Monday, August 27, 2007
Bank holiday Monday
Had another spell of bowling. Went okay - pretty consistent, but I'm in desperate need of someone to practice with and now I'm running out of summer. A few kids joined me today which was okay. One of them a faster bowler bowled me out within about 10 balls - I'm just so crap at batting and I need to do something about it.
Sunday, August 26, 2007
26th Aug Bank Holiday
Practiced today over at Great Berry. I went there just to see in part how many people would be on the field. The people that were there were all around the edges and this was with it being busier that normal as the 'Pavillion' had some kind of 'Do' going on with bouncy castles and what have you. Basically we could have had a game and used the whole field today. I think on a normal weekend you'd expect to see even less people?
Anyway - I threw 30 overs worth of balls back to back. I was experimenting with over spinners with a view to maybe having them as my stock ball and I was also looking at my length. I'm in two minds as to whether I bowl too long. I've noticed that the people I practice with step back and hit me off the back foot rather than come forward. I suppose as I usually throw flippers and I'm usually pitching at a consistent length it's easy to devise a tactic e.g step back and see where it's going and hit it accordingly? That tells me I need to vary my delivery.
I suppose today I was pretty consistent and I messed around looking at picking up the speed of my bowling. I noticed that with the increase in speed there seems to be a decrease in spin. Also worrying is that the delivery is lower and flatter and surely more readable when bowled faster. It keeps coming back to the idea of variation. But I then need someone to pratice on. Additionally to the consistency and the experimentation I through very few wides which was nice.
Anyway - I threw 30 overs worth of balls back to back. I was experimenting with over spinners with a view to maybe having them as my stock ball and I was also looking at my length. I'm in two minds as to whether I bowl too long. I've noticed that the people I practice with step back and hit me off the back foot rather than come forward. I suppose as I usually throw flippers and I'm usually pitching at a consistent length it's easy to devise a tactic e.g step back and see where it's going and hit it accordingly? That tells me I need to vary my delivery.
I suppose today I was pretty consistent and I messed around looking at picking up the speed of my bowling. I noticed that with the increase in speed there seems to be a decrease in spin. Also worrying is that the delivery is lower and flatter and surely more readable when bowled faster. It keeps coming back to the idea of variation. But I then need someone to pratice on. Additionally to the consistency and the experimentation I through very few wides which was nice.
Saturday, August 25, 2007
Resurrection
I'm nearing the end of my first year playing cricket and have decided to resurrect the MPA first eleven blog. From around about June when we played and lost the two matches that weren't affected by the rain the MPA first eleven started to lose it's momentum. Things were then made worse because I had a run in with a residents association that thought they had the unique rights and say as to who had access to a council playing field (Great Berry). This took nearly 3 months to resolve and while that was happening it gave me a long time to look at the team and ask how should we move forward. I was influenced by a mate of mine who has a very competitive streak and we moved towards the idea that in future we were only interested in winning. The MPA first eleven was then disbanded and the Great Berry Cricket club was formed as we had a few new players and it made sense in that the new players resided around the Great Berry area.
Unfortunately the new format, the new name, the weather, getting beaten so badly and the issue with the field all conspired to slow down the momentum the team had. I decided as a back up plan in order that I was able to play cricket I'd join a local team and I have - Grays & Chadwell cricket club and I now play for their 2nd or 3rd XI.
But for some reason I want to be involved in my own little informal team alongside the involvement with Grays & Chadwell. The thing is I really do enjoy playing and practicing I think David Hinchclife at http://www.harrowdrive.com/7-reasons-cricket-is-the-best-sport-to-play-in-the-known-universe/ puts a good case. So I'm looking to ressurect the mpa first eleven and use what I've learnt this year to hopefully set us up for a few games next summer. So we last 2 out 2 this year let's see if we can get 4 games next year and win half of them?
