Derbyshire 153; Surrey 392-8 (Ansari 105, Davies 124, Footitt 3-55)
I don't think there's any doubt that we are going to lose this game, but I hope that we show enough fight tomorrow to at least take the game into the fourth day.
We have been outplayed in this one, although there are a few bright spots from today's play. Mark Footitt bowled a tight spell and again took wickets, while Scott Elstone showed himself to have something of a golden arm. Meanwhile Tom Taylor duly took his first wicket in the senior game, and lo, as prophesied in the Peakfan Blog last night, 'twas that of Hasim Amla, one of the world's greatest batsmen.
Taylor got some stick afterwards, but a lad making his way in the game must expect that and come back again. more aware of what is required to make the grade. Surrey will probably make 400 tomorrow and then crowd the bat in the hope of an innings win.
Rain seems an unlikely saviour and nor should it really do so. Our first innings was a mess yesterday and it is difficult to win any game when your first innings puts you behind the eight ball, as ours did.
The game is gone, but there's at least an opportunity to salvage a little respect on a wicket that has been proven to offer batsmen runs if they are prepared to graft.
I hope we see that tomorrow.
Monday, 16 June 2014
Sunday, 15 June 2014
Derbyshire v Surrey day 1
Derbyshire 153 all out (North 44, Cross 27) Surrey 44-1 (Amla 25 not out)
There's not a great deal to be said about today at the County Ground.
Having been slated in some quarters for bowling in previous games, Derbyshire opted to bat first on a track that proved lively and 'sporting' on day one. Only Paul Borrington and Marcus North batted for any length of time and their dismissals saw a slide to a total that was some way short of adequate.
Surrey struggled in turn, although Hasim Amla was apparently the best batsman on show, according to a trusted watcher who contacted me late in the day. It would have been a pretty good day to bowl, so the decision to bat is a puzzler. The odd ball lifted nastily, some kept low and there was enough movement to keep the bowlers interested.
I assume the game plan was to get a decent score in the first dig and then capitalise as the wicket deteriorates later in the match. For that to happen, we need a remarkable morning tomorrow, as Surrey could conceivably have first innings lead by then.
Tom Curran, son of the late Zimbabwean all-rounder Kevin, had the best day of his fledgling first-class career and blew us away by bowling straight. Many a good Derbyshire seamer of yesteryear would have fancied such a wicket and I've little doubt that Mark Footitt, Tony Palladino and Tom Taylor would too.
Not impressive then and much work to do.
Postscript: I was working outside in the garden today, when a sudden 'newsflash' hit me that Tom Taylor's first wicket in senior cricket was Hasim Amla. A portent of things to come?
I hope so - and early tomorrow would be very much appreciated...
Update: I understand that both captains intended to bat if they won the toss today. Both felt that the wicket would settle down after the first hour and the sun would come out. It can therefore be safely said that it was a very good toss to lose for Surrey.
Given that both sides also expect it to turn as the game progresses, we really need a big first session tomorrow.
And we now know why that decision was made this morning.
There's not a great deal to be said about today at the County Ground.
Having been slated in some quarters for bowling in previous games, Derbyshire opted to bat first on a track that proved lively and 'sporting' on day one. Only Paul Borrington and Marcus North batted for any length of time and their dismissals saw a slide to a total that was some way short of adequate.
Surrey struggled in turn, although Hasim Amla was apparently the best batsman on show, according to a trusted watcher who contacted me late in the day. It would have been a pretty good day to bowl, so the decision to bat is a puzzler. The odd ball lifted nastily, some kept low and there was enough movement to keep the bowlers interested.
I assume the game plan was to get a decent score in the first dig and then capitalise as the wicket deteriorates later in the match. For that to happen, we need a remarkable morning tomorrow, as Surrey could conceivably have first innings lead by then.
Tom Curran, son of the late Zimbabwean all-rounder Kevin, had the best day of his fledgling first-class career and blew us away by bowling straight. Many a good Derbyshire seamer of yesteryear would have fancied such a wicket and I've little doubt that Mark Footitt, Tony Palladino and Tom Taylor would too.
Not impressive then and much work to do.
Postscript: I was working outside in the garden today, when a sudden 'newsflash' hit me that Tom Taylor's first wicket in senior cricket was Hasim Amla. A portent of things to come?
I hope so - and early tomorrow would be very much appreciated...
Update: I understand that both captains intended to bat if they won the toss today. Both felt that the wicket would settle down after the first hour and the sun would come out. It can therefore be safely said that it was a very good toss to lose for Surrey.
Given that both sides also expect it to turn as the game progresses, we really need a big first session tomorrow.
And we now know why that decision was made this morning.
Saturday, 14 June 2014
Derbyshire v Surrey - championship preview
There's been a different Derbyshire on view in the past week, one that scraps as a team, rather than relying on the contribution of specific individuals. Such efforts have been successful in our better teams of yore and will undoubtedly be in the future.
Graeme Welch has, somewhat unsurprisingly, made no change to the side that won with some comfort against Leicestershire. There would have been a recall for Tim Groenewald in his mind, but his comments after the announcement of his departure suggest that youth will get its chance in the remainder of the season, so Tom Taylor keeps his place.
