Jack Carson has not had to think about his end-of-season holiday yet this year.

And the Sussex spinner is delighted about it.

The county lead the way in the race for a first division spot going into the final three games of the season.

They face Glamorgan - a county who have been their nemesis across the formats this season – at Hove from today in Vitality County Championship division two (10.30am).

Sussex have 177 points with Yorkshire second on 158 and Middlesex 157 in the race for two promotion spots.

This round of games also sees Yorkshire visit Leicestershire, who themselves are not out of the promotion running, while Middlesex host Gloucestershire at Lord’s in their final home game.

Sussex have set the pace for much of what has been a stop-start season and their form at the 1st Central County Ground has certainly been good.

But they have found the going tough against Glamorgan this season, losing at Cardiff in the Championship, at Neath over 50 overs and home and away in the Vitality Blast.

This will be the perfect chance to put that record straight with the prize of promotion getting closer.

Carson, who has taken 20 wickets in the last two Championship games, said: “We have got 12 days of cricket left so our goal is just to turn up and be as good as we can on each of those 12 days.

“Not get too carried away but try and look after what is in front of us each time.

“Hopefully we will end up on the right side of it.

“We have lots to look forward to.

“In my career so far we have got to September and you are kind of looking where you are going in October on your holiday, really.

“And there is not much to play for.

“It is a really exciting place to be now.

“Having a lot more expectation means there is a lot more on games for us.”

A big week in the Championship takes place amid the growing excitement for Vitality Blast T20 Finals day.

Sussex will face Gloucestershire in the second semi-final at Edgbaston on Saturday (2.30pm), after Surrey have taken on champions Somerset (11am).

The final gets under way at 6.45pm.

Although the event long since sold out via other sources, Sussex have an allocation of tickets which can be bought via their club website.

The stakes are being raised and players and staff are being tested.

But Sussex coach Paul Farbrace knows what he considers to be pressure in cricket.

And it does not involve preparing for a Blast Finals Day or being top of the table in the Championship.

On a similar theme to Carson, he said: “You don’t want to be going into September thinking you have got three or four dead games. You want to be competing.

“All we have talked about in the last month is enjoying the expectation that comes with being in the Blast quarter-final, being top of the table in Championship cricket.

“And not being scared of that but enjoying it.

“Pressure is being knocked out of the Blast with two wins from 14 and you’re bottom of the Championship with nothing to play for.

“I have experienced that as a coach.

“That is more pressurised than being in the situation we are in at the moment.

“We have raised the expectation of people who watch Sussex cricket and that is what you want.”

Sussex yesterday named a 14-man squad for the Glamorgan game, which will be played with Kookaburra balls.

Glamorgan seamer Fraser Sheat is ruled out by a hamstring injury and Timm van der Gugten has been rested following a heavy recent workload.

Sussex: from Alsop, Carson, Carter, Clark, Coles, Crocombe, Haines, Hudson-Prentice, Hughes, Hunt, Ibrahim, Robinson, Simpson, Unadkat.