The annoying thing is that there are people out there that do play cricket and want to play against teams like us. There's the Kiwi's and Aussies, There's Grays & Chadwell CC and then there's all those Asian blokes that play at Glouscester Park - 24 + blokes that I'm sure we could persuade to put together a team and play against us? We've even got the gear to lend to people - we can kit out an opposition team if need be. We've even got access to several places to play some of which are free - Great Berry-the council has formally said we can play organised/competitive games there now. Okay so it's not a cricket pitch - but then neither is the place the Asian blokes play on. We've got access the 'The Rec' free of charge ocassionally and that's a fantastic cricket pitch. But the cost of renting a council pitch is not that much and between 22 blokes it's peanuts!
There is so much potential it just seems wrong to give up on the idea of creating a team. It seems wrong that Richard, Simon, Nakul, Badger went out and bought gear that they've hardly used. It seems wrong that Suhail went back to Pakistan and brought his gear back to the UK and never got a game. It seems wrong that today I played cricket with Carl Hodges who lent us all the gear nearly a year ago and he's a good player and yet he doesn't play cricket.
So what I'm going to try and do is keep this going and maybe put out a general email around the college and see if we can get a few more people involved - 20 maybe? What I want in the short term is a match over at Great Berry in Sept 2nd between us all as we did that day back in June. So who's up for it?
Dave
Unfortunately the new format, the new name, the weather, getting beaten so badly and the issue with the field all conspired to slow down the momentum the team had. I decided as a back up plan in order that I was able to play cricket I'd join a local team and I have - Grays & Chadwell cricket club and I now play for their 2nd or 3rd XI.
But for some reason I want to be involved in my own little informal team alongside the involvement with Grays & Chadwell. The thing is I really do enjoy playing and practicing I think David Hinchclife at http://www.harrowdrive.com/7-reasons-cricket-is-the-best-sport-to-play-in-the-known-universe/ puts a good case. So I'm looking to ressurect the mpa first eleven and use what I've learnt this year to hopefully set us up for a few games next summer. So we last 2 out 2 this year let's see if we can get 4 games next year and win half of them?
The annoying thing is that there are people out there that do play cricket and want to play against teams like us. There's the Kiwi's and Aussies, There's Grays & Chadwell CC and then there's all those Asian blokes that play at Glouscester Park - 24 + blokes that I'm sure we could persuade to put together a team and play against us? We've even got the gear to lend to people - we can kit out an opposition team if need be. We've even got access to several places to play some of which are free - Great Berry-the council has formally said we can play organised/competitive games there now. Okay so it's not a cricket pitch - but then neither is the place the Asian blokes play on. We've got access the 'The Rec' free of charge ocassionally and that's a fantastic cricket pitch. But the cost of renting a council pitch is not that much and between 22 blokes it's peanuts!
There is so much potential it just seems wrong to give up on the idea of creating a team. It seems wrong that Richard, Simon, Nakul, Badger went out and bought gear that they've hardly used. It seems wrong that Suhail went back to Pakistan and brought his gear back to the UK and never got a game. It seems wrong that today I played cricket with Carl Hodges who lent us all the gear nearly a year ago and he's a good player and yet he doesn't play cricket.
So what I'm going to try and do is keep this going and maybe put out a general email around the college and see if we can get a few more people involved - 20 maybe? What I want in the short term is a match over at Great Berry in Sept 2nd between us all as we did that day back in June. So who's up for it?
Dave
Tuesday, June 19, 2007
July 1st Sunday
July 1st will be the last match under the banner of MPAfirsteleven.