Our visitors tomorrow have a strong squad with plenty of international experience, headed by the new South African captain Hashim Amla. With Vikram Solanki, Jade Dernbach, Steven Davies and Chris Tremlett also in the squad, they will provide a sterner test and we will need to be at our best against them.
I think the toss will be important and it would be good to see Wayne Madsen's success in the T20 coin tossing continued tomorrow. We are undoubtedly a good enough side to take a win from this game, but the onus is on the players to show that the result last week was a turning point and not just a one-off.
There's a good four-day forecast ahead which gives every chance of a positive result.
Let's hope that we're on the right end of it.
Postscript: closing on my piece last night, a comparator. My works cricket team has three 'proper' cricket players and lots of keen beginners. So our games work, one of us opens, one scores and one umpires when we are batting. This ensures we might score runs, record an accurate total and make the correct decisions.
It's the only legitimate reason I can think of to not have your best players at the top of the order.
I rest my case...
Graeme Welch has, somewhat unsurprisingly, made no change to the side that won with some comfort against Leicestershire. There would have been a recall for Tim Groenewald in his mind, but his comments after the announcement of his departure suggest that youth will get its chance in the remainder of the season, so Tom Taylor keeps his place.
Our visitors tomorrow have a strong squad with plenty of international experience, headed by the new South African captain Hashim Amla. With Vikram Solanki, Jade Dernbach, Steven Davies and Chris Tremlett also in the squad, they will provide a sterner test and we will need to be at our best against them.
I think the toss will be important and it would be good to see Wayne Madsen's success in the T20 coin tossing continued tomorrow. We are undoubtedly a good enough side to take a win from this game, but the onus is on the players to show that the result last week was a turning point and not just a one-off.
There's a good four-day forecast ahead which gives every chance of a positive result.
Let's hope that we're on the right end of it.
Postscript: closing on my piece last night, a comparator. My works cricket team has three 'proper' cricket players and lots of keen beginners. So our games work, one of us opens, one scores and one umpires when we are batting. This ensures we might score runs, record an accurate total and make the correct decisions.
It's the only legitimate reason I can think of to not have your best players at the top of the order.
I rest my case...
Friday, 13 June 2014
Derbyshire v Worcestershire T20
Worcestershire 177-5: Derbyshire 169-8 (Madsen 65, North 38, Moore 32)
Worcestershire won by eight runs
There was a much improved and in many ways encouraging performance by Derbyshire against the section-toppers, Worcestershire, tonight.
Yet ultimately we went down by eight runs and one cannot help but feel that it was partly self-inflicted.
I just don't understand why we leave Marcus North until the twelfth over to make his entrance. I suppose the rationale is that he's a clean hitter and quick scorer, thereby giving us a good chance of making a decent fist of the last few overs.
Yet for me, he could make an even better job of the first six in the company of Stephen Moore, able to reach the boundaries when the opposition have to keep the majority of the field in. We were improved in that area tonight, largely thanks to Moore, and outscored our opponents, but we can do better.
North opening, Elstone at three and the skipper at four. I know Cross has 'previous' as a pinch hitter at Lancashire, but his batting form hasn't come with him thus far and he could and should be utilised down the order. Having advocated the use of Knight up the order, I'd be inclined to leave things for now and put him in lower, as the lad's not being given a fair chance. If he's batting eight for the second team and six for his club side, putting him in at three for the first team, rightly or wrongly, smacks of desperation.
I well recall the 1969 Gillette Cup Final, when we got behind the clock in chasing a Yorkshire total that by modern standards was only moderate. Out came Alan Ward, promoted up the order to give it the long handle. It didn't work, as sagely predicted by my Dad as we watched events unfold.
"This one's gone, lad. They've panicked" he said and he was right. Knight is a much better batsman than Ward and is starting to prove it, but this move does him no favours without the appropriate back up at lower levels. I hope it is carefully looked at.
There was a top innings from the skipper tonight, which looked like carrying us home for a while. The rotation of bowlers was better too, but Ajmal bowled two very tight overs that cost us in the end.
It was better and I'm pleased to say that, but we're very much a work in progress at this stage.
Postscript: Thanks to Martin for the suggestion of potted scores at the end of a day's play. For those on holiday abroad this summer, it may just save you a lot of money in data charges and I'm glad to help out and save you looking elsewhere...
Worcestershire won by eight runs
There was a much improved and in many ways encouraging performance by Derbyshire against the section-toppers, Worcestershire, tonight.
Yet ultimately we went down by eight runs and one cannot help but feel that it was partly self-inflicted.
I just don't understand why we leave Marcus North until the twelfth over to make his entrance. I suppose the rationale is that he's a clean hitter and quick scorer, thereby giving us a good chance of making a decent fist of the last few overs.
Yet for me, he could make an even better job of the first six in the company of Stephen Moore, able to reach the boundaries when the opposition have to keep the majority of the field in. We were improved in that area tonight, largely thanks to Moore, and outscored our opponents, but we can do better.
