When Somerset decided against renewing the contract of Peter Trego at the end of the 2019 season, the all-rounder was not ready to draw his long career to a close. He took to the pages of ‘The Cricketer’ to plead for another County to give him a chance. ‘I want to keep playing county cricket. I can offer you real value in the Blast, and boost your squad for the Royal London One-Day Cup when 96 players will be at The Hundred’ wrote Trego in a lengthy article in the magazine’s December 2019 issue.
A few weeks later, Nottinghamshire had signed the 38-year old on a two-year deal to play in all forms of the game. In introducing his new player, Head Coach Peter Moores highlighted the key role he expected Trego to play as a mentor within a young squad – ‘he’s an all-round player; batter, bowler and fielder and he will also offer another layer of support to some of our younger players. We’ve lost a lot of experience from our dressing room, so Pete adds balance to our squad in terms of age and experience.’
Somerset born and bred, Peter David Trego appeared for the Club’s Second Eleven in 1997, represented England Under-19s and made his County debut in 2000. He moved to Kent for the 2003 season and then had time with Worcestershire and Middlesex before re-joining Somerset in 2006. At the point he signed for Nottinghamshire, Trego had amassed 18,461 runs with 25 centuries and taken 632 wickets in 617 career appearances across all three forms of the game. In his final season at Taunton, he helped Somerset win the Royal London One-Day Cup, playing in all matches in the 2019 competition including the victory over Hampshire in the Final at Lord’s.
Peter Trego has frequently performed well in matches at Trent Bridge, starting with his first appearance at the ground in 2000 when he scored 90 for England Under-19s in a Test against Sri Lanka Under-19s. He was delighted to extend his career in the East Midlands, asserting that ‘it’s an absolute honour to join Nottinghamshire.’ He remained a passionate, enthusiastic cricketer who takes his physical conditioning very seriously.
After a long wait, his first season with Notts got under way in less than ideal circumstances. Playing in the first of the specially-arranged Bob Willis Trophy games, introduced to get First-Class cricket back after the Covid-19 lay off, Trego scored 1 and 8 and took one wicket as Notts failed to defend a total and lost to local rivals Derbyshire by three wickets. He played a surprising but vital part in the Outlaws' victory in the Vitality Blast tournament of 2020; coming into the side for the final only as a replacement for the unfortunate Chris Nash, injured in the semi-final, Trego made a robust 21-ball 31 and his partnership with Ben Duckett put Notts ahead of the run-chase. Outlaws skipper Dan Christian acknowledged the part Trego's experience played saying "It's an embarrassment of riches really, to lose someone like Chris Nash and replace him with someone like Peter Trego."
A year later, Peter Trego announced his retirement from professional cricket. If Notts fans will remember that Vitality Blast final innings, across the club as a whole it will be his contribution to the development of younger plahyers and the strength of the First and Second team squads that remains.
“We’ve only caught the back end of Pete here at Nottinghamshire, but what a career he’s had,” said Nottinghamshire Head Coach Peter Moores.
“The levels of performance he has sustained over a really long period of time have been there for all to see and he’s very well respected within the county game because of it.
“We brought Pete to Notts because we wanted an experienced head in our dressing room, someone who had seen every situation on the field and could pass on that wisdom to our young players.
“He’s filled that role with distinction, whilst also maintaining his work ethic, ambition and performances as a player in his own right."
A ten-time England Lions international, Trego concludes his professional career having amassed 18,827 runs and 646 wickets in the county game.
November 2023
Nottinghamshire First-Class Number: 662