NEW Yorkshire captain Anthony McGrath is already mapping out his plans for the new season and he will officially inform the players of what he has in mind when they report back for duty on March 3.

High on his list of priorities will be an insistence that the team return to old fashion values this summer after standards slipped back last year.

Although Yorkshire were understandably frustrated by kit problems for much of the time, general off-the-field smartness was not was a big issue with Australian director of coaching Wayne Clark.

The casual appearance of the team on some occasions led to some complaints and many members disapproved of the casual way the players were dressed at the official opening of the new indoor school just before the start of the season.

During this winter, McGrath has been part of a players' working group with Richard Blakey and Chris Silverwood and the trio quickly agreed that a new disciplinary code needed to be installed and rules about dress set up.

That attitude has delighted director of cricket Geoff Cope who is himself insisting that Yorkshire apply traditional standards of dress and discipline.

Yorkshire will train at Headingley for a fortnight when they report back and will then spend a week at the Oasis Leisure Centre in Cumbria as they sharpen up their fitness and at the same time bond together as a team.

This type of activity is a far cry from the pre-season tours which Yorkshire have regularly enjoyed for the past decade or so but their usefulness when many senior players are unavailable has been questioned and the cost is also a major factor for the cash-strapped county.

Last year, Yorkshire were forced to take a squad comprised largely of second teamers to Grenada and the standard of cricket was a disappointment for the members and fans who also made the trip.

Some early plans were set up by Clark for Yorkshire to visit Perth for a pre-season tour this year but they were shelved when it became apparent that a weakened squad would again have to be sent out, meaning there was virtually no chance of any sponsorship.

Updated: 12:45 Monday, January 27, 2003