England hero Darren Gough returns to Yorkshire action today in the day-night AXA League Roses clash under the Headingley floodlights which will be switched on for the start of the game at 5.05pm.

This is Yorkshire's first experiment with floodlit league cricket and other games are likely to follow a similar pattern next season if it is a success.

A lot will depend on the weather, however, and club officials were relieved that yesterday's rain had cleared up by this morning..

Gough is able to turn out for Yorkshire tonight but is then missing again for the championship match against Essex at Scarborough on Wednesday because the England v Sri Lanka Test starts at The Oval the following day.

Yorkshire will choose from all of their fit and available contracted staff for tonight's game and pace pair Chris Silverwood and Paul Hutchison may both return after injuries if they come through late tests.

Silverwood, out for a month with sore shins, played for Castleford over the weekend, and was due to be included in the Academy side for the two-day match against Scotland which began at Park Avenue today.

But it was decided this morning to switch him to Headingley where he will have nets before tonight's side is chosen.

Hutchison will wear a splint on his broken thumb for the next three weeks and he will be selected if it is found he can grip the bat properly.

Yorkshire are in urgent need of at least one of these players turning out because Ryan Sidebottom suffered a groin injury at Cardiff and is out of the reckoning.

Yorkshire are desperate to avenge their NatWest Trophy and championship defeats at the hands of their Roses opponents this season but a victory for Lancashire will boost their chances of finishing as AXA League champions.

Before the start of play against Glamorgan on Saturday, the Yorkshire first team put in a telephone call to Australia to welcome Greg Blewett who will be joining them next season.

The Test batsman replaces his friend and South Australia team-mate Darren Lehmann who is expected to be unavailable because of the World Cup, but Lehmann has signed a two year contract which will bring him back in 2,000.

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