Check out www.greatberrycc.blogspot.com
Check out www.greatberrycc.blogspot.com
Monday, June 18, 2007
Gavin and the nets
Hopefully some of you will have taken up Gavin's offer of a net practice tonight at Chalkwell Park. I'm hoping to go over there on Wednesday with him and Riley. I've been talking to Gavin and he's been giving me some good advice about practice - the main thing that he's said is that we need fielding practice catching balls and the like - he mentioned that (Boffa noticed this as well) when we were knocking the ball about catching it we were knocking it into the air, whereas we should be knocking it straight at each other off of the bat and yes it does hurt - but that's the nature of cricket balls - you have to learn to catch the ball properly. He also pointed out that it's a really dangerous to stick a bony part of your body out to stop a ball e.g. a foot/leg because if the balls does hit a divot in the grass and it's trajectory changes at the last moment you can find yourself with a broken ankle/shin etc. Use your body or best your thigh to stop the ball in those situations. We're doing so many things wrong and these blokes are offering to help in little ways - e.g. the nets, so if it's offered take it and listen to what they're saying and take it on board.
Team Ethos
There's a lot of opinions flying around at the moment with regards the team ethos - are we in it to win or are we doing it for a laugh. The situation is this the team is made up of several types from me - totally obsessed and committed but crap through to - totally crap with hardly any commitment - to probably very good but unaware that they're considered to be in the team. Different factions within the team have opinions about the way forward, outsiders have their opinion on what we should do and each and every one of their opinions has a degree of merit depending on how you as an individual perceive the teams ethos.
At the moment with the follow up match looming on the horizon and it's to be a 40 overs affair we need to be clear as to what we're about because we've got 15 people chasing after 11 places. The game is on a Sunday and it looks like everyone is going to be available (If you're not let me know as it'll make this so much easier).
I think Alex knows the situation with regards who thinks what. I'll state my case.....
In view of the reason the team was formed and the committment shown through the winter by all those that turned up for the practice sessions we should stick to the original ethos - it's a bit of a laugh, not too serious and therefore the places within the team should go to those that have been there the longest. If any of those people can't make it their places should be taken by the next longest serving member.
Unless of course Alex (The Captain) feels otherwise and chooses to pick the team on ability and skills which I'm happy to go along with as well.
At the moment with the follow up match looming on the horizon and it's to be a 40 overs affair we need to be clear as to what we're about because we've got 15 people chasing after 11 places. The game is on a Sunday and it looks like everyone is going to be available (If you're not let me know as it'll make this so much easier).
I think Alex knows the situation with regards who thinks what. I'll state my case.....
In view of the reason the team was formed and the committment shown through the winter by all those that turned up for the practice sessions we should stick to the original ethos - it's a bit of a laugh, not too serious and therefore the places within the team should go to those that have been there the longest. If any of those people can't make it their places should be taken by the next longest serving member.
Unless of course Alex (The Captain) feels otherwise and chooses to pick the team on ability and skills which I'm happy to go along with as well.
Sunday, June 17, 2007
I've had several interesting conversations with different people and trawled around the local cricket team websites all with a longer term approach to what I'm going to be doing at the end of this season. No matter what happens I'll still be playing cricket and I'll continue to try and bowl leg spin in practice situations as I'm determined to get it right.
Boffa had pointed out that he thought I was far better at batting and than bowling (3rd highest score against the Aussies and Kiwis and not out on Friday despite being No.6) so at this mornings practice over at 'The Rec' I approached it slightly differently sort of having gained confidence after surviving the onslaught from the bowlers on Friday. I was quite pleased with how I batted but no-one was bowling this morning particularly well, so that may have helped? So I'm settling in as my role of as a batsman and looking forward to maintaining my position at around No.6 despite the arrival of Chris, Alex & Jack.
With regards to the team I've been looking at the make-up of lower XI teams in the area and noticed that as in the case of Grays & Chadwell cricket team they have 38 players in that team. So every Sunday that they play and they field 11 men plus a No.12 they have the choice of 38 players to call upon. So that begs the question how do you get a regular match if you're really up for playing?
