ANDREW Gale reckons Yorkshire have struck lucky with Lockie.

The signing of New Zealand overseas fast bowler Lockie Ferguson for the ongoing Vitality Blast has already brought significant profit both on and off the field, says the Vikings head coach.

The Auckland quick has taken six wickets in four North Group games so far, three of which the White Rose county have won.

He was absolutely exceptional in Tuesday’s 18-run win over Leicestershire at Emerald Headingley, with figures of 2-28 in four overs.

He was by far the most successful bowler across both teams in a match which saw an aggregate of 462 runs scored, equalling the T20 Blast record.

But his success has not just been limited to on the field.

Speaking ahead of tonight’s clash with Durham at Emerald Headingley (6:30pm), Gale said: “I think Lockie has been brilliant. He’s been great around the group off the pitch.

“He knows his game inside out and is very experienced.

“He bowls with good pace, and he’s teaching the younger lads a thing or two.

“You only had to look at the fields that were set at Worcester. They were very much fields like Lockie sets.

“You can see him talking to them before the game about their plans, and he’s been a great addition for us.”

And Gale pointed to Tuesday’s Leicester game as a prime example of why the 30-year-old has also been so valuable on the field.

“There are numerous games which see a side needing 30 off two overs to win, and we’ve struggled to close games out in the past,” he said.

“That’s why we looked at bringing Lockie in. He just shut the game down in that penultimate over, conceding only eight runs.”

Durham have already played Yorkshire in the Blast this season, beating them at the Riverside last Friday.

They recovered from 95-6 to post 181-8 before defending their total and winning by 20 runs.

There will be changes to Yorkshire’s team for this return fixture too.

Jonny Bairstow will miss the match with an ankle injury sustained in the win at Worcester on Wednesday night, while Adil Rashid is being rested ahead of England duty.

Dawid Malan is also missing for the fixture due to an Achilles injury he has been playing through recently.

With Bairstow unavailable, Tom Kohler-Cadmore is set to retain the wicketkeeping gloves he took with confidence at New Road.

Kohler-Cadmore has gone down the Jonny Tattersall route during the winter and the early stages of the summer in a bid to make him a more saleable asset for the increasing number of T20 and T10 domestic leagues, including the Hundred.

He is signed up to play for the Headingley based Northern Superchargers in the Hundred, and Josh Simpson is their only frontline keeper at present.

Prior to the start of the Blast, Gale was planning to use either Tattersall or Harry Duke when Bairstow disappeared to England duty and talked down the likelihood of Kohler-Cadmore keeping.

But, having seen him in action at New Road, he has been made to think again.

“It does (change my mind),” said Gale.

“I’m not so stubborn to say that Tom’s not going to keep wicket again, which I have said before.

“It just gives us more balance to our team. When you lose Jonny, you lose two players in one. If you can replace that with a batsman in the top four who keeps, it gives you great options.”

YORKSHIRE SQUAD FOR DURHAM: