Joey Evison gives Kent taste of life after Darren Stevens

NICK FRIEND AT TRENT BRIDGE: In a competition maligned by some as a development exercise, there was a certain irony to him being the youngest player on either side in a game otherwise played out mostly by a raft of respected, seasoned pros

When Joey Evison joined Kent at the end of July, he could hardly have expected to end his summer back at Trent Bridge, serenaded as his new county's new hero, presented with an award by the chairman of his former club.

But sport has a funny way about it. No secret was made in the statement surrounding his departure from Nottinghamshire – where he made his first-team debut at 17 and came through the academy system – that Peter Moores was hugely frustrated to lose a 20-year-old homegrown allrounder.

"We see Joey as a player of immense promise – one who has come through our system, who we've worked really hard on developing and who we think of as one of our own – so for him to be leaving us is bitterly disappointing," he said at the time.

It was an unusually candid set of quotes to find in a club-controlled press release, including confirmation that Evison had been offered a new contract and the regret that "a long and successful future" at the county wouldn't come to pass. Moores admitted it was tough to take, and Nottinghamshire added that they had gone along with Evison's own wishes to join Kent on loan for their Royal London Cup campaign before the start of the permanent deal.

That call was vindicated then as it has been now: he hit his maiden Kent century in his second appearance for the county and has written himself into folklore with a player-of-the-match performance in a win that ends a hoodoo spanning 44 years and eight List A finals.

"It was nice to show the Kent fans what I'm made of today," he said afterwards, impressively composed for a 20-year-old on the biggest day of his career. But that was the way throughout: he watched Ben Compton, his opening partner, fall to the fourth ball of the match, having won the toss and elected to set a target. His response was to accumulate without drama, the closest Lancashire came to dismissing him being an optimistic review for a legside catch.

^{Kent won their first List A final since 1978 (Gareth Copley/Getty Images)}

In a competition maligned by some as a development exercise, there was a certain irony to him being the youngest player on either side in a game otherwise played out mostly by a raft of respected, seasoned pros.

It ought not to be lost in the bigger picture around this tournament's existence that a 20-year-old in the 26th professional match of his life was good enough to dictate terms against an experienced opposition in front of 9,040 spectators and the television cameras, operating under the pressure of a final and with the impossible label of Darren Stevens' replacement hanging over him.

He offered a mature take, though, on how he pulled it off: "To play in a final at Trent Bridge, it's really special. It's been such a good day."

Regardless of how – and when – it ended at Nottinghamshire, that sentiment won't change. It was where he made his senior debut, in a County Championship fixture in the last season before the pandemic.

That was an early opening, but there could be no guarantees of immediate opportunities at a county with so much talent in its squad. He was meant to spend six weeks on loan at Leicestershire earlier this summer but instead played just once, the defeat by Glamorgan in which Sam Northeast made his quadruple hundred. A week later, that stint was curtailed and Evison's move to Kent was announced.

"The reason why I did leave was because of opportunities," he said, "but that's not taking away from Notts. I had such a good time there."

^{Evison joined Kent from Nottinghamshire in July (Gareth Copley/Getty Images)}

It is a sore point for Nottinghamshire, just as Sol Budinger's more recent exit for Leicestershire has highlighted a similar challenge to retain their best young players. But for Kent, Evison's immediate success is a useful fillip ahead of Stevens' impending departure.

"Everyone was shouting: 'One more year' to him, which was nice," added Evison, whose two wickets and catch to dismiss George Lavelle put the finishing touches to the day of his life.

"To be playing at 46 the way he is, he's been such a massive Kent legend. It has been an honour to play with him for the last couple of weeks."

It's not a realistic expectation to believe anyone, let alone Evison, can replicate that longevity, but he could scarcely have made a better start as Kent prepare for life after Stevens.

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