North opening, Elstone at three and the skipper at four. I know Cross has 'previous' as a pinch hitter at Lancashire, but his batting form hasn't come with him thus far and he could and should be utilised down the order. Having advocated the use of Knight up the order, I'd be inclined to leave things for now and put him in lower, as the lad's not being given a fair chance. If he's batting eight for the second team and six for his club side, putting him in at three for the first team, rightly or wrongly, smacks of desperation.
I well recall the 1969 Gillette Cup Final, when we got behind the clock in chasing a Yorkshire total that by modern standards was only moderate. Out came Alan Ward, promoted up the order to give it the long handle. It didn't work, as sagely predicted by my Dad as we watched events unfold.
"This one's gone, lad. They've panicked" he said and he was right. Knight is a much better batsman than Ward and is starting to prove it, but this move does him no favours without the appropriate back up at lower levels. I hope it is carefully looked at.
There was a top innings from the skipper tonight, which looked like carrying us home for a while. The rotation of bowlers was better too, but Ajmal bowled two very tight overs that cost us in the end.
It was better and I'm pleased to say that, but we're very much a work in progress at this stage.
Postscript: Thanks to Martin for the suggestion of potted scores at the end of a day's play. For those on holiday abroad this summer, it may just save you a lot of money in data charges and I'm glad to help out and save you looking elsewhere...
Thursday, 12 June 2014
Derbyshire v Worcestershire T20 preview
Were I to be granted a listen to Graeme Welch's ipod, I reckon there would be a couple of old classics on there at the moment.
Changes by David Bowie and The Young Ones by good old Cliff Richard might be getting air on rotation, by the look of the squad that has been chosen for tomorrow night's game against Worcestershire Rapids, a name that sounds more at home in US soccer circles or something similar.
There may be a senior debut for Greg Cork and a start for Matt Higginbottom as Graeme Welch rings the changes for tomorrow's game. Mark Footitt, so crucial to our hopes of climbing the table in the County Championship, is rested, along with David Wainwright, while Tim Groenewald also sits it out. From those named, I'd be inclined to omit Mark Turner and see how the youngsters get on, though Higginbottom could miss out if the coach opts for a more experienced man. For what it is worth, this would be my batting order:
Stephen Moore
Marcus North
Scott Elstone
Tom Knight
Wayne Madsen
Alex Hughes
Wes Durston
Gareth Cross
Tony Palladino
Greg Cork
Matt Higginbottom/Mark Turner
Knight's place in the order should be fluid, but we'd have a chance to score quickly in the Power play with this line up. North is probably the best batsman (at least in this format) and you really want such a player to have the most available time to bat. He opened with great success in the past winter so it wouldn't be a major change for him, while there's plenty of batting lower down to repair things if it went awry, with Durston, Cross and Palladino around with experience at the death.
Cork will get a chance to show his all-round talents in good time and will doubtless rise higher in the order as his career progresses, but it would make for an interesting evening seeing how a young bowling attack cope with a strong Worcestershire side.
Saeed Ajmal is the obvious threat in the attack, but with big-hitting Kiwi Colin Munro as second overseas player in a batting line-up that contains former County Ground favourite Ross Whiteley, we will undoubtedly start as underdogs.
Their squad:
Daryl Mitchell, Richard Oliver, Tom Kohler-Cadmore, Colin Munro, Alexei Kervezee, Ross Whiteley, Ben Cox, Brett D'Oliveira, Jack Shantry, Saeed Ajmal, Chris Russell and Gareth Andrew.
I'd love to predict a home win to follow on from the win at Leicestershire, but it will need a special performance from someone, or better still a collective of positive performances, to steal this one from a good one-day side.
More tomorrow.
Changes by David Bowie and The Young Ones by good old Cliff Richard might be getting air on rotation, by the look of the squad that has been chosen for tomorrow night's game against Worcestershire Rapids, a name that sounds more at home in US soccer circles or something similar.
There may be a senior debut for Greg Cork and a start for Matt Higginbottom as Graeme Welch rings the changes for tomorrow's game. Mark Footitt, so crucial to our hopes of climbing the table in the County Championship, is rested, along with David Wainwright, while Tim Groenewald also sits it out. From those named, I'd be inclined to omit Mark Turner and see how the youngsters get on, though Higginbottom could miss out if the coach opts for a more experienced man. For what it is worth, this would be my batting order:
Stephen Moore
Marcus North
Scott Elstone
Tom Knight
Wayne Madsen
Alex Hughes
Wes Durston
Gareth Cross
Tony Palladino
Greg Cork
Matt Higginbottom/Mark Turner
Knight's place in the order should be fluid, but we'd have a chance to score quickly in the Power play with this line up. North is probably the best batsman (at least in this format) and you really want such a player to have the most available time to bat. He opened with great success in the past winter so it wouldn't be a major change for him, while there's plenty of batting lower down to repair things if it went awry, with Durston, Cross and Palladino around with experience at the death.
Cork will get a chance to show his all-round talents in good time and will doubtless rise higher in the order as his career progresses, but it would make for an interesting evening seeing how a young bowling attack cope with a strong Worcestershire side.
