Picture by Allan McKenzie/SWPix.com. George Hill has been speaking about the positive impact Jack White has had on the Yorkshire side since joining from Northamptonshire ahead of 2025.
George Hill says being relentless is key to Yorkshire’s bid to kick on from a slow start in this season’s Rothesay County Championship, with Somerset at Taunton from Friday their next port of call.
The White Rose county head to the Cooper Associates County Ground this weekend on the back of a high-scoring draw against Sussex at Headingley.
They claimed 13 points from a game which saw them create an opportunity to win heading into Monday’s fourth day. It was a spirited fightback from conceding 502 all out in the first innings, with the reply amounting to 511 before Sussex slipped to 25-2 in their second innings.
The visitors held on in the face of a hard-working final day bowling display. But now Hill and co want more in the West Country.
The all-rounder, who contributed five wickets across two innings and a fifty against Sussex, said: “I think we’ve been good in patches, but being good in patches doesn’t win you games of cricket in Div One.
“You need to be consistent for days upon days, and we’ve just not managed to do that. It’s about being relentless.
“We’re just in that position at the moment where we’ve got them by the throat, so to speak, and we kind of let it slip, which is very frustrating.
“We’re full of confidence, as we should be. We were very good at the back end of last year. We played some really good cricket. But we’ve been on the back foot quite a bit in the last three games. It’s how we switch that around.
Picture by Allan McKenzie/SWPix.com. George Hill celebrates a wicket against Sussex at Headingley last weekend.
“When we get a foot in the door, we have to ram it open and not let it slide back shut.”
Yorkshire are facing a Somerset side who sit second in the early Division One table, having won two and drawn one so far. They sit a point behind leaders Warwickshire with a game in hand.
They come into this fixture on the back of a week’s rest having not played since beating Hampshire at the Utilita Bowl by two wickets chasing 287.
Captained by all-rounder Lewis Gregory, they are coached by Jason Kerr. They have signed South African all-rounder Migael Pretorius as their overseas player for a third spell, and they have at their disposal one of England brightest young talents in wicketkeeper-batter James Rew.
The 22-year-old has scored a century and three fifties in five Championship innings so far this season. He is the third leading run-scorer in the top-flight with 379, just behind Surrey’s Jamie Smith (401) and Nottinghamshire’s Joe Clarke (449).
Hill spoke earlier about Yorkshire being relentless, and that is exactly the right word to describe the bowling style of a team-mate he has praised in the build-up to the game against Somerset.
While Hill is Yorkshire’s leading wicket-taker with 11 so far in 2026, closely followed by ex-Somerset all-rounder Dom Bess with 10, fast bowler Jack White has eight and has been a constant threat with the new ball.
White is in the early stages of his second season at Headingley having signed from Northamptonshire, and he is currently sat on 50 wickets in 16 appearances for the White Rose.
Picture by Harry Trump/Getty Images. Former Yorkshire batter Tom Kohler-Cadmore congratulates James Rew on his opening round century for Somerset against Nottinghamshire at Taunton earlier this month.
He took a first-innings 4-60 against Sussex. No other bowler from either side took more than three in an innings.
“Whitey’s been brilliant since he joined us. I can’t fault him,” said Hill.
“He loves bowling. I’m not sure how much he loves batting and fielding, mind you. I certainly know he loves his bowling, and his fishing too!
“He’s just a metronome. You give him the ball, and you don’t have to speak to him.
“He’ll have a bit of a grumble to you if it’s a bit flat or the ball’s out of shape, but he doesn’t really miss.
“I don’t know how he does it, but he just seems to nip anything. He’s been awesome for us – a brilliant signing – and I can’t speak more highly of him.
“He keeps it so simple and is so skilled at hitting one area of the wicket and nipping it both ways.
“He’s such a handful. When you stand at slip, as I do, there are some bowlers who you feel are going to get that nick every ball. He seems to gather pace off the pitch. He’s not got a huge amount of ball speed, but it does zip and kiss off the wicket.
Picture by Allan McKenzie/SWPix.com, Jack White has taken 50 Championship wickets for Yorkshire.
“I’m not sure he sees himself this way, but I think he’s a very good role-model for the younger seamers we have coming through.
“I don’t like facing him in the nets, and I know a lot of batters don’t like facing him around the circuit because he doesn’t miss very often. And when he does, you’re not expecting it, you panic a bit, play a half-hearted shot, nick it and all of a sudden you’ve got out to one of his poorer balls.
“He’s very similar to Coady in that respect.
“He just keeps things very simple. He doesn’t try to swing it either way, he hasn’t got a huge amount of theories, he doesn’t go crazy with his fields. He just keeps it simple and dries it up.
“He’s going to bowl a few sets for us now because Coady, unfortunately, is going to be out for a bit.”
And on what White has brought to the Yorkshire dressing room, character wise, Hill added: “He’s an absolute belter.
