ANDREW Gale has urged no let up from his Yorkshire players as they bid to secure a direct passage through to the Royal London Cup semi-finals.

With two one-day group games remaining, starting against Warwickshire at Edgbaston tomorrow, the Vikings are virtually assured of a place in the North Group's top three, which brings qualification.

But finishing top of the group, where Yorkshire are currently placed after five wins from six, means an automatic home semi-final next month.

The England & Wales Cricket Board have changed the qualification rules this summer for scheduling purposes, meaning there are not the usual quarter-finals.

Instead, the top team in each of the two groups gets a home semi, while second in the North plays third in the South at home and vice versa.

The winners of each match advances to play the table-toppers, which is where coach Gale wants Yorkshire to be come Tuesday evening after their final group game at home to Leicestershire.

Defending champions Warwickshire are already eliminated and Gale said: "Our plan is to win the group and we're two games away.

"If we do that, we're straight into the semi-finals and two wins away from winning the competition. We just want to win every game.

"We don't want to play a quarter-final. We want one less game in a packed schedule."

There is the obvious advantage that goes with clinching a home semi-final. Yet only last week Alex Lees admitted that the winner of the play-off match could have an advantage, having played a 50-over match just a few days before.

After all, the final group game comes on May 16 and the semi-final on either June 16 or 17.

"It's not ideal having a two or three-week break before a semi-final – but that's just the way it is," said former Yorkshire batsman Gale.

"It would be nice to play straight through into a quarter-final, semi-final and then final immediately after you've played all of your group games. But it's the same for everyone."

Despite that, Gale is full of confidence that Yorkshire can go all the way and claim their first piece of limited-overs silverware since 2002.

He said: "There's confidence throughout the club. Look at the second-team, for example. They played a one-day game the other day and got 360.

"In our win at Northants on Wednesday, a Yorkshire team two or three years ago we'd be saying 'we'll scrape to 230 or 240', not 300. That's the brand of cricket we're playing."

Tomorrow is the last match before a possible final that Gale will have all of his England players available.

But he still has enough quality in his squad to suggest they can cope without the likes of Jonny Bairstow, Liam Plunkett, Adil Rashid, Joe Root and David Willey.

Tim Bresnan and Matthew Fisher were rested against Northamptonshire on Wednesday, while fledgling all-rounder Matthew Waite was key to the comeback with a career-best 43.

"We've said from the outset with the games coming thick and fast, it's going to be a squad effort," said Gale.

"If you're going to win trophies, you need guys across the squad to put their hands up and do a job. Somewhere across the games, everyone has made a contribution so far."

Yorkshire (from): Ballance (capt), Bairstow (wkt), Bresnan, Coad, Fisher, Handscomb, Leaning, Lyth, Plunkett, Rafiq, Rashid, Root, Waite, Willey.