I now realise in order to do what I'm trying to do effectively our team needs to be made up of as many players as possible in a similar way as the Grays & Chadwell. Perhaps have 22 - 25 players who are interested at all sorts of levels. But then the issue of how does the side create income in order to finance payment of net sessions, pooled equipment, teas and general running of the team. Most teams charge a yearly fee of around £100 but they also get other benefits of being in the team - the main one being the social aspects. That then takes a lot of organisation and I'm not willing to go that far. I like the idea of a big team and in a perfect world 75% of the team would turn up for nets all winter and pay all the necessary fees asked of them and it would be great. But in the real world it's not going to happen because as the team gets bigger the team members are sourced from a much wider field and the control that I'm able to exercise over them is far less and the need for a captain and a manager and other roles becomes a necessity. So therein lies the problem.
Boffa had pointed out that he thought I was far better at batting and than bowling (3rd highest score against the Aussies and Kiwis and not out on Friday despite being No.6) so at this mornings practice over at 'The Rec' I approached it slightly differently sort of having gained confidence after surviving the onslaught from the bowlers on Friday. I was quite pleased with how I batted but no-one was bowling this morning particularly well, so that may have helped? So I'm settling in as my role of as a batsman and looking forward to maintaining my position at around No.6 despite the arrival of Chris, Alex & Jack.
With regards to the team I've been looking at the make-up of lower XI teams in the area and noticed that as in the case of Grays & Chadwell cricket team they have 38 players in that team. So every Sunday that they play and they field 11 men plus a No.12 they have the choice of 38 players to call upon. So that begs the question how do you get a regular match if you're really up for playing?
I now realise in order to do what I'm trying to do effectively our team needs to be made up of as many players as possible in a similar way as the Grays & Chadwell. Perhaps have 22 - 25 players who are interested at all sorts of levels. But then the issue of how does the side create income in order to finance payment of net sessions, pooled equipment, teas and general running of the team. Most teams charge a yearly fee of around £100 but they also get other benefits of being in the team - the main one being the social aspects. That then takes a lot of organisation and I'm not willing to go that far. I like the idea of a big team and in a perfect world 75% of the team would turn up for nets all winter and pay all the necessary fees asked of them and it would be great. But in the real world it's not going to happen because as the team gets bigger the team members are sourced from a much wider field and the control that I'm able to exercise over them is far less and the need for a captain and a manager and other roles becomes a necessity. So therein lies the problem.
- Have a small team that will always be severely weakened by the players not able to commit themselves for games, but it's kept informal and personal.
- Have a large team guaranteeing that you're always able to field a good side, but have to create positions within the club to run it.
In the short term we try and avoid teams that include serious cricket players and look to play people of a similar standard to us in order that it's a game and that we have a slight chance of winning. We try and get Suhail on board and aim to play on Sundays so that more people are able to be involved. To this end I'll be looking to play the Aussies and Kiwis again soon but with some of our new players involved as well. Boffa has said he might be able to knock together a team as well and they'll be up for a 40 over sunday match as well - they're all either blokes in their early 40's and one or two 16 years olds and they're similar to us in ability - but they will want to wind desperately.
The only downside is - if these matches are to be played at Welstead it's going to cost £120 for the venue + teas. I'm up for it who else is.
Then once this season is over we'll have some kind of AGM and see where do we go from here?
Friday, June 15, 2007
Annihilated
Where to start? We got beat again severely I'm not even sure at this stage that I want to even mention the score but rest assured it was bad.
They (Sports Science) fielded some really good players - blokes that are obviously not college staff, (We do the same) but I think they've got contacts with local cricket clubs and they're able to draw on them as players. There was an Aussie bloke who was pretty lethal as a bowler, a noisy South African bloke who took Deans place as the wicket keeper - he was good. Then there was the bloke they call 'Ethnic' and he was fast (Bowling). But the surprise for me was Ronnie. Last time I saw him bowl was against SEEVIC and he was okay tonight he was lethal. I umpired through all of his overs and he was unbelievably accurate and fast. With regards the batting we only took a few wickets and again they used the young bloke who batted well and they had to retire him after he'd scored 50. It seemed to me that there was a handful of people that play regular cricket and are decent cricket players along with some really good cricket players. We didn't stand a chance.