“He loves other things aside from cricket, which I think is a brilliant skill to have because he never delves in too deep or doesn’t get too down.
“He’s just a very level guy.”
SOMERSET v YORKSHIRE, FIRST-CLASS CRICKET – 1891-2025 – STAT PACK
Results (home & away) County Championship: Played 182; Yorkshire won 93, Somerset won 27, Drawn 62.
At Taunton: Played 70; Yorkshire won 30, Somerset won 12, Drawn 28.
Most recent results: 2025 – at Taunton, Match Drawn. Most recent Yorkshire win – 2021 at Scarborough by an innings and 33 runs. Most recent Somerset win – 2019 at Taunton by 298 runs.
Most successive wins: Yorkshire, 12 (1912-1926), Somerset, 3 (2017-2018).
Two wins in a season: Yorkshire, 28 times, (most recent 2003), Somerset, twice (2009 and 2018).
Highest innings totals: For Yorkshire, 589-5dec at Bath in 2001.
For Somerset, 630 at Headingley in 1901 to win by 279 runs after a first innings of 87 – Yorkshire’s only defeat of the season. Somerset also inflicted the only defeat on Yorkshire in the following Championship season.
Lowest innings totals: For Yorkshire, 73 at Headingley in 1895. For Somerset, 35 at Bath in 1898.
Highest individual innings: For Yorkshire, 213 by H Sutcliffe at Dewsbury in 1924. For Somerset, 297 by MJ Wood (of Exeter) at Taunton in 2005.
Highest wicket partnership: For Yorkshire, 288 for the first wicket between G Boycott (130*) and RG Lumb (159) at Harrogate in 1979.
For Somerset, 346 for the first wicket between LCH Palairet (146) and HT Hewett (201) at Taunton in 1892 – the Somerset record for the first wicket.
Best bowling figures (innings): For Yorkshire, 10-35 by A Drake at Weston-super-Mare in 1914. For Somerset, 9-41 by LC Braund at Sheffield (Bramall Lane) in 1902.
Best bowling figures (match): For Yorkshire, 15-50 (9-22 and 6-28) by R Peel at Headingley in 1895. For Somerset, 15-71 (6-30 and 9-41) by LC Braund at Sheffield (Bramall Lane) in 1902.
Hat tricks: For Yorkshire, Two – by S Haigh in 1902 and H Fisher in 1932 (all lbw) – both at Sheffield (Bramall Lane) For Somerset, Three – EJ Tyler in 1895, E Robson in 1902 and J Lawrence in 1948 – all at Taunton.
Most dismissals in an innings by a wicketkeeper: For Yorkshire, Five by RJ Blakey at Headingley in 1998. For Somerset, Five by HW Stephenson at Taunton in 1963, by RJ Turner (2) at Scarborough in 1996 and at Headingley in 2003, and by JC Buttler (2) at Taunton in 2011 and at Headingley in 2013. All were caught.
Most dismissals in a match by a wicketkeeper: For Yorkshire, Seven by D Hunter (4 ct/3 st) at Taunton in 1893, by JG Binks (7 ct) at Harrogate in 1963 and by RJ Blakey (7 ct) at Headingley in 1998. For Somerset, Nine by HW Stephenson (8 ct/1 st) at Taunton in 1963 and by RJ Turner (9 ct) at Scarborough in 1996.
Most catches in a match by a fielder: For Yorkshire, Six by JV Wilson at Headingley in 1957. No Somerset fielder has taken more than five catches in a match.
One hundred runs and 10 wickets in a match: For Yorkshire, GH Hirst 111 and 117* and 6-70 and 5-45 at Bath in 1906. No instance for Somerset.
A century and five wickets in an innings in a match: For Yorkshire, W Rhodes 100 and 4-49 and 5-28 at Weston-super-Mare in 1924, DB Close (twice) 128 and 34 and 0-72 and 6-87 at Bath in 1959 and 103 and 5-36 and 0-4 at Hull in 1961. No instance for Somerset.
At Taunton…
Highest innings totals: Yorkshire 549-9dec in 1905, Somerset 592 in 1892.
Lowest innings totals: Yorkshire 96 in 2018, Somerset 48 in 1954.
Highest individual innings: For Yorkshire, 207 by MJ Wood (of Huddersfield) in 2003. For Somerset, 297 by MJ Wood (of Exeter) in 2005.
Best bowling figures (innings): For Yorkshire, 8-80 by SP Kirby in 2003. For Somerset, 8-46 by AE Bailey in 1907.
Best bowling figures (match): For Yorkshire, 13-154 (5-74 and 8-80) by SP Kirby in 2003. For Somerset, 14-247 (7-133 and 7-114) by EJ Tyler in 1895.
Compiled by Paul Dyson, Peter Horne & Martyn Webster – members of the Association of Cricket Statisticians and Historians.