Sorry about the late blog tonight but I've been out with the family ahead of tomorrow's trip. No need for much time packing - just like Cliff Richard, I'm travellin' light...
The twelve for tomorrow is much as I expected, with Chesney Hughes unavailable, so the same side looks set to take the field as did so well against Somerset, with Peter Burgoyne in the frame to play, but only if the track is set to turn later. I suspect the final place will be between Peter and Alex Hughes but Hughes' excellent second innings at Taunton may give him the nod. Mark Turner is back in the squad, replacing the injured Matt Higginbottom, but I suspect only for cover.
As for Durham, they travel with a strong squad top-heavy with quality seam bowlers and a squad that lines up as follows:
Mark Stoneman
Keaton Jennings
Scott Borthwick
Will Smith
Michael Richardson
Paul Collingwood
Phil Mustard
Usman Arshad
Jamie Harrison
Mitch Claydon
Ryan Buckley
Chris Rushworth
Graham Onions
The weather looks set to play a major part and there will be a few interruptions over the four days if the forecasts are correct. A draw would be no bad thing, but only if there's a similar result at Taunton, as we can live without losing ground on Somerset at this late stage.
Fingers crossed that everything goes our way - hope to see a few of you down there in the coming days!
Please, please, please, no Turner. I've avoided mention of it before, but what has changed more than anything since the Yorkshire game is that he hasn't played. He was marginal in Div 2 but has been hopelessly out of his depth in Div 1 and it became cruel that someone with so much spirit and determination was being exposed to so much humiliation. Even worse, the knowledge that he would concede 5 an over at the best seemed to drain motivation from the rest of the bowling. Perhaps it's a ploy to make sure we have a top-quality fielding sub but I can't imagine a worse scenario than him bowling for us again.
ReplyDeleteThe amount of runs conceded has always been an issue for bothTurner and Footitt,though Footitt has bowled with much more control this season in four day games.I can live with Turner so long as he takes regular wickets but if that proves not to be the case then he is a luxury we can,t afford. He did reasonably well last season but this season has been a different story,apart from the fact he has spent a fair amount of time injured.
ReplyDeleteI have the feeling our batting rather than the bowling may be the key factor in this match. Madsen and Chanderpaul must set the example and we have to hope some of the others follow suit. We require a big team effort if we are going to win this game and we must take every chance that may come our way.