Now the excuses........
Nakul, Rod, badger, Sunhail and Alex#2 weren't there. Both Chris and Jack bowled really well but where both dismissed cheaply, I think Chris got some runs and Jack went for a duck and then came a succession of ducks including Richard. Thankfully Jack's Dad Ian had given Jack and Chris a lift and he mentioned in passing that he'd played cricket years ago and if we didn't have an 11th man he didn't mind stepping in. Ian played well and scored probably 75% of our runs if not more. I managed to stay in through 2-3 other peoples dismissals but only scored 1 run as far as I recall and I run Terry out as he wasn't shouting run/stay etc and I shouted run when it was his shout and he was dismissed.
Worthy performances on our side......
Richard - he did really well wicket keeping
Jack - Very good bowling commended by loads of the opposition and Boffa. Also noted for good contributions in the field - stopping balls and catching.
Chris - Very good bowling commended by loads of the opposition and Boffa and like Jack commended for his fielding.
Simon - Commended for a good bowling performance very consistent.
Ian - for scoring all the runs.
Boffa who's now seen us play a couple of times recommends that I no longer bowl saying that I'm the worst bowler he's ever seen. I've got to admit in a situation such as a match he's right it does seem that I'm completely phased by the situation and bowl badly. So now I've got to sit down and re-evaluate the situation. The only reason I do this is so that I can bowl. The only reason I spend hour after hour practicing is so that when it comes to the day I get that chance and by his reckoning I shouldn't bother as it's to the detriment of the team. I did bowl awfully and it's true that I did in the previous game, but I felt more confident this time round and to be honest I think I was put off by Boffa's comments on the field albeit meant to help at the time. Personally I think with more games my confidence may grow and I will be less phased with each ensuing match? He disputes that and says I shouldn't bowl at all stick to the batting as I'm so much a better batsman than I am a bowler.
I think what I'll do for the good of the team is not bowl in the 40 overs match (Which is something I've been looking forward to doing since all this started) but in the meantime continue to practice and look to join a local club and see how I fair there at bowling and maybe pick up some coaching? Again I reckon it's a case of bowling more against a variety of people in different situations. Maybe doing that I'll overcome being phased by the event?
If as Boffa says batting is my strength I'll look to improve on that and make sure my contribution in that area is worthy of a place on the team?
This could be a pivotal point in the teams short history as I found the whole thing really demoralising and talking to Boffa after - he told me a few home truths and has forced me to look at the whole situation slightly differently.
The decision I need to make is why am I doing this? Do I need all of the aggro involved especially the issues around why do we exist as a team and is the ethos of the team one of winning? If it is - what as a team do we need to do to improve our chances of winning and what sacrifices are involved in the pursuit of winning. I've acknowledged that I maybe have to step down as a bowler because in game situations I'm wholly inaffective. In order to stay in the team I've now got to up my game as a batsman. The crux of Boffas argument was - does the rest of the team really have a sense of the whole picture and share my passion to win and if they do, why are they not like me and spending hours trying to maintain a place in the team through practice or willing to hold there hand up and say - Jack, Chris, Badger, Nakul etc are far better and more affective bowlers than me - let them have my place in the bowling line up. I may have my day if someone doesn't turn up and a bowler is required but until then I'm going to step down and work on my batting to ensure I play at least as a fielder and batsman on July 1st.
I'm with Boffa on this - it's a case of on July 1st we should field our best team. The game is on a Sunday and theoretically everyone is available to play. So the question is - Who will play? I posted my dream team a couple of days ago and it's unchanged other than the bowling line up. From what I know of the bowlers if we had 5 bowlers (8 overs each) I'd go for.
Jack
Chris
Nakul
Suhail
Simon
6 Bowlers
I'd add Rod.