Saeed Ajmal is the obvious threat in the attack, but with big-hitting Kiwi Colin Munro as second overseas player in a batting line-up that contains former County Ground favourite Ross Whiteley, we will undoubtedly start as underdogs.
Their squad:
Daryl Mitchell, Richard Oliver, Tom Kohler-Cadmore, Colin Munro, Alexei Kervezee, Ross Whiteley, Ben Cox, Brett D'Oliveira, Jack Shantry, Saeed Ajmal, Chris Russell and Gareth Andrew.
I'd love to predict a home win to follow on from the win at Leicestershire, but it will need a special performance from someone, or better still a collective of positive performances, to steal this one from a good one-day side.
More tomorrow.
Wednesday, 11 June 2014
Leicestershire v Derbyshire day 4
"A colony of monkeys was seen in the outfield at Grace Road this evening. They are believed to have been released from the backs of Derbyshire players, following their victory stroll against Leicestershire today..."So might have gone a news story this afternoon, as Derbyshire made light of what could have been a tricky run chase against Leicestershire. I've been around for long enough to know that we can make a mess of such chases and end up 188-8 if we're lucky, or 160 all out if we're not.
188-1 marked a conclusive win, the sort that is more often the preserve of other sides. It was the first win of the summer - but you knew that - and may yet serve as a catalyst for the remainder of it.
It wasn't against an especially strong side and the attack today was not one that should ordinarily have caused alarms, but you can only play against what's in front of you and the finish was both polished and professional. Stephen Moore gave impetus to the chase and did what he was signed for, while it was nice to see Wayne Madsen in at the end and able to hit the winning runs.
This has been a difficult couple of months for the Derbyshire skipper and he will be delighted to get up and running at last. His captaincy throughout the game was shrewd and I especially liked the way that he handled Tom Taylor on his debut. Giving him overs just before intervals and the last over of the day offered him a little more protection and the youngster will have been grateful for such supportive captaincy. Yet perhaps most important of all, the final day was a triumph for Paul Borrington (pictured) who made an excellent unbeaten 86.
It's a big year for Bozz and long-time readers will know how I admire his technique and his 'stickability' when things are rough. His team mates do too and he ends this game with an average only just south of forty and the prospect of forming a very good partnership with Stephen Moore.
The two have shared several decent stands so far and are a pairing of contrasts. Moore is flamboyant and always willing to take on the short ball at any stage of his innings. Borrington is more circumspect and likes to get his hands, eyes and feet moving before assaying anything too ambitious. Yet he has all the shots and, as one of his team mates told me last season, he works the ball into gaps and rotates the strike as well as anyone.
We're off the bottom of the table and have done so with a degree of elan not often associated with Derbyshire sides. Our left-arm spinner will have gone home tonight with the satisfaction of a job well done and with the confidence of a modern day Wilfred Rhodes, an all-rounder par excellence. Mark Foottitt reaffirmed his talent as an excellent topper and tailer of an innings, while Tony Palladino lent excellent and tireless support.
It was a team effort in which everyone contributed and can be proud of that contribution. Tom Taylor will sleep well after a debut that heralded a bright future, while Alex Hughes and Scott Elstone did their bit in the middle order, with both bat and ball. Indeed, Hughes' first innings knock was the knock that started to turn the game.
Most of all tonight, I am pleased for Graeme Welch. I have no doubt that when he planned this season he had his first win in his mind before now. But he can enjoy this one and plan for Friday with the rest of his coaching staff.
We've not become world-beaters by winning this, but we weren't the worst team in the world beforehand either. We just needed the breaks and we got them here.
The season has started and I hope we can get on a roll against Worcestershire on Friday.
Nice work lads. You deserved that one.
Tuesday, 10 June 2014
Leicestershire v Derbyshire day 3
Its a funny thing, confidence.
After scoring his maiden century for Derbyshire today, following two for Yorkshire, David Wainwright must have felt ten feet tall and gone out to bowl feeling he was Bishan Bedi.
We've all been there. Take a few wickets and your bat feels like Excalibur; bat well and your bowling possesses devilment beyond its normal compass. It's funny, but true and Wainwright capitalised today by becoming only the third man since 1937 to take five wickets and score a century in a match.
The other two, for the record, were one Graeme Welch and Jonathan Clare, the latter sadly some way from such triumphs at present. Back in 1937, we were somewhat spoilt and had both Les Townsend and George Pope manage the feat, indicative of the quality of those two outstanding all-rounders.
Top marks to Tom Taylor for a terrific supporting knock again today, though he looks like having to wait for his first wicket. Scott Elstone took another couple of wickets to reinforce his growing reputation, but things could have been so much better had we not again missed decent chances in the field. It is frustrating, to say the least and I hope our profligacy in these areas doesn't come back to bite us tomorrow.
We look like chasing under 200 to win. I'd have been much happier had it been around 150, but with all day to get them and the opposition not having the most demanding of attacks, we should be asking serious questions if we don't get there. I just hope we go out with a positive but sensible intent, rather than trying to grind them out, which is when we often get into trouble. With Alex Wyatt batting with a runner tonight, it would appear he is unlikely to bowl, which leaves them struggling a little.
