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Calne's Hampshire cricketer Liam Dawson writes exclusively for the Gazette about his life as a professional.

I'M in the first team for the four day county championship game at Sussex which started yesterday.

I've been doing well in games for the second team and got 92 against Sussex on Monday.

But I know I have got to keep putting in the performances.

I bowled 21 overs at Arundel yesterday but ended with figures of 0-59 with four maidens. I guess it wasn't too bad because I was quite economical.

We made a great start, having Sussex at 25-4 but they've come back well and we need to pick up some more wickets.

But it's great to be involved although someone of my age cannot get complacent because I have only played seven or eight first team games.

If I start to get complacent then I will get nowhere in the game.

Obviously there was the England v South Africa test match over last weekend and it gives me something to aspire to but it is a very long way away.

You have to play a lot of first class cricket to play for England and I haven't done that just yet.

The first job for the team is to make sure we don't get relegated. We are bottom of the Liverpool Victoria County Championship and three go down so we need to start winning.

The morale at he club is quite good though, it helps having Dimi as captain because he is a relaxed sort of person and has the respect of all his players.

If you have a bad day we'll have a chat about it and then he'll crack open a beer.

It helps to have a good atmosphere when we are going to be away from home for two weeks.

After Sussex finishes we go to Trent Bridge to play Nottinghamshire then up to Old Trafford on Tuesday for our County Championship game at Lancashire.

I'm not sure I'll be involved in all of them though because I'm off with the England U19 for our test match with New Zealand next Thursday.

All in all, I'll be away from home in Southampton for around two weeks.

11:46am Thursday 17th July 2008

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