Kent Cricket have confirmed that the option of a further year on the contracts of Matt Milnes and Sam Northeast has been triggered, meaning that both players will now be Kent cricketers until at least the end of the 2028 season.

Both Capped Men’s Players, Milnes returned to the county after three years away at the start of this past season, and won multiple Spitfire Kent Cricket End of Season Awards after a stellar year back as a Spitfire.

In all, Milnes took 84 wickets across all formats this Summer, and was the Spitfires’ top wicket-taker in both the Vitality T20 Blast and the Rothesay County Championship, earning a new career-best first-class innings haul of 6 for 12 against Derbyshire in Kent’s promotion season.

Former Club Captain Sam Northeast also returned to Kent for 2026 and scored over 1,300 runs in 26 appearances, including three centuries. 

Kent’s Director of Cricket, Simon Cook, said: “We’re delighted with how both Sam and Milnesy have performed in their first seasons back at Kent, and we’re extremely pleased that they will now be Kent players until at least the end of 2028.”

“They are both key players for us as we look to compete in Division One of the Rothesay County Championship in 2027, and both will be a great asset in mentoring our younger talent as we look further into the future.”