Sincere congratulations to David Wainwright tonight. He's had a rough old summer so far but might just have bowled us to the verge of a first win of the campaign and reaffirmed his talent into the bargain.
Though I'm not going anywhere near those chickens for a roll call at this stage...
After scoring his maiden century for Derbyshire today, following two for Yorkshire, David Wainwright must have felt ten feet tall and gone out to bowl feeling he was Bishan Bedi.
We've all been there. Take a few wickets and your bat feels like Excalibur; bat well and your bowling possesses devilment beyond its normal compass. It's funny, but true and Wainwright capitalised today by becoming only the third man since 1937 to take five wickets and score a century in a match.
The other two, for the record, were one Graeme Welch and Jonathan Clare, the latter sadly some way from such triumphs at present. Back in 1937, we were somewhat spoilt and had both Les Townsend and George Pope manage the feat, indicative of the quality of those two outstanding all-rounders.
Top marks to Tom Taylor for a terrific supporting knock again today, though he looks like having to wait for his first wicket. Scott Elstone took another couple of wickets to reinforce his growing reputation, but things could have been so much better had we not again missed decent chances in the field. It is frustrating, to say the least and I hope our profligacy in these areas doesn't come back to bite us tomorrow.
We look like chasing under 200 to win. I'd have been much happier had it been around 150, but with all day to get them and the opposition not having the most demanding of attacks, we should be asking serious questions if we don't get there. I just hope we go out with a positive but sensible intent, rather than trying to grind them out, which is when we often get into trouble. With Alex Wyatt batting with a runner tonight, it would appear he is unlikely to bowl, which leaves them struggling a little.
Sincere congratulations to David Wainwright tonight. He's had a rough old summer so far but might just have bowled us to the verge of a first win of the campaign and reaffirmed his talent into the bargain.
Though I'm not going anywhere near those chickens for a roll call at this stage...
Monday, 9 June 2014
Leicestershire v Derbyshire day 2
There's an absorbing old game going on at Grace Road, where Derbyshire closed the second day 32 runs behind with two first innings wickets in hand.That we recovered from 115-6, still 47 short of the follow on, to 279-8 was down to a Derbyshire-best unbeaten 83 from David Wainwright (pictured), together with a gritty personal best 60 from Alex Hughes. As the closing overs of the day were played out, 19-year old Tom Taylor showed he knows how to handle a willow with an unbeaten 20 that enabled us to get close to parity.
The early batting was sketchy, but what reports refer to as 'extravagant movement' was a major factor. Yet Alex Hughes lends an air of solidity to a Derbyshire innings, even this early in a county career and it was good to see David Wainwright following his bowling of yesterday with an innings of considerable substance. It showed him as a cricketer of mettle and I respect a player who, even if not in prime form, will battle for the cause.
This could go either way and the first session tomorrow is likely to be pivotal. We're unlikely to want to chase much more than 250-275 in the final innings, so the new ball will take on massive significance.
Game very much on and we'll see which side is most 'up' for the battle tomorrow.
Off the field, the big news was the announcement by Chris Grant that Graeme Welch will have 'significant' funds available for strengthening the side in the close season. We're also going to be concentrating recruitment on proven match-winners, augmenting their input with young, locally-produced players.
It is a laudable statement and one that marks a major shift for the county. For a long time we have existed and recruited from the offcuts of county retained lists, sometimes with greater success than others. If we are to genuinely compete AND sign people who are in demand elsewhere, it will be a major change and success for us.
Cynics will undoubtedly suggest that it is a similar statement to that of the 'landmark signing' promised by Chris Grant when he first took up his role. It was a comment made with a degree of naivety, unaware as he was at that time of the congested fixture calendar and the difficulty of convincing top quality players to spend a summer in England, instead of the IPL.
Yet Grant is more experienced and wiser now. He knows how it works and importantly has an extensive network of coaches and contacts to draw upon. He also has the experience of Geoff Miller to call on and it would be a brave man who would bet against him delivering.
After all, despite the challenges, we still signed Chanderpaul...
Sunday, 8 June 2014
Leicestershire v Derbyshire day 1
A day that began with the news of Tim Groenewald's departure started well for Derbyshire on the field, with three men back in the pavilion inside the first thirteen balls of the game. The home side then fought back well and ended their first innings 311 all out, thanks to a solid middle-order effort, before we closed on 12-0 in nine overs of batting before the close.Mark Footitt (pictured) has enjoyed an excellent championship season so far and his 6-65 was the second best analysis of his career. He is fast, fit and in form and now has 27 wickets at under 20, just reward for being in the physical shape of his life. One lightning lifter struck Niall O'Brien on the helmet, but the Irish wicket-keeper is a doughty battler and produced the innings of the day after a lengthy stoppage.
Footitt did well and was supported nicely by Tony Palladino, who is recovering his best form. Tom Taylor was wicket-less on debut, but will benefit from the exposure and from playing alongside a better class of player. There were tidy spells from Marcus North and Scott Elstone too, the latter suffering from a dropped chance at slip that might otherwise have continued the positive all-round impression that he has made in his early appearances.
