Friday, 5 June 2026

Easy win for first eleven in friendly

There was a good run out and easy win for Derbyshire tonight, in the NCCA Showcase friendly against Bedfordshire at Dunstable.

The home side won the toss and elected to bowl, but Nye Donald and Martin Andersson put on 57 in the first four overs before the skipper was caught for 23.

Andersson top-scored with 74 from just 30 deliveries before retiring, while Caleb Jewell made 40 in a score of 205-7 from 20 overs.

The home side never got going, their final total of 130-9 largely built around 42 from Yusuf Bin Naeem, who guested for them. The wickets were shared around the attack, with Ben Aitchison taking 2-27 and Rory Haydon 2-18. Ross Whiteley took 1-12 in his three overs.

A win by 75 runs then, ahead of Sunday's big game against Nottinghamshire at Trent Bridge.

9 comments:

  1. Playing the first XI against a minor county side...how cowardly.

    Sorry messrs Wagstaff and Stewart, not even a friendly game for you.

    At least Bin Naeem played for the opposition and looked very good, again. Little good it will do him.

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    1. Disagree mate. It is a game to win to keep momentum and give people a match before a big one on Sunday.

      There's no bigger fan of Stewart than I, he looks good. But they need to keep rhythm in the bowlers and batters, especially when qualifying is a strong possibility at present

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    2. That's fair enough and logical. The sad fact is though that MA has done almost nothing for player development and won't play the young lads even in dead rubbers if and when we fail to qualify.

      Bin Naeem for Jewell should be a no brainer at this point though, he's a hitter, he's confident, hungry and in form. Jewell is none of those things.

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    3. I agree on that. Of course, that might have been the reason for Yusuf playing tonight, to see him against a first class attack and see what he can do.

      I also agree that development of young players hasn't been a highlight of his tenure. Of course, the absence of Moore has been a blow and Wagstaff has been a victim of a pretty effective batting group with no obvious way in..yet?

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    4. Don’t agree with that Derbys batting so far has revolved around Donald, Andersson and Montgomery so far this season it has been difficult to justify employing Jewell as an overseas player and surely it’s time to shake hands with Madsen and move on

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  2. I fully understand the potential reasons behind the team in this game, what I find bizarre though is the opposition.

    I wonder how many spectators there were.

    No offence meant to the Bedfordshire players, officials or spectators but why couldn't we have played a minor counties closer (and therefore less costs) for example Staffordshire, Shropshire, Lincolnshire.

    Answering my own question, I wonder if it was the only opposition available on the day!
    Martin

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    1. Straightnochaser7 June 2026 at 13:17

      We do seem to have a good relationship with Bedfordshire having also played at the same Chilterns ground last summer in a Sunday 50-over showcase game. The scorecard seller revealed that Derbyshire had been a delight to deal with further organisation of the fixture unlike at least one other First Class County.
      The attendance wasn't great but neither was the weather forecast which, fortuitously, proved inexact.
      I am perfectly content as I live in the vicinity!

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  3. There were a handful of Derbyshire supporters there. Lovely rural setting and great hosts. Bit of a trek but well worth the effort

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  4. Loved Dunstable. Lovely rural setting and the hosts were great. Well worth the trek on public transport. I’d definitely return if we play there again

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