I will admit, like most of you, to not knowing much about the batsman, apart from the name. Yet his record is solid and, as you will know if you are a regular reader of the blog, I am a big fan of cricketers from New Zealand. They rarely give anything but excellent service and, like most sports men and women from there have a fine, competitive ethic.
Neil brings a lot of experience at top level and a track record that suggests he will be a fine asset in all forms of the game. A personal recommendation from Hamish Rutherford does no harm, of course and I am sure that there will be a friendly rivalry from the two to deliver next summer.
While his record at top level suggests that he didn't quite cut it on the international stage, a first-class average of forty, with fifteen centuries and 28 fifties in his first-class career suggests that he knows how to handle a willow. So too a List A average of 35, while his T20 strike rate should make him a big asset in the short form.
Indeed, he finished the last Kiwi domestic season in sparkling first-class form, with a sequence of scores reading 46, 78, 76, 0, 44, 123, 117, 4 and 50. Few of us will complain should that sequence occur in Derbyshire colours and I look forward to watching him over the next two summers.
Playing on a UK passport, Broom will add a little middle-order class to a batting line-up that has looked exposed this year after the senior men at the top of the order have gone. I am sure we all wish him well.
The club has moved with commendable speed, first in securing the services of Hamish Rutherford and now those of Neil Broom for next summer. The rebuilding has begun and it is good to see.
You may enjoy the clip below from Youtube, which highlights his talents. If he can replicate this, or the 117 from 56 balls he scored in the Champions League T20 against the Perth Scorchers, he may just be a missing part of the jigsaw and help some talented young cricketers along the way.
Good news to start the weekend!
Do we know his age Peakfan?. Sounds promising anyway.
ReplyDeleteHe is 31 Mark. Old enough to know his game and help others with theirs. If we can pick up another batter and one for T20 I will be happy! Anything else is a bonus
ReplyDeleteHopefully he can provide the solidity and experience to turn winning positions into actual wins rather losses. Too often, I believe players have left if up to each other to win games this year without thinking that it's time for them to stick their hand up and take "their turn" in getting a win.
ReplyDeleteAt present, I am more concerned about the resturcturing of the County Championship - 14 games instead of 16 (1 less home game) meaning we play six teams twice and two once, 2 teams promoted and relegating three in 2016 meaning 8 teams in Div1 and 10 in Div2. Also T20 games being played in more of a block than in recent seasons.
From what I've read the Chief Executives rejected the idea but the Chairmen agreed to implement. It would be interesting to see which way Derbyshire saw it.
The big plus here is the fact that he is likely to provide a solid presence throughout the whole season.
ReplyDeleteTo my mind, Broom will likely offer far better value for money, than the option of another star in their twilight years. Clearly, a big name will hit all the headlines, but unfortunately far too many veterans have ultimately fallen short of our expectations.
MASTERVILLAIN