Although Yorkshire in the last quarter of the 20th century were for the most part a mere shadow of the force they used to be they remain the most popular and widely respected of all the county clubs as they ease their way into the new millennium.

Not only did Yorkshire last season attract the best home crowds for both first class and one day matches, but they continued to be the biggest pulling power on their travels with county treasurers rubbing their hands at the prospect of a lucrative visit from the Tykes.

So Yorkshire have maintained their magnetism from their formation in 1863 to the present day during which span of time they have won the county championship on a record 29 occasions.

But the arival of the millennium also coincides with the dawn of a new era for Yorkshire, the only certainty of which is that a great many changes are on the way both on and off the field.

Cricket, too, is undergoing a great face change, and the question which White Rose fans are asking is: Will Yorkshire readily adapt to these changes and stay top of the pile for the next 100 years or so?

To do so, of course, county cricket must survive in something like its present form but if that is to happen attitudes are going to have to change right at the top because at the moment it is fashionable to blame all of England's ills on to the county set-up.

If this crazy notion continues, county cricket will be dissembled brick by brick as frantic efforts are made to put England back on track but once the buck passing stops and it is realised that there is no real substitute for the county structure there is a danger that it will already have been damaged beyond repair.

Yorkshire, however, are determined that the county game will survive and club chairman Keith Moss says there are three objectives he would like to see come to fruition early in the new millennium in order that the county will thrive.

"The No 1 priority is for us to be able to get the Headingley redevelopment scheme sorted out so that we can go on to have a ground that is worthy of our status and our members," said Moss.

"Yorkshire have to be fully aware as we enter the new millennium that there is now serious competition around for the staging of Test matches from the likes of Durham and other forward looking counties and we just cannot afford to stand still.

"It would be an utter disaster if Yorkshire were to lose Test cricket and we have to keep focused on our determination to modernise Headingley to the highest possible standards.

"Within the next few weeks we will learn if we have been successful in our bid for lottery money for the £9.2m redevelopment plan for Headingley and I am optimistic about the outcome. I honestly believe that lottery money will be forthcoming but I cannot say to what level. If we get nothing I will be distraught but I don't think this will happen.

"The second priority is to continue to ensure the financial stability of the club in the face of great pressure for increased payments to players. Wages and demands have soared over the past couple of years but if we are going to have a ground at Headingley which is worthy of our members we must also make sure we have a team which is worthy of them.

"Thirdly, and just as important, we must start delivering some silverware and to enjoy total success on the field. We have taken some big strides forward over the past two or three years but now it is essential we achieve the successes which have so far narrowly eluded us.

"It will not be easy and central contracts for England players could make it even more difficult. If we lose two or three of our best players on central contracts we may be victims of our own success in producing top cricketers."

Moss also wondered what the future would hold in county cricket for the overseas players with fewer and fewer of them being available for the full English season - it is still not known, for example, if or for how long Australian Darren Lehmann will be with Yorkshire this summer.

"Australia next August are to hold a series of one-day internationals against South Africa in a domed stadium and one is bound to ask if this is the start of all-the-year-round cricket for them," said Moss.

"If it is, then overseas players are going to become even harder to sign throughout an English summer and it could mean a revision of our ideas on looking abroad."

Converted for the new archive on 30 June 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.