I BELIEVE that if we can win four out of our remaining seven Championship matches, added to the two we already have, we will win the league again.

It’s such a tight race this year, even three more wins will give us a chance.

Myself and the rest of the lads have said it a few times already – we haven’t played how we’d like this season, and that’s through no fault of our own.

We keep getting ourselves into winning positions and not taking them.

But that’s no reason to panic yet because we know exactly what it takes to win the league.

All it takes is back-to-back wins and we’ll be there and thereabouts and maybe even top of the table.

There are a lot of variables and external pressures to contend with in the second half of the season, and they can make teams play differently.

It’s something that we’ve been able to deal with well and get on a roll.

We have been hampered by some injuries this year added to the usual England call-ups we get, and that has taken its toll on a few of the lads.

There are some tired bodies around, but thankfully we’ve got a large squad.

But, while there is a bit of fatigue around, there is no doubt that being in the hunt for three trophies helps players give that bit extra that is needed.

The big games bring out the best in players and teams.

I also think this week's Championship match against Warwickshire at Headingley comes at a pretty good time for the squad.

The lads have seen a lot of the white ball of late, so a different approach will probably do them good and to stay away from the white ball for a week ahead of next Thursday’s T20 quarter-final at Glamorgan.

We are exactly where we want to be at this stage of the season – in with a chance of winning all three competitions.

We may not have secured a home quarter-finals in either of the two limited overs competitions, but at the start of both campaigns we’d have taken qualification alone.

I said on TV immediately after our 50-over defeat to Warwickshire on Monday that being away in the quarters in that competition may actually be a blessing in disguise given we’ve lost our last three matches at Headingley dating back to last year’s semi-final against Gloucestershire.

Sometimes we haven’t adapted quickly enough to the pitch conditions there.

The toss on a used wicket, particularly in the latter stages of the season, can be big. If you get any sort of score on a pitch used for its third game, it can be tough to chase down like it was on Monday with them getting 280.

It isn’t an excuse because we should still be good enough to chase those scores down. It’s just that it hasn’t happened for us at home.

We have played some brilliant cricket of late in the white ball stuff, but we lost our last two one-day games, against Durham and Warwickshire, and it may not be the worst thing in the world.

You can’t always win every game, and it could be a little kick we need to sharpen up again. Hopefully then we can go back to playing some really good white ball cricket just at the right time.

Given it’s the start of the football season this weekend, it’s fair to say there’s a bit of banter between the lads at this time of year.

There’s a few different teams we all support, from Jack Brooks and Oxford to Adam Lyth and Arsenal and a few in between.

I’m fairly hopeful that Leeds will play a bit better than we have done over recent years.

Garry Monk is a good manager, and he’s signed a few good players that will strengthen the squad. I’m looking forward to seeing how we go.

* Alex and his sponsors Pennine Business Partners are aiming to Hit Cancer for Six in 2016. They are donating £10 to the Laura Crane Youth Cancer Trust every time Alex hits a six or takes a catch, and are asking cricket lovers everywhere to support this great cause that provides special care and support to young people fighting cancer. Visit Pennine Business Partners page on Just Giving https://www.justgiving.com/Pennine-Business-Partners