IT HAS been an emotional week for everybody at Hove.

A tree was planted at the ground in memory of Matt Hobden on Sunday morning and the Sussex players all wore his old shirt number – 19.

It was a fitting tribute to an immensely talented and well-liked character who was taken away from us far too soon and you have to give credit to Sussex for dealing with such a tragic situation with great dignity.

I know from personal experience how tough it can be to lose a team-mate.

I was captain at Sussex when Umer Rashid drowned on our pre-season trip to Grenada in 2002 and was coach at Surrey when Tom Maynard was killed on a train line in London four years ago.

Those kind of things hit you like a sledgehammer and it can be incredibly difficult to pick yourself up.

But that is what you have to do in life and hopefully Sussex’s players will be able to take another step forward now.