IT is incredible to think that this summer will see Steve Rhodes complete a decade as director of cricket at Worcestershire.

Where has that time gone?

Since he took over from Tom Moody in 2005, Worcestershire have been promoted four times and relegated three times.

They also won the NatWest Pro40 n 2007, the same year in which Worcestershire’s New Road home was engulfed by the summer floodwaters.

Under Rhodes, Worcestershire have enjoyed two consecutive seasons in Division One of the County Championship — 2011 and 2012 — for the first time since two divisions were introduced.

It has been a journey of ups and downs, one of frustration and jubilation almost in equal measure.

There have been calls for Rhodes to step aside over the past 10 years but Worcestershire have stuck by him and he has remained steadfast in his beliefs to prove the doubters wrong.

Along with the late Damian D’Oliviera, Rhodes has nurtured a conveyor belt of talent that came of age last year and won promotion to Division One with style.

This season that same crop will spearhead Worcestershire’s challenge to not only retain their status but establish themselves in the top-flight.

It is a tough ask but they were expected to struggle last year and the exact opposite happened. To build on 2014’s triumphs in Rhodes’ 10th year at the helm, following 20 years as a Worcestershire player, would be quite fitting.

There is no doubting that Worcestershire are better for the 50-year-old former England wicketkeeper’s hand on the tiller.

Played out against the backdrop of the multi-million pound redevelopment of New Road, the County of 2015 is a much stronger one than in 2005.

Out-going club president John Elliott said Rhodes had created a legacy at Worcestershire. Few would argue with that.