Everything is going to plan for Hawks

So as the Hawks take a sabbatical from the County Championship and totesport League, it seems to be an ideal time to see how the year is going so far.

The aims of the club at the start of the season were to win promotion to the top flight of the Championship and keep their status in the top division of the one-day game.

At the moment, everything is going to plan, especially in the one-day league.

The Hawks started the season as one of the favourites to be relegated, but currently sit in second spot in the top flight.

They opened the campaign with victories at Edgbaston against Warwickshire, where Michael Clarke top-scored with 68 and earlier completed the double over the Midlands side.

The two games with Essex saw the home sides win, while a trip to one-day specialists Gloucestershire saw Australian debut boy Michael Dighton top-score with 74 in the victory.

Their only other loss has been at Old Trafford, a place Hampshire always fail to do well at.

In the County Championship, Hampshire are currently third in the division two table, but play both the teams above them in the next two matches.

This will go a long way to deciding their fate and, in fact, second-placed Glamorgan have yet to face Hampshire, so a lot could change.

Hampshire started the season with a home win over Durham, with the county's Australian duo, Clarke (75) and skipper Shane Warne (5-68), the stars.

That was followed by a victory over Leicestershire by an innings and 18 runs. Winter signing Michael Brown scored a century, and Dimitri Mascarenhas took 5-22.

After just missing out on victory over Derbyshire by one wicket in a game in which Derek Kenway and Nic Pothas scored centuries, Hampshire returned to winning ways at Headingley, thanks to Pothas again, scoring 177 in the match.

A minor blip against Nottinghamshire was followed by victories, in Essex, where John Crawley scored 97, and Shane Watson scored 112 not out in the win against Somerset.