More worrying was the form of David Wainwright, whose fourteen overs went for 63 runs. If conditions don't favour your spinners, you really want them to keep things tight as North (nine overs for 16) and Elstone (seven for 22) duly did. As the front-line spinner, Wainers will have hoped for a better return and will aim for improvement in the second innings.
Between times it is over to the Derbyshire batsmen and the openers did what was needed in the closing overs. Tomorrow they need to give us the sound foundations of an innings that will put us in the ascendancy. With no Nathan Buck or Charlie Shreck to contend with, there will be few better opportunities for the Derbyshire batsmen to get in and make a score.
In closing tonight, a final word on the departure of Tim Groenewald, in response to a few comments and mails already received.
I don't have any issue with Groenewald wanting to leave. Cricketers have only one career and if he has found someone who will pay him far more than we are able to do and offers him greater potential of trophies, then good luck to the guy.
Yet we have a finite budget and besides doing the right thing by him, Graeme Welch and Chris Grant need to consider the impact of any salary increase on the rest of the squad. If the player's agent wanted an extra £10-20K a year for him to stay at Derbyshire (and I stress I have no idea of the amounts involved), how does that impact on the salaries of other senior, deserving and contributing players?
Tim Groenewald has been an important player for Derbyshire, but then so have Wayne Madsen, Tony Palladino, Mark Footitt and Stephen Moore. Each and every player has a value and, perhaps more importantly, an affordability figure which we simply cannot go past. With a limited playing budget, we cannot pay six players £80K a summer, as we'd only have the money for a squad of twelve or thirteen people.
Would I prefer Groenewald to stay? Yes, of course. Am I sad he is leaving? Likewise. But as a senior player presumably already on a senior salary, we have to trust our management team that the demands from his agent for a new deal were excessive. They have made the call that the money could be more beneficially spent on team strengthening in other areas, especially when young seamers of talent appear our biggest asset right now.
I'm a realist. A team that hasn't yet won a match this summer needs obvious strengthening and I have no doubt that Graeme Welch has plans at this stage as to how he might do that. I'm more than happy to wait and see how that shapes up, rather than start an unnecessary hare around the park and start moaning about lack of ambition. Such comments in some quarters are an insult to Welch and his coaching staff, as well as to the chairman and chief executive, who want nothing more than a successful Derbyshire side and continue to work tirelessly to get one.
In sport and in life, sometimes tough decisions have to be made.
And today Derbyshire just announced one.
Groenewald to leave and youth to get opportunity
I like Groenewald as a cricketer and he has been an excellent servant to Derbyshire. Then again, the club has been good to him and had it not been for the opportunities offered with the new ball when he left Warwickshire, his career could have taken a completely different route.
One thing is for sure, we will miss a player who has always given one hundred per cent and who has proved the most robust of seamers. Look back over his time at the club and there are few periods where he missed matches. Whether one-day or four-day cricket, Timmy G has run in to bowl and done so consistently.
He has not been quite so effective in the T20 this year and with a current rate of ten runs an over against him is not enjoying the best of campaigns, but he will be remembered as a very good seam bowler and an excellent club man. He is also a thoroughly nice guy and I am sure that Derbyshire fans will wish him well, wherever he ends up.
That Derbyshire waived their right to the player serving 28 days notice before speaking to other counties can be construed as a goodwill gesture, but also as a vote of confidence in the crop of young bowlers coming through. I fully expect to see change and experiment in the course of this summer and next, as opportunity knocks for the young brigade of seam bowlers. Tom Taylor is the first of these to gain elevation and replaced Groenewald in the side at Leicester today. The lad is a genuine talent and needs opportunity to move up a level. So too do the likes of the giant Ben Cotton, the whole-hearted Matt Higginbottom and the all-round talent of Greg Cork, even before you consider the likes of Jony Marsden and Will Davis.
Five years from now, maybe even three, Derbyshire may well field a first-choice attack that is primarily home-grown. There will also be more opportunities on the batting front, where again there are players emerging through the Academy who could force their way into the side in time.
Derbyshire will have made Tim Groenewald a decent contract offer but presumably could not compete, or chose not to compete, with what is on offer elsewhere. In all such dealings one has to consider the importance of the player and the cover available for them should they decide to leave.
In this instance, Graeme Welch has decided that he has the cover and that the money could be more beneficially used for strengthening elsewhere.
That's what he is paid for. Let the revolution commence...
Saturday, 7 June 2014
Leicestershire v Derbyshire preview
There's an unchanged team for Derbyshire in this game, which hardly comes as a surprise. While the batting was hardly at its best in Southampton, nor is there anyone close to the form required to oust one of them from their position.
Nor do they deserve to lose out. I think the top six has a good look to it and the three younger players in there have all done enough in the past couple of matches to warrant a decent run. As for the bowlers, David Wainwright could come under pressure from Tom Knight in the near future, but the seamers largely speak for themselves and I don't foresee any changes.
The Derbyshire squad:
Borrington
Moore
Madsen
North
Elstone
Hughes (A)
Cross
Wainwright
Palladino
Groenewald
Footitt
Turner
As for Leicestershire, they're missing Ollie Freckingham and Nathan Buck to injury and there will be a late fitness test for the experienced Charlie Shreck, who pulled up after only three overs in their last championship game. Their squad is:
Smith, Robson, Eckersley, Sarwan, Cobb, O'Brien, Taylor, Raine, Naik, Sykes, Ireland, Shreck, Wyatt.
