BIG INTERVIEW: Skipper David Willey raring to get going again for Steelbacks

David Willey has returned to where it all began for him, and he is very happy about it.

The England all-rounder put pen to paper on a four-year deal with Northants over the winter, having left Yorkshire after a seven year stint.

Willey left his hometown club back in 2015 to make the switch to Headingley in a bid to further his career and fulfil his international ambitions.

And that was a move that certainly paid dividends, with Willey now a T20 World Cup winner, and with more than 100 England white-ball appearances to his name.

That international career is still very much in full flow too, and Willey is aiming to shine for Northants this summer as he targets a place in the squad for the 50-over World Cup in India this autumn.

Willey will skipper the Steelbacks in this summer's Vitality Blast which starts this Wednesday night, and as he settles back into life at the County Ground, the 33-year-old admits that a return to Wantage Road was always on the cards.

Asked if returning to the club where he started his career, and where his dad Peter was a star performer in the 1970s and early 80s, was always something he wanted to do, Willey said: "I think the answer to that is yes.

"The timing of my move, to catapult my career as such, was right when I left seven or eight years ago.

"I felt that was the right time for me to go, I had ambitions of playing at the highest level.

"I think I already was playing at the highest level then, but to prolong that, I wanted to extend and expand my game and I didn't think the right place to do that was here (at Northants).

"That is no disrespect to anybody who was here during that time, but I have learned a lot, and I have grown up a lot.

"I have had highs and lows throughout that time period, and I feel I am a fairly well-rounded bloke and cricketer now.

"I have come back here to win games of cricket, and hopefully I can give back to a club and a community that have given me so much from a young age.

"There is history here with my dad, and I have a little boy now as well and his wish has always been to be a professional cricketer.

"So for me, it will be lovely to win some games of cricket and to be playing on the outfield with my boy and his grandad."

Willey, who was man of the match when Northants won their first T20 title in 2013, is set to make his second debut for the club this week when the Steelbacks begin their Blast campaign with a home clash against Worcestershire Rapids on Wednesday (start 6.30pm).

He has spent the past two weeks or so getting to know his new team-mates, and has played some T20 cricket in the second team to get into top gear ahead of the Blast beginning.

There are still some players at the club from Willey's first stint at Wantage Road, the likes of Josh Cobb, Rob Keogh and Ben Sanderson, but there are also a lot of new ones, although Willey says he has been keeping a close eye on the team's progress.

"Throughout the time I have been away, I have always watched how Northants have been doing," he said.

"I have paid close attention to what is happening at the club, what is going on and who is doing well.

"I am coming back here not knowing most of the lads on a personal level, but I have watched plenty of the cricket they have been playing, and I would like to think I have a good idea of the squad.

"This club here is special to me, I have always enjoyed playing here, and I am looking forward to it.”

When the news was announced midway through last season that Willey was heading back home, it will have come as a surprise to many supporters.

And aside from the fact Willey was always keen on wearing the Tudor Rose again, the player explained that head coach John Sadler, and his vision and plans for the club, were key factors in his decision to make the move from Yorkshire.

"I thinks Sads has come in and made some big calls for what he thinks is best for the club," said Willey, who worked under David Ripley for the final years of his previous spell at Northants, having been handed his first team debut by David Capel in 2009.

"My conversations with him were part of the attraction of coming back here.

"I have a lot respect for Rips, and he did some great things and won some trophies at Finals Days, and the club did very well in that time.

"But as always, as with anything, there comes a time when there needs to be a change of direction and a refocus, and I think Sads has come in and done that.

"That was an attraction for me, to be part of that, and hopefully moving the club forward in all different areas."

The immediate focus for Willey will be on leading the Steelbacks in the upcoming Blast, and he will soon be reacquainted with playing at the County Ground, as four of the first five North Group matches are at Wantage Road.

Wednesday’s opener is followed by a Friday night date with Durham under the lights.

They then travel to Derbyshire on Monday (May 29), before another quickfire double header with Birmingham Bears at Wantage Road on May 31 and Leicestershire Foxes on Friday, June 2.

It is a hectic start to the competition, and Willey can’t wait to get stuck in once again on home soil.

"I am looking forward to playing out there again,” beamed Willey.

"When I left and came back to play for Yorkshire for the first time I got beer thrown at me! So I am hoping for a slight improvement on that, but we'll have to wait and see…

"What they have done here to market to the T20 Blast is great.

"Obviously it is not one of the biggest grounds in the country, but the atmosphere and support is fantastic, although that is only going to be as good as the cricket we are playing.

"If we are playing in the right way, with the right attitude, then the performances will come and it will be a great experience for everybody."