Everyone I know that looks at this from the outside says that I'm mad and they say - If you want to play cricket why don't you join a real cricket team and join up - you wont have all this aggro and you may find that you're playing with people that are as equally obsessed as you are? It's a vaild point. In the short term I'm going to stick at it and see out the rest of the summer. The Aussies and Kiwis today contacted me today and said they'd be up for another 3 games between now and September so we still have a possible 4 games to go? In the meantime I'm going to go along to Westcliffs net practice next week and see how I go and maybe look at joining a club more local to me here in Basildon.
Don't forget Sunday practice is at 'The Rec' 9.30 - 12.30 if you want a place in the team come along to the practice and prove your willing and worthiness!
One final point. This was a dismal performance but we had to face a team which did appear to be made up in part of very strong players that did look like they'd been playing for years. Our team is made up of people that have hardly ever played or used to play years and years ago. If we had been able to play Suhail, Alex#2, Rod, Nakul and Badger the outcome would have been better - I'm not saying we'd have one because some of their players were very good including Ronnie who I was amazed at in how much better he was and he claims to be new to cricket. What I want to say is Chris and Jack is don't give up on us yet - hang in there at least till the next game.
Dave
They (Sports Science) fielded some really good players - blokes that are obviously not college staff, (We do the same) but I think they've got contacts with local cricket clubs and they're able to draw on them as players. There was an Aussie bloke who was pretty lethal as a bowler, a noisy South African bloke who took Deans place as the wicket keeper - he was good. Then there was the bloke they call 'Ethnic' and he was fast (Bowling). But the surprise for me was Ronnie. Last time I saw him bowl was against SEEVIC and he was okay tonight he was lethal. I umpired through all of his overs and he was unbelievably accurate and fast. With regards the batting we only took a few wickets and again they used the young bloke who batted well and they had to retire him after he'd scored 50. It seemed to me that there was a handful of people that play regular cricket and are decent cricket players along with some really good cricket players. We didn't stand a chance.
Now the excuses........
Nakul, Rod, badger, Sunhail and Alex#2 weren't there. Both Chris and Jack bowled really well but where both dismissed cheaply, I think Chris got some runs and Jack went for a duck and then came a succession of ducks including Richard. Thankfully Jack's Dad Ian had given Jack and Chris a lift and he mentioned in passing that he'd played cricket years ago and if we didn't have an 11th man he didn't mind stepping in. Ian played well and scored probably 75% of our runs if not more. I managed to stay in through 2-3 other peoples dismissals but only scored 1 run as far as I recall and I run Terry out as he wasn't shouting run/stay etc and I shouted run when it was his shout and he was dismissed.
Worthy performances on our side......
Richard - he did really well wicket keeping
Jack - Very good bowling commended by loads of the opposition and Boffa. Also noted for good contributions in the field - stopping balls and catching.
Chris - Very good bowling commended by loads of the opposition and Boffa and like Jack commended for his fielding.
Simon - Commended for a good bowling performance very consistent.
Ian - for scoring all the runs.
Boffa who's now seen us play a couple of times recommends that I no longer bowl saying that I'm the worst bowler he's ever seen. I've got to admit in a situation such as a match he's right it does seem that I'm completely phased by the situation and bowl badly. So now I've got to sit down and re-evaluate the situation. The only reason I do this is so that I can bowl. The only reason I spend hour after hour practicing is so that when it comes to the day I get that chance and by his reckoning I shouldn't bother as it's to the detriment of the team. I did bowl awfully and it's true that I did in the previous game, but I felt more confident this time round and to be honest I think I was put off by Boffa's comments on the field albeit meant to help at the time. Personally I think with more games my confidence may grow and I will be less phased with each ensuing match? He disputes that and says I shouldn't bowl at all stick to the batting as I'm so much a better batsman than I am a bowler.
I think what I'll do for the good of the team is not bowl in the 40 overs match (Which is something I've been looking forward to doing since all this started) but in the meantime continue to practice and look to join a local club and see how I fair there at bowling and maybe pick up some coaching? Again I reckon it's a case of bowling more against a variety of people in different situations. Maybe doing that I'll overcome being phased by the event?