Angus Robson has been in good form for them and they are a side that habitually does well against us, despite not looking to be the strongest on paper. Ramnaresh Sarwan remains as overseas player, but this is a game that, weather permitting, we should really hope to win and kick start our season.
Will we? Monday and Tuesday are set for showers, but a good performance here will build on some positive vibes from the Nottinghamshire game last night. I know I'm tempting providence...
But I'll go for a win here.
Nor do they deserve to lose out. I think the top six has a good look to it and the three younger players in there have all done enough in the past couple of matches to warrant a decent run. As for the bowlers, David Wainwright could come under pressure from Tom Knight in the near future, but the seamers largely speak for themselves and I don't foresee any changes.
The Derbyshire squad:
Borrington
Moore
Madsen
North
Elstone
Hughes (A)
Cross
Wainwright
Palladino
Groenewald
Footitt
Turner
As for Leicestershire, they're missing Ollie Freckingham and Nathan Buck to injury and there will be a late fitness test for the experienced Charlie Shreck, who pulled up after only three overs in their last championship game. Their squad is:
Smith, Robson, Eckersley, Sarwan, Cobb, O'Brien, Taylor, Raine, Naik, Sykes, Ireland, Shreck, Wyatt.
Angus Robson has been in good form for them and they are a side that habitually does well against us, despite not looking to be the strongest on paper. Ramnaresh Sarwan remains as overseas player, but this is a game that, weather permitting, we should really hope to win and kick start our season.
Will we? Monday and Tuesday are set for showers, but a good performance here will build on some positive vibes from the Nottinghamshire game last night. I know I'm tempting providence...
But I'll go for a win here.
Knight impact needs further thought
I've been ruminating this morning.OK, for maximum effect I should have written 'Oi been ruminatin' this maarnin'...perhaps making me sound more Wurzel-like. Though why I'd want to do such a thing is a moot point.
Still, a-ruminating I have been, as I have gone around my chores and the focal point of them was Tom Knight in the game against Nottinghamshire yesterday.
I'm a self-confessed fan of the lad and have been since I first saw him. His action is in the process of being revamped and I'm not going to sit here and say there was nothing wrong with the old one. If better coaches than me think they can improve his bowling with a couple of tweaks, then such a medium to long-term project is good enough for me.
Where I don't think we were fair to the lad, however, was in his batting slot at number three, effectively in a straight swap with Chesney Hughes. I have advocated giving him a go as a pinch-hitter, but in doing so we have to be sensible.
His normal place in the order is at seven or eight and he has worked his way up the team sheet quite nicely with an improved technique and the ability to time the ball and hit it a long way. That regular slot is in the second team and also at Swarkestone, where in a strong batting side he often struggles to get in much earlier.
I think Knight could be successful in that pinch-hitting role, but the club has to do right by him. I'd like to see him batting at three (or opening) for the second team in their game this Monday and I'd like to see him given similar opportunity by his club side on a regular basis.
Facing a new ball is, as I have written before, considerably different to batting down the order. The ball bounces and moves more and the bowlers are generally fresh. It is less an enterprising initiative and more of a sacrifice if someone is put in there to slap it about without prior experience of doing so. It is hardly fair to someone to say that we think you're a good enough player to bat eight for us as a rule, but we would like you to bat three against our local rivals in front of four thousand people on a Friday night. It might come off, but the thinking money would be against it. And at the end of the day you prove and learn nothing.
Turning it on its head, you wouldn't thank your mate for a safe lift to the Silverstone Grand Prix, then tell him he was replacing Lewis Hamilton on the starting grid. Nor would you toss a promising spinner the new ball and tell him to bowl seam-up. I think that Knight's use in the role he was offered last night is a valid one and he has shown on several occasions that he has the ability to pierce and clear the field against decent bowlers. Yet the only way that he can be expected to play that role on a regular basis is to be given greater opportunity to do so.
There is no logic to someone being considered good enough to bat three at county level, yet much lower in second team and club cricket. I'd like to see that on the 'action' list in the teams concerned. If the lad proves he isn't able to do it on a regular basis, that's fair enough, but he should at least be afforded better preparation next time.
That way, his chances will improve considerably.
Friday, 6 June 2014
Derbyshire v Nottinghamshire T20
There was a better performance by Derbyshire tonight, but in the end the result was the same as in the previous T20 matches this summer and a fourth defeat ensued.
It was not surprising, of course, against a team that features six past or present internationals, but the game was won and lost - again - by the respective Powerplays and the talent of two of the best T20 batsmen in the world game.
After six overs we had progressed to 32-3, while Hales and Lumb took Nottinghamshire to thirty in two overs. They reached the six over mark at 70-2 and the game was pretty much over as a contest by then. We fought back well, but Nottinghamshire won with over three overs to spare and there was no disguising their superiority.
