606 and all that

As regular readers will know, I've pretty much given up on BBC 606 as a worthwhile site. It used to be worth a nightly trawl to see what people were saying, but now seems to be the preserve of a rich selection of WUMs (Wind Up Merchants.) They seemingly open up new accounts under any old name and fire off assorted nonsense, while purporting to be a "fan" of the county concerned.

There are a handful of decent fans who still go on there. I may not always agree with what they say, but they offer meaningful debate that sadly gets buried in the mire of mediocrity the moderators allow on without question.

I used to contribute, but my account has never worked since I complained to them about comments being made about Chris Rogers after the end of season Essex game last year. Some of the stuff, written from the supposed anonymity of a computer, was not even borderline litigation-worthy, yet the moderators did nothing. I was told that the comments were acceptable, which surprised me, yet my complaint merely resulted in my account mysteriously not working any more. Hmmm…

Anyway, one thing that continually surprises and amuses in equal measure is that there is always far more correspondence when we lose a game than when we win. To be fair, the same goes on IMWT and it seems to be something embedded in our psyche that means we moan far more easily than we ever praise.

I've had a few e mails over the past two years to the effect that I am too positive about Derbyshire cricket, when history largely dictates that we are a side of only average ability and moderate expectations. My answer is "what's wrong with that?" One has only to buy a national newspaper to get plenty of negativity about us, about our "foreigners", our "minor county" status and our "disgraceful" signing policies. I'd like to think that this blog, in some small way, addresses the balance. It is written by a Derbyshire supporter for Derbyshire supporters. If I think things are wrong I will say so, but the cricket club means a lot to me - not as much as my family, but a lot, nonetheless.

I am astonished by the way that this blog has grown in the past two and a bit years. The first 20,000 hits took a year, the following year saw 40,000 hits. The past three months have seen a further 20,000 hits, which suggests that enough people enjoy it to make it worthwhile. Thanks to all of you for that.

I've now had interest from advertisers who have seen the exponential growth of the site. In the coming months there may be a few adverts appear, but they will be strictly controlled in the sidebar and will hopefully not affect your enjoyment of things and will not be overly intrusive. If there's anything that you would like to see on the site - links to others of interest, articles or opinions you would like to read - please let me know and I'll be delighted to oblige. Similarly, if there's anything you don't like, let me know that too!

In between times I'll keep commenting on Derbyshire cricket news and look forward to receiving more of your excellent e mails and comments, which themselves fuel further articles and discussion. Now prove me wrong tonight and get onto those sites in praise of a terrific performance by the lads!