If as Boffa says batting is my strength I'll look to improve on that and make sure my contribution in that area is worthy of a place on the team?
This could be a pivotal point in the teams short history as I found the whole thing really demoralising and talking to Boffa after - he told me a few home truths and has forced me to look at the whole situation slightly differently.
The decision I need to make is why am I doing this? Do I need all of the aggro involved especially the issues around why do we exist as a team and is the ethos of the team one of winning? If it is - what as a team do we need to do to improve our chances of winning and what sacrifices are involved in the pursuit of winning. I've acknowledged that I maybe have to step down as a bowler because in game situations I'm wholly inaffective. In order to stay in the team I've now got to up my game as a batsman. The crux of Boffas argument was - does the rest of the team really have a sense of the whole picture and share my passion to win and if they do, why are they not like me and spending hours trying to maintain a place in the team through practice or willing to hold there hand up and say - Jack, Chris, Badger, Nakul etc are far better and more affective bowlers than me - let them have my place in the bowling line up. I may have my day if someone doesn't turn up and a bowler is required but until then I'm going to step down and work on my batting to ensure I play at least as a fielder and batsman on July 1st.
I'm with Boffa on this - it's a case of on July 1st we should field our best team. The game is on a Sunday and theoretically everyone is available to play. So the question is - Who will play? I posted my dream team a couple of days ago and it's unchanged other than the bowling line up. From what I know of the bowlers if we had 5 bowlers (8 overs each) I'd go for.
Jack
Chris
Nakul
Suhail
Simon
6 Bowlers
I'd add Rod.
Everyone I know that looks at this from the outside says that I'm mad and they say - If you want to play cricket why don't you join a real cricket team and join up - you wont have all this aggro and you may find that you're playing with people that are as equally obsessed as you are? It's a vaild point. In the short term I'm going to stick at it and see out the rest of the summer. The Aussies and Kiwis today contacted me today and said they'd be up for another 3 games between now and September so we still have a possible 4 games to go? In the meantime I'm going to go along to Westcliffs net practice next week and see how I go and maybe look at joining a club more local to me here in Basildon.
Don't forget Sunday practice is at 'The Rec' 9.30 - 12.30 if you want a place in the team come along to the practice and prove your willing and worthiness!
One final point. This was a dismal performance but we had to face a team which did appear to be made up in part of very strong players that did look like they'd been playing for years. Our team is made up of people that have hardly ever played or used to play years and years ago. If we had been able to play Suhail, Alex#2, Rod, Nakul and Badger the outcome would have been better - I'm not saying we'd have one because some of their players were very good including Ronnie who I was amazed at in how much better he was and he claims to be new to cricket. What I want to say is Chris and Jack is don't give up on us yet - hang in there at least till the next game.
Dave
Match Day Update 16.10hrs
So far the game is on. The report from the groundsman is that it's all sytems go unless it rains bewteen now and 5pm. Everyone is looking at websites trying to figure if it's going to rain I reckon looking at proper charts the weather men are hedging their bets and saying it will rain at 15.00hrs. I reckon it's 50/50. Update at 15.00hrs.....
16.10hrs - Weather -
Here in southend Windy,Dry, warm and sunny all systems go! Cloudy but not so ominous now.
Captains plans are as follows....
Here we go then chaps
bowlers look like
Si, Me, Chris, Jack, Dave – we’ll all have to be on form since I don’t have any options for rotation. We’ll open up with quicks and see if we can use Dave to mix it up – especially to tease them at the end of the innings
Batting order is as follows (don’t make it up as you go along like last time)
Richard
Chris
Jack
Mark
Simon
Alex
Dave
Trev
Nick
Boffa
Loolie
We must look to put pressure on the fielding side and run wherever possible runs not wickets are the issue with this game – standing around waiting to hit 6’s in 20/20 is not an option. Do however play yourself in, trying to twat it in the first couple of deliveries will be likely to get you out.
