Norfolk vice-captain George Walker has praised batsman James Spelman for his 148 not out against Northumberland.
The Minor Counties match ended in a draw with Norfolk's bowlers unable to dismiss a stubborn middle order as they held out to give each team 10 points.
Walker said: "[Spelman] was a bit disappointed with 53 in the first innings but I don't think he gave them a chance in his second innings.
"I would like to have seen him get to 150 but we had to declare."
Walker carried out captain responsibilities at Manor Park with regular Norfolk skipper Carl Rogers nursing an injured wrist.
The biggest optimist would struggle to say we'll win the league
"We've got a good set of lads and I hope they listened to what I said," said Walker.
"It's a shame about the result but we've got two more games coming up.
"I'm assuming Carl's going to be fit next week but, if he isn't, I'll happily be captain again."
Norfolk are in ninth in the Minor Counties Eastern Division table and Walker says they must win their next two home matches.
"Realistically, the biggest optimist would struggle to say we'll win the league," he said.
"We'll take each game as it come and you can't look too far ahead."
He added: "We weren't too far off in this game and should have got more runs in the first innings, but we did control the game.
"There was only going to be one winner if we'd bowled them out."