Sussex head for Cricketfield Road next week and the indications are that this season's Horsham Festival could be the most successful ever.

Under a franchise agreement set up last year, the Horsham club pay the county a sum to stage the festival and then try and make it profitable.

Already this season Horsham's festival committee, under the chairmanship of the hardworking Kevin Barnes, have sold 400 corporate packages for the first three days of the Championship match against Worcestershire.

There is also a Norwich Union League match against the Pears on Sunday and all Horsham are hoping now is that rain, which has blighted the festival more often than not in recent years, stays away.

Sussex Chief Executive Dave Gilbert said: "I think what has happened with Horsham could be a blueprint for the way all counties organise festival.

"It is a tremendous effort on the part of Kevin and this team. They have brought all the various factions together who use Horsham and made it work. It's gone from an outground which hardly made any profit to a week which the county looks forward too."

Sussex seconds are in action again at Hove next week. They start a four-day match against Surrey on Tuesday (11am).

The venue for Sussex's third round tie in the Cheltenham & Gloucester Trophy against Cornwall has been decided. The county will pitch up at Boscawen Park in Truro on Wednesday, June 27th.

The touring Australians are in the county for two games during this summer's Ashes tour. They play Sussex at Hove from August 8-10, but before that visit Arundel on Monday June 25 for a three-day match against the MCC.