The extraordinary finish to the South group, once again emphasises how unfair the north/south divide is. Eight teams can still qualify in the south and even Glamorgan have been competitive in recent seasons. At the outset it is impossible to predict which 4 teams will qualify from the southern group. However the Northern group was settled with a couple of games to go. It contains teams such as Leicester, Northants, Yorkshire and Durham that are truly awful and have been for a few years. It is some time since Northants won the thing. Although the actual tournament winners may come from the northern group it is far easier for them to qualify.
It was suggested a while ago that 20/20 be played in two divisions with promotion and relegation. I think that would be far fairer unless they just play the current thing on a random draw basis. Before people site the importance of local derbies, I really do not think that the average attendee at a match cares less who the opposition is. I heard today that since it's inception Derby have only qualified for two qtr finals before this season and had therefore only played two southern opponents ever!