With counties facing budget cuts and financial restrictions due to the Covid-19 pandemic, going without overseas signings in 2021 would be one area where clubs can make savings. Derbyshire took the decision to defer the signings of Australian fast bowler Sean Abbott and wicketkeeper-batsman Ben McDermott to next season but that will almost certainly be reviewed in the coming months. Houghton accepts there could be no overseas players in 2021 but wants a consistent approach across the first-class counties. "We are guessing now what the forecasts will be for next year but there's every possibility," he said. "This year, I sat in the same committee as every other head of cricket and I know in those meetings we discussed nobody having overseas players this year. "So I was surprised to say the least to see that some other counties had overseas players because in those meetings, it seemed 100 per cent that we weren't going in with overseas players. "When we played Lancashire, I spoke to Paul Allott and said 'was I in the same meeting?' and he said exactly the same thing. So if it does happen, it should be a blanket rule. We can't have 60 per cent of the sides saying no overseas players only to find the opposition has got two." Derbyshire also played all their cricket away from home this summer and without the experience of pace bowlers Ravi Rampaul and Tony Palladino so Houghton took satisfaction from the way the younger players stepped up. "There were some challenges but I liked what happened, I like the fact we were able to give all our squad opportunities in all formats and I was impressed with our bowlers,” he said. "We went in with Luis Reece as our most experienced bowler and the rest were young bowlers coming through so it gave me great pleasure to bowl sides out twice. We also held our own against some good Division One sides. "We know we've got a good batting line-up, but we've now got a pool of young bowlers between the ages of 20 and 25 that will serve this county well if we can keep them together for the next 10 years and that for me is a very positive step." One player who stood out was 24-year-old all-rounder Matt Critchley, named this week as Derbyshire's Player of the Year following strong performances with bat and ball. The leg-spinner claimed 17 wickets, including a career-best six for 73 at Leicester, in the Bob Willis Trophy, the most by a bowler in the North Group, and also averaged 39 with the bat. "He got some good runs in four-day cricket and I suppose the only thing he would be disappointed with is that he never converted and got a hundred, " Houghton said. "But I thought in particular his bowling really changed this year. "He's gone from a guy who rolled out a few easy scoring opportunities in the first few overs and took some time to get into his spells. In the past he's been a little bit guilty of bowling too slowly, giving the ball too much time in the air, which allowed good batters to use their feet and hit him back over his head. "This year, he changed the pace that he bowled at and he was on the money from ball one of almost every spell and I'm glad he got the results. "To get a five-for and bowl a side out at Leicester in the second game, that's the sort of thing that needs a few more people to really pay attention. I think he's a really fantastically talented cricketer and he got better and better this season. "