NEW lucrative age incentives are coming into county cricket next season — with the emphasis on playing youngsters.

So being over the age of 26, out-of-form and in the final year of your contract might give you the feeling that you’re going to need a special kind of campaign.

Counties can receive up to £216,000-a-year from the England and Wales Cricket Board for fielding two players under 22 on April 1, three more players under 26 and four players over 26, who are all England qualified, in the starting XI for the first 13 LV County Championship matches and the opening seven Friends Provident Twenty20 Cup games.

In addition, teams will also re-ceive around £50,000 from the ECB should they play nine England- qualified players in each match.

So 37-year-old Ben Smith, in the final 12 months of his current deal and who lost his place in Worcestershire’s Championship XI at the end of last season having only scored 565 runs at an average of 23.54, is under pressure to have a prolific 2010.

More worrying for the veteran player-fielding coach is that two of the senior places will probably be taken by skipper Vikram Solanki and vice-captain Daryl Mitchell, while the possible seam bowling attack will also be senior players — Matt Mason, Alan Richardson and Kabir Ali.

Add to that 20-year-old Alexei Kervezee, one of several players hoping to replace the departed Stephen Moore at the top of the order, is not yet England qualified and Worcestershire hunting an overseas player, it looks increasingly bleak for the former New Road skipper.

So could it be Smith’s final year as a Worcestershire player?

“I definitely don’t look at it like that,” he said defiantly.

“My goal for the new season is to have a good year, so Worcestershire offer me another contract.

“That means contributing in match-winning ways in one-day cricket and scoring heavily in four-day cricket.

“No club would want an under-achieving older player now that there are age-group quota incentives. They are more likely to give an under-achieving young player another chance to see if they come good — that is fair enough.

“But if you are an older player scoring 1,500 runs-a-year in first-class cricket, I would hope they would roll on with your contract.

“Let’s not skirt around the issue though, if I don’t play well enough Worcestershire won’t offer me another contract — I’m quite prepared for that.”

Smith has been in this situation before at the start of the 2007 campaign when he was nearing the end of his contract.

Unsure of his future, he went on to be one of three Worcestershire players to score 1,000 first-class runs and earned himself his current deal.

A lot can be said for experienced players still producing the goods on the field, Graeme Hick played until he was 42, and the fear of losing your job can drive a person to success.

“It is only performances that will get me another contract at Worcestershire, I know that,” said Smith.

“Hopefully, the club will take into consideration experience and the personnel in the squad.

“But my way of earning another contract at New Road is by the performances that I put in.

“So it drives me on to know that I actually need to perform well and that will have to reflect on how well I prepare this winter.”

However, Smith’s first battle is forcing his way back into Rhodes’ starting XI plans.

With Kervezee, Dave Wheeldon and Moeen Ali all under 26 and currently in the box-seats for the new season, the former Leicestershire batsman knows he has a big task on his hands to regain his place in the team.

“I already know that I’m going to have to work hard through the winter,” Smith added.

“Whatever is thrown at me in pre-season, I’m going to have to make sure I perform as well, if not better, than the guys who took my place at the end of last season.”