I missed our innings as I was working, but the first ball loss of Stephen Moore was a blow and Wes once again failed to get going. I applaud the promotion of Tom Knight, which I advocated last week, but it was a tough attack to face. I don't follow the rationale of keeping back Marcus North until number five and Scott Elstone would be a much better option than Wes Durston on current form at the top of the order. Better, but a work still in progress for me.
There was no Chesney tonight and I feel we'd be better served in utilising the talents of Alex Hughes (who didn't bat tonight) and Elstone higher in the order, but at least there appeared to be better rotation of the bowlers, even if the firepower of the opposition batting rendered it largely redundant.
Anyway, to Leicester next, though the swathe of bad weather cutting across the country overnight may legislate against a prompt Sunday start, or even one at all.
More on that tomorrow.
Postscript - good to see Usman Khawaja back in the county game at Lancashire. While he won't be remembered as one of our most prolific batsmen, there was a certain charm about his game at his best and no one who saw it will forget his marvelous last day innings against Hampshire that steered us to the division two title.in 2012.
It was not surprising, of course, against a team that features six past or present internationals, but the game was won and lost - again - by the respective Powerplays and the talent of two of the best T20 batsmen in the world game.
After six overs we had progressed to 32-3, while Hales and Lumb took Nottinghamshire to thirty in two overs. They reached the six over mark at 70-2 and the game was pretty much over as a contest by then. We fought back well, but Nottinghamshire won with over three overs to spare and there was no disguising their superiority.
I missed our innings as I was working, but the first ball loss of Stephen Moore was a blow and Wes once again failed to get going. I applaud the promotion of Tom Knight, which I advocated last week, but it was a tough attack to face. I don't follow the rationale of keeping back Marcus North until number five and Scott Elstone would be a much better option than Wes Durston on current form at the top of the order. Better, but a work still in progress for me.
There was no Chesney tonight and I feel we'd be better served in utilising the talents of Alex Hughes (who didn't bat tonight) and Elstone higher in the order, but at least there appeared to be better rotation of the bowlers, even if the firepower of the opposition batting rendered it largely redundant.
Anyway, to Leicester next, though the swathe of bad weather cutting across the country overnight may legislate against a prompt Sunday start, or even one at all.
More on that tomorrow.
Postscript - good to see Usman Khawaja back in the county game at Lancashire. While he won't be remembered as one of our most prolific batsmen, there was a certain charm about his game at his best and no one who saw it will forget his marvelous last day innings against Hampshire that steered us to the division two title.in 2012.
Thursday, 5 June 2014
Derbyshire v Nottinghamshire preview
In the light of our track record against them, allied to recent form, it is probably unrealistic to expect a Derbyshire win tomorrow against Nottinghamshire.
Yet let's not forget that this is cricket and that remarkable thrash at Trent Bridge last summer, when we beat them with some ease, our side featuring neither overseas player.
It can happen and our season has to start somewhere. How good would it be if it was tomorrow?
Graeme Welch is keeping everyone guessing by naming a fifteen-man squad:
Stephen Moore (2) Chesney Hughes (22)
Wes Durston (3) Marcus North (8)
Wayne Madsen (77) Scott Elstone (10)
Alex Hughes (18) Tom Knight (27)
Gareth Cross (7) Tony Palladino (28)
Tim Groenewald (12) Mark Footitt (4)
Matt Higginbottom (20) Tom Taylor (15)
Mark Turner (6)
I can't call the side, so won't attempt to. Meanwhile, Nottinghamshire turn up with an England opening pair and are awash with international players, past and present. Logic suggests it should be the biggest mis-match since David tackled Goliath, but we must hope that Derbyshire's batsmen and bowlers pack especially potent slingshot tomorrow.
I'm working till 8.30pm tomorrow night, so the game will be pretty much done by the time I get home. Maybe that's no bad thing, but I am a man of simple pleasures and hope for just two things tomorrow:
Please let's bat against the clock, rather than the sundial in the Powerplay
Let's rotate the bowlers and throw more spin at them.
If nothing else, the latter will keep the seamers fresh for the game that starts against Leicestershire on Sunday, one that affords a genuine opportunity of a win.
But if somehow we can beat the Nottinghamshire Predators...sorry....Outlaws....we'd not say no, would we?
Yet let's not forget that this is cricket and that remarkable thrash at Trent Bridge last summer, when we beat them with some ease, our side featuring neither overseas player.
It can happen and our season has to start somewhere. How good would it be if it was tomorrow?
Graeme Welch is keeping everyone guessing by naming a fifteen-man squad:
Stephen Moore (2) Chesney Hughes (22)
Wes Durston (3) Marcus North (8)
Wayne Madsen (77) Scott Elstone (10)
Alex Hughes (18) Tom Knight (27)
Gareth Cross (7) Tony Palladino (28)
Tim Groenewald (12) Mark Footitt (4)
Matt Higginbottom (20) Tom Taylor (15)
Mark Turner (6)
I can't call the side, so won't attempt to. Meanwhile, Nottinghamshire turn up with an England opening pair and are awash with international players, past and present. Logic suggests it should be the biggest mis-match since David tackled Goliath, but we must hope that Derbyshire's batsmen and bowlers pack especially potent slingshot tomorrow.
I'm