County Championship preview: Sussex

2011 in a nutshell Close but no cigar in both one-day tournaments will have produced mixed feelings, but a top-five finish in the Championship was a good achievement and something to build on in 2012 How they finished County Championship Fifth in Division One CB40 Lost in semi-final Friends Life t20 Lost in quarter-final What they'll be playing in this season LV County Championship Division One, CB40 Group C, Friends Life t20 South Group Captain Michael Yardy Coach/head of cricket Mark Robinson Ins None Outs Ollie Rayner (Middlesex), Lou Vincent (released) Overseas players Steve Magoffin (Aus); Scott Styris (NZ) – t20 Key player On his return from India, Luke Wright will be desperate to make his mark on all forms of the game this year as he aims to regain a spot in the England setup How will they get on this season? It has been a quiet winter in Hove. Sussex have not made a single new signing and have only just got an overseas player for the Championship, the Australian bowler Steve Magoffin. Worse still, Wright will miss the start of the season because of his deal to play in the IPL. Monty Panesar's recall to the England team means that they may not be able to rely on him to carry the attack as they did in 2011, when he bowled 750 overs. Murray Goodwin should guarantee them a number of runs, but it looks likely to be a long, hard season