Gough considering a move

Darren Gough has described life at Yorkshire as "almost unbearable" and he is seriously considering leaving the county.

The England pace bowler, who made his debut for the county in 1989 and now is one of the players contracted to play for England, has promised to make a final decision on his future with the White Rose county this week.

But Gough is frustrated with the conduct of people connected with the county for which he made his debut in 1989 and was awarded his cap in 1993.

He was reported as saying: "This is even tougher than deciding to miss the India tour. I honestly don't know what I'm going to do, but decision time is here.

"I've never wavered from the desire that I want to end my playing days at Yorkshire, but there's only so much that I can take. It's almost unbearable."

He continued: "I can live with the 'OBE Gough' comments – Only Bowls for England – even the poison pen letters. But it's been clear this year that certain members of the committee don't want me around at any price.

"Anonymous official sources have stirred up trouble all summer – things like I'm about to be sacked, I've missed club functions to concentrate on my benefit season."

He feels let down by what he sees as a lack of determination to resolve the problem. "Although I've been told the county is determined to find the culprits. It seems little has been done," he said.

The England pace bowler said that he would still love to carry on playing for Yorkshire, but he is clearly troubled by recent events. He said: "I don't know if I can face another summer of much bad feeling. It's almost unbearable. I honestly don't know what I'm going to do but decision time is here."

Gough, 31, has been one of Yorkshire's and England's leading figures in a period of revival for both teams and his enthusiasm for the game has earned him respect from his rivals. However, because of his his England commitments he played in only two games for Yorkshire in this season's CricInfo County Championship.

A number of county clubs are believed to be interested in acquiring Gough's services. The former England captain, Graham Gooch, who is the director of cricket at Essex, said: "Who wouldn't be interested in England's only world-class bowler?"