The late September shadows were as long as the faces for the last game of the season, creeping over Wantage Road as if a sarcophagus lid was being lowered by an unknown hand, ending it as it had began, a predominately English 11 put to the sword in the championship.

The Saffers had been spared the dead rubber, enjoying some R&R at the golf club to prepare for the more lucrative southern hemisphere season, captain Boje was the last on deck for the Boks to steer the sinking ship to a safe port for some serious winter repairs, his 'team' winning just a solitary game in the last three months of the season.

The brainless decision not to bat first after winning the toss on a flat one was one of many fatal mistakes by the Capel/Boje axis this season, Monty quickly taken out of the win equation on a pitch that would presumably turn later.

Why we wanted to insert the prolific Middlesex first four that includes two Test batsmen tuning up for the Caribbean million dollar Twenty20 and a trip to India was beyond me.

But the tinge of green was enough to put the captain off, and in they went.

At this point, I think I would like to congratulate the groundsman on much fairer and bouncier wickets this season, it's how we like them and the way to go to produce better English cricketers as the Kolpak tap is gradually turned off.

Middlesex quickly set about that fragile seam attack, Boje's decision even odder as he managed to bowl only four overs on day one, two less than Rikki Wessels!!!

When Rikki's bowling his off-spinners (his action like Batman about to jump off a tall building) you know your scrambling.

Wiggers, Lucas and Crook's wayward dross was easily whipped off the pads and cut through the covers by the excellent Strauss and hardworking Shah, Strauss looking every inch the imperious England player with his 172.

Shah was less fluent, although he had no trouble in helping himself to a ton off a gruesome 212 balls to secure his tour spot.

With young Morgan laying waste to the increasingly feeble attack late on for his maiden hundred, taking 22 off one Monty over to bring up the 500, the equally dispirited home crowd was soon getting restless.

Monty, who has taken delivery of a brand new Jaguar XJ Turbocharger this month, took the opportunity to deliver his first five-for of the season for Northants to celebrate that purchase. Better late than never mate!

Letting Middlesex get 545 for seven declared was abysmal and a grim portent for seasons to come.

Anyone who thinks we are competitive without the Saffers is sadly mistaken. And don't they know it.

Northants' reply demanded concentration and almost got it, mainly because three of the batsmen were chasing their 1,000 runs for the season and no doubt the cash bonus that comes with that.

It wasn't to be for player of the year Niall O'Brien, falling just short with two 30s, while Peters again just failed to reach the landmark our main opening batsman has yet to achieve in his growing Northamptonshire career.

The following morning bought autumnal fog to the latest ever day's cricket to be played at the NCG, only Wessels going past 50 in the innings with some excellent hitting, the boys quickly collapsing from 210 for five to 256 all out, old man Udal showing Monty how it was done with five for 36.

Without Zulu coming in at five the County looked lost in that middle order. But we had better get used to that fact and figure out who can fill the great man's shoes next season.

Lance is said to be still fuming at his release.

Watching Wigley sling his usual dross down the leg side with his two-year deal now tucked away in his back pocket made the club's decision to drop Klusener even more woeful. Wigley can't move the club forward in any format.

With the championship prize money up five-fold next season, Mark Tagg may well regret that decision.

It was one of those dewy days by Friday, the pyramids of sand at the end of the bowler's run-ups looking poignantly like the neat piles of fag ash below the absent van der Wath's locker.

But, rather surprisingly, Middlesex didn't enforce the follow on due to injury concerns with their penetrative seam attack and decided to have a whack, Googleman and Strauss helping themselves to 50 apiece, setting us a record 460 to win.

Rob White did get his 1,000 for the first time in seven seasons with an excellent 100 on the increasingly bouncy pitch, the cavalier and aggressive shots agreeably back.

I'm pleased for Rob as he was useless last year, and the only way for Northants to improve is if guys like him do what they are paid for and get big runs.

People moan that there's too many Saffers around and our English guys are not given a chance, but if you add up Wakely and Nelson's first class run this year from their 10 innings they don't even equal Rob's 123 here.

The Saffers are here because guys like Rob don't come through quickly enough.

Yes, when you hear stories of our South African players being less than complimentary about their English team-mates on the pitch in their native tongue, it's not great and makes for a poisonous dressing room.

But they have to come through that and prove themselves to the South Africans for us to be successful as a team.

And the South Africans should respect the fact that they are here because the English standard isn't high right now, and if it was then they wouldn't be here getting paid!

Bizarrely, the run chase looked still on at one point and was fun while it lasted at a sun-baked NCG as an inspired Wessels destroyed the bowling, putting on a lightning fast 100 partnership with forgotten man Andrew Crook.

But once Crooky went (59), Rikki had to go on the defensive and protect the tail and so lost his off stump on 95.

Yes, 367 was an entertaining effort but the match highlighted our obvious problems for early next year when our ICL Saffers are in India – and it doesn't look pretty.

David Capel may be purring over finishing fourth in the championship (two points away from sixth) but those are empty words from a guy trying to save his job.

At times he's been like Comical Ali in Iraq with his upbeat quotes and constant denial over the dressing room cracks and bad results.

I was watching him on Look East saying how great things are, yet in the other corner of the screen it was Middlesex at 291 for one. It reminded me off those tanks rolling into Baghdad over Comical Ali's shoulder, with him still denying the Americans were even in the capital.

Well, the tanks are at your door coach and you have to gel that dressing room next year.

Sadly, the only glint of silverware on the ground for the fans last week was a certain Saffer all-rounder's Kit-Kat wrappers being blown along in the gentle autumnal breeze…