And then there were fans: "After a day of county cricket everything is right with the world"

NICK HOWSON: Six hundred and one days since supporters last graced top-tier cricket in England, this week sees their return to grounds across the County Championship

Championship team of the week: Barker, Rushworth, Lawrence… but who joins them in the XI?

Congratulations to Chris Rushworth: Durham's leading wicket-taker, respected by all who know him

While English cricket has attempted to plough on through the pandemic, playing a full international calendar and a truncated yet entertaining domestic schedule last summer, it hasn't been the same.

Though the financial black hole in the game created by the health crisis may end up totalling £200 million, something greater has been lost amid the sport's tentative return.

Every event has felt hollow, lacking a classic soundtrack and vibrancy thanks to almost all matches being played behind closed doors.

Thanks to stage three of the government roadmap being activated where there were previously cavernous rows of empty seats, supporters will trickle back into grounds across the country.

At The Ageas Bowl, The Incora County Ground, Chelmsford, Trent Bridge, Bristol, The Kia Oval, Canterbury and Wantage Road fans will adorn concourses and seats for the first time at competitive top-flight matches in 601 days, when the curtain came down on a wet climax to the 2019 season.

A return to full capacity will have to wait, perhaps even beyond June 21 when the government hoped limits on social contact will be dropped, but for ardent fans who have waited patiently for turnstiles to be unlocked, it is a welcome start.

"Shocking, absolutely terrible," John Lear, a Derbyshire member of 29 years who is attending the visit of Durham, told The Cricketer of last summer's lock-out.

"Derbyshire played all their games away because the County Ground was being used for touring teams and the women's internationals. It was dreadful. There was no club cricket really anyway so it was a virtual desert.

"That lovely phrase of Neville Cardus 'there is never an English summer without cricket' that just about sums it up. There was just a void. To not see cricket first hand as a spectator - ok there was some on the TV - it is not the same."

"With live sport, you can't beat the atmosphere, the feeling of the game as it is going on and hear all the sounds and sights," said ardent Northamptonshire follower Ian Harris, who has been attending matches since 1992. 

"It was hard. I'm looking at it like Christmas because it will be so good to see live sport. You never know how much you'll miss something until it is taken away from you. It was a very difficult season, to say the least."

Gloucestershire fan Neil Southwood added: "I found it hardest when the season actually started in August, not being able to be there just felt so weird. The start to this season has probably been even tougher really not being there in person, especially with the side doing so well, and missing the special atmosphere of the county game and the friends I've made at Gloucestershire over many years has definitely been the toughest part of the whole lockdown for me."

Many of the members and fans attending the next three rounds of Championship games before the Blast takes hold in June are part of the furniture at their respective clubs. County cricket is one of the great constants in their lives. The void it leaves cannot be overstated.

And when you couple that absence with the mental health implications of being forced to stay at home away from family and friends and the looming threat of the virus you start to realise just how significant this wonderful game is to this dedicated troop.

"I don't think people realise how important being a member of a cricket club is to people," said Ron Wenn, whose association with Essex dates back more than 60 years. "A lot of the members are of an age where they've unfortunately lost their partners and they so look forward to going. They get through the winter months and they're there is mid-April in their county balaclavas in the freezing weather.

^{Turnstiles have been locked for more than a year due to the pandemic}

"You see your lunch bag hanging up in the cupboard and it has been redundant for a year. It means a lot. I find watching a day's cricket very therapeutic. You can sit there and it creates a void in your life. Cricket membership is a close-knit community.

"It has played hell with my disposition. My wife says I am grumpier and more unforgiving than I was before I went. After a day of county cricket, you get home and everything is right with the world. At 380 for 2 it makes things all that much better. When you hear of people trying to deal with the stresses of lockdown, that fix of county cricket that means a lot to so many people."

Harris, whose Northants side welcome Lancashire this week, explained: "For my mental health sport is a big thing for me. It is a big day out.

"I'm not a big drinker or smoker and I've always be brought up on sport. Talking to other supporters you do worry about some people. I don't think people realise that you really get involved with the club. When something is taken away it was a bit of a battle at times. You had to write it off and hope that something comes around quickly."

Greg Mumford, a Kia Oval attendee since 2011, said: "County games offer more of a loyal element: members would prefer to see players turn out for their county than England. Those relationships you build as a county member you don't get anywhere else. You've got four days, you can sit within company and you have the social aspect. It has so many benefits to mental health because you're outside, mixing or socialising within the ground and the benefits of that whole aspect as well."

If absence does make the heart grow fonder, then county fans feel more connected than ever with their chosen team. While live streams and BBC Radio commentaries have illuminated working at home, donating membership fees and interacting remotely with other fans has swelled the emotional attachment.

For example, Derbyshire held monthly Zoom forums with members and head coach Dave Houghton appeared at a handful. And though the campaign is well underway, they have continued into the early summer.

Surrey fan Mumford added: "I think it has led to more engagement. The live stream and working from home has opened up more interactions because people are in the same situation. You can sit at your desk and listen to the radio or catch the stream. You engage more because more are doing the same thing. 

"That live stream has been great because you can follow the full game and you're not missing anything. It has made the world of difference and increased that general interaction. Otherwise, it would be very hard to follow."

Southwood explained: "I was grateful for the things they did for us members and supporters during such trying times, exclusive interviews and match re-runs etc. which all the counties deserve a lot of credit for. 

"Their communications throughout the last year have been very good indeed, keeping us informed and very willing to help regarding ticket queries. I think the past year has really made me value the club hugely and probably ensured I never take them for granted again."

Some county fans were given a tantalising taste of live cricket when fans attended pre-season games between Surrey and Middlesex at The Oval and Warwickshire and Worcestershire at Edgbaston, as part of the government's pilot scheme to test guidance on spectators returning to live sport.

^{The government's pilot scheme teased the return of spectators before it was pulled}

Bob Willis Trophy and T20 Blast matches were next on the agenda before prime minister Boris Johnson pulled the plug just 24 hours before the opening round of red-ball fixtures.

But this week is no false dawn and when that first ball goes down even among generally reserved individuals, emotions will be running wild.

"Watching county cricket is pretty much my happiest place and I'll be amazed if there isn't a tear in the eye watching that first ball live," said Southwood, whose Gloucestershire side welcome local rivals, Somerset. "The fact that it's against Somerset is perfect really, not only a local derby and the top two in group two but also as it's against my Dad's county. I'm sure he will be looking down and pleased I'm back where I love to be!"

Lear added: "It is going to be one of elation. It is going to be absolutely wonderful.

Northants fanatic Harris stated: "It'll be very strange. Walking back through the gates, seeing the ground itself; you'll never take it for granted again. It'll be a fabulous day. I can't believe I'm going to be there. It'll be a lump to the throat job no matter how old you are."

"I'll be sitting in a part of the ground I haven't sat in for 15-20 years but once I am there it'll be fantastic," Wenn gleamed. "I'll get there as early as they'll allow me. It is like the second coming: we're allowed in a cricket ground again!"