One Lancastrian is all set to replace another as a Yorkshire opener in the Cricinfo Championship match against Essex which starts at Chelmsford tomorrow.

With Manchester-born Michael Vaughan missing on Test duty, Yorkshire are to give a Championship debut to 23-year-old Oldham-born Scott Richardson who they signed from Leicestershire two years' ago.

And facing the new ball with him will be Matthew Wood who comes in for Simon Widdup who has been axed following recent disappointing scores.

Richardson, like Michael Atherton an old boy of Manchester Grammar School, scored a century for Leicestershire Seconds but never made it into the senior side and his only first class appearance so far for Yorkshire was in last season's match against the West Indies at Headingley when he scored three and 11.

He was, however, in consistently good form for Yorkshire Seconds last summer and only last week he plundered 145 for them against Sussex Seconds at Stamford Bridge.

Richardson, who lives at Saddleworth and is now in his third season with Huddersfield League club Kirkburton said: "I am absolutely delighted to be given this chance and I hope to be able to grasp it with both hands.

"It is a great honour to be given a Championship debut with Yorkshire who have such a strong squad and I think they are the best county team in the country."

Yorkshire skipper David Byas said he would like to have given Widdup a longer run but he had experienced two bad Championship matches and he did not want to risk the batsman's confidence being shattered.

"It is still running quite high at the moment and hopefully Simon will be able to start scoring runs again with the second team quite soon," said Byas.

"It is certainly not the end for him at first team level."

That, however, must depend to some extent upon what sort of opening partnership Richardson and Wood can forge together.

It is also a very important return to Championship cricket for Wood who is now fit again after breaking a finger on the pre-season tour of South Africa.

He needs to put behind him two disastrous seasons and win back the sparkling form he showed in his debut summer of 1998 if he is to get his career back on an even keel.

Matthew Hoggard and Paul Hutchison return to help Chris Silverwood spearhead a Yorkshire attack which will be without Darren Gough, Craig White and Ryan Sidebottom who are all with England at Lord's, along with Vaughan.

Gavin Hamilton is still troubled by tendonitis in his shins but is having an outing for the Second XI in their Championship match with Durham which started at Middlesbrough today.

Updated: 09:15 Tuesday, May 15, 2001