YORKSHIRE head into tomorrow’s final Royal London One-day Cup North Group clash with Northamptonshire at Emerald Headingley (2pm) knowing they will qualify for knockout cricket if they win it or will exit the competition if they lose.

The Vikings have won their last two fixtures, against Derbyshire last week and Lancashire on Tuesday, to sit in third place with nine points.

Third would be good enough to advance to an effective quarter-final, but they can finish higher.

They are one point behind the top two teams, Worcestershire and Warwickshire, who face each other at Edgbaston.

So the chances are that a Yorkshire win would secure second place and a home tie in the semi-final eliminator or, in old money, an effective quarter-final.

If Yorkshire lose to Northants, one of Nottinghamshire or Derbyshire in fourth and fifth would leapfrog them and eliminate them. Those two meet at Trent Bridge.

There are far-fetched ways Yorkshire could still finish top of the North Group and advance straight to the semi-finals, they could win and finish third or they could finish third and qualify without a win. But that is relying on ties or no results and net run-rate.

Given Northants have already been eliminated and have a County Championship match on Saturday, they are likely to bring an understrength team to Headingley.

But the Vikings will be able to field England Test captain Joe Root alongside limited overs international team-mates Liam Plunkett, Adil Rashid and David Willey, who will face his former county.

And Willey insists the match will be no gimme.

“In one-day cricket, Northants are a dangerous side,” he said.

“They’ve got lads who can hit the ball to all corners. If they come off, we’ll be under pressure.

“They’re out of the competition, which can be dangerous at times.

“We need to be on our A game and play well. It’s no good beating Lancs, turning up and then thinking it’s going to be easy. If we do, we’ll come up short.”

Willey enjoyed a special day out in beating Lancashire at Emirates Old Trafford on Tuesday, smashing 131 and taking 4-59.

“As days come on the cricket calendar, it was a pretty good one,” he said before revealing his satisfaction at being given the chance to bat at number three in 50-over cricket for the last two games.

“It’s nice to get an opportunity towards the top.

“It’s something I’ve done before at Northants with decent success and like doing.

“I missed out at Derby, and it took me a while to get going at Lancs. But I knew that it was a good pitch and could catch up if I needed.

“Towards the back end of my time at Northants I did it, but I’ve not done it at all up here.

“They asked me if I fancied it, and I said ‘Absolutely’.”

Despite Willey’s caution over the Northants fixture, he accepts that a Lord’s final is “getting closer” and would love to play in a showpiece at the Home of Cricket.

But he has admitted his frustration at the scheduling of the eliminator matches and the semi-finals – June 14 and then 17-18 – to clash with England’s ODI series with Australia.

“It’s potentially that thing again, we disappear as England players when the quarter-finals come around, which is disappointing,” he added.

“For the good of English cricket, I think we need to schedule them for when the best players are available.”

Yorks v Northants: Patterson c, Ballance, Bresnan, Carver, Fisher, Kohler-Cadmore, Lyth, Plunkett, Pujara, Rashid, Root, Tattersall w, Willey.