-4 at one stage, responded with 362-8. Lancashire won by 21 runs.<\/p>\n

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Kent have also played two, won one and lost one. They were beaten at Gloucestershire yesterday, the hosts chasing down 213.<\/p>\n

Opposition\u00a0<\/p>\n

Champions in 2022, Kent have failed to get out of their group in each of the last three seasons.<\/p>\n

They finished seventh in Group B last year, winning two of their eight games and finishing a place above the Red Rose side in the table.<\/p>\n

Kent beat Northamptonshire in their opener at Canterbury on Friday, successfully chasing down 254 for the loss of five wickets.<\/p>\n

Captained by experienced batter Daniel Bell-Drummond, they have South African seam-bowling all-rounder Keith Dudgeon as their overseas player.\u00a0<\/p>\n

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Emerging England Lions batters Ben Dawkins and Ekansh Singh are both part of Kent\u2019s side in this competition, as is dangerous wicketkeeper-batter Chris Benjamin.<\/p>\n

Matthew Parkinson\u2019s name is one which jumps out at Lancashire fans.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Opposition player to watch\u00a0<\/p>\n

Seam-bowling all-rounder Matt Milnes was Yorkshire\u2019s leading wicket-taker in this competition last season with 15 wickets in only six appearances.\u00a0<\/p>\n

That return included a hat-trick and seven-wicket haul in a win over Sussex.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Milnes joined Yorkshire from Kent ahead of 2022, a spell beset by multiple stress fractures of his back. He opted to return to Canterbury ahead of 2026, despite Yorkshire being keen to keep him.<\/p>\n

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A seamer with good pace and skill, he has played a full season this year and has taken 46 wickets in all cricket, including friendlies.<\/p>\n

He is taking the new ball in this competition and is also handy with the bat.<\/p>\n

Previous meeting\u00a0<\/p>\n

Kent Spitfires beat Lancashire by 22 runs in a Metro Bank One-Day Cup thriller at Beckenham in mid-August last year, despite a magnificent century from\u00a0Josh Bohannon.<\/p>\n

Jaydn Denly and\u00a0Ben Dawkins both hit their highest List A scores, making 91 and 85 respectively, as Kent posted 315-8.<\/p>\n

Bohannon, who batted through what looked like significant pain towards the back end of his innings, made 133 from 110 balls, including 17 fours and two sixes.<\/p>\n

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But when he fell to Denly in the 47th over, Lancashire’s last-wicket duo of Tom Bailey and Charlie Barnard needed 30 from the last three overs.<\/p>\n

Bailey hit the first ball of the 48th for six, but he was run out by Chris Benjamin chasing a single and Kent had won with 15 balls remaining, Lancashire bowled out for 293.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Kent’s Matt Parkinson finished with 3-57 against his former county, while\u00a0Marcus Harris made 54 for the Red Rose.<\/p>\n

What they said\u00a0<\/p>\n

George Balderson can\u2019t wait to be part of history at \u201cremarkable\u201d Farington tomorrow.<\/p>\n

Lancashire\u2019s new second home will open its doors to the public for the first time as Kent make the long journey North, followed quickly by a clash with Nottinghamshire on Thursday.\u00a0<\/p>\n

All-rounder Balderson, captaining the Red Rose in this competition, said: \u201cWe’ve all been up to Farington a couple of times now for a bit of training and to see it, and it really is a remarkable facility.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe club have done brilliantly with it.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe’re just looking forward to seeing it full, the grass banks full and supporters in there watching us play.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo one really knows what to expect in terms of the surface or anything like that, but I’m sure it’ll be fantastic, and it’s a great thing for the club.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Asked if Balderson had any inclination as to what conditions might be like, he added: \u201cI know the dimensions of the ground are identical to Old Trafford. It\u2019s a big playing area.<\/p>\n

\u201cI’ve only had one net there, so I’m not the best person to ask. But, from the other lads who have played some second-team T20s there, they’ve said it was a pretty decent surface with some good pace in it.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m sure there will be a little bit of bedding in.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut our ground-staff are fantastic, so I’m sure they’ll do a good job.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s going to be somewhere that we’re going to spend a lot of time over the next 10-15 years. As a player like myself, it\u2019s really exciting.\u201d<\/p>\n

How\u2019s Stat!\u00a0<\/p>\n

Lancashire have previously played first-team cricket in Preston, a city which is just a stone\u2019s throw away from Farington.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The Red Rose played five first-class matches at the West Cliff ground between 1936 and 1952.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The venue remains in use as the home of Preston Cricket Club, who play in Division Two of the Northern Pyramid\u2019s ECB Premier League competition.\u00a0<\/p>\n

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