Fielding will be up close to start with one or two sweepers as the batsmen get their eye in – we must field closer than we do at practice to put the pressure on, there’ll be more people to plug the gaps. Start with the Wicket keeper, Wide first slip, gulley, (deep) leg slip, short mid on, short mid off, cover, cover point, square leg, long off (sweeping).
All ok? Remember to get there as soon as you can after college in order to warm up and get a feel for bowling on the pitch (not as straightforward as you may think)
[Dave – who is going to umpire the match? – can you forward this to anyone else you can]
Watch this space..............
16.10hrs - Weather -
Here in southend Windy,Dry, warm and sunny all systems go! Cloudy but not so ominous now.
Captains plans are as follows....
Here we go then chaps
bowlers look like
Si, Me, Chris, Jack, Dave – we’ll all have to be on form since I don’t have any options for rotation. We’ll open up with quicks and see if we can use Dave to mix it up – especially to tease them at the end of the innings
Batting order is as follows (don’t make it up as you go along like last time)
Richard
Chris
Jack
Mark
Simon
Alex
Dave
Trev
Nick
Boffa
Loolie
We must look to put pressure on the fielding side and run wherever possible runs not wickets are the issue with this game – standing around waiting to hit 6’s in 20/20 is not an option. Do however play yourself in, trying to twat it in the first couple of deliveries will be likely to get you out.
Fielding will be up close to start with one or two sweepers as the batsmen get their eye in – we must field closer than we do at practice to put the pressure on, there’ll be more people to plug the gaps. Start with the Wicket keeper, Wide first slip, gulley, (deep) leg slip, short mid on, short mid off, cover, cover point, square leg, long off (sweeping).
All ok? Remember to get there as soon as you can after college in order to warm up and get a feel for bowling on the pitch (not as straightforward as you may think)
[Dave – who is going to umpire the match? – can you forward this to anyone else you can]
Watch this space..............
Wednesday, June 13, 2007
Bloody Rain!
It's looking like we may be rained off again, I'll keep you posted as to what's happening.
We've had another 3 "Unavailables" - Rod, Nakul and Alex Jnr.
So we've got -
1. Richard
2. Alex
3. Dave
4. Chris
5. Jack
6. Simon
7. Nick
8. Terry
9. Mark?
10, Loolie (One of my Tilbury Mates)
11, Boffa (Another Tilbury Mate)
So it looks like we may be okay for players? I've got some other people that may play who are on standby. Just need the rain to hold off.
Went over to Chalkwell Park tonight despite the rain knowing full well there wouldn't be anyone there, I just wanted to check out the set up over there. I was surprised as the nets seem to be a council facility open to anyone. There's an artificial surface and you'd need to take your own stumps, but other than that it appears to be a first come first served arrangement. I'm tempted to go down there one evening with the Southend contingent instead of going over to Great Berry? Richard, Simon, Mark or Nick do you fancy checking it out one evening and see what the arrangements are on a nice evening when it'd get used?
We've had another 3 "Unavailables" - Rod, Nakul and Alex Jnr.
So we've got -
1. Richard
2. Alex
3. Dave
4. Chris
5. Jack
6. Simon
7. Nick
8. Terry
9. Mark?
10, Loolie (One of my Tilbury Mates)
11, Boffa (Another Tilbury Mate)
So it looks like we may be okay for players? I've got some other people that may play who are on standby. Just need the rain to hold off.
Went over to Chalkwell Park tonight despite the rain knowing full well there wouldn't be anyone there, I just wanted to check out the set up over there. I was surprised as the nets seem to be a council facility open to anyone. There's an artificial surface and you'd need to take your own stumps, but other than that it appears to be a first come first served arrangement. I'm tempted to go down there one evening with the Southend contingent instead of going over to Great Berry? Richard, Simon, Mark or Nick do you fancy checking it out one evening and see what the arrangements are on a nice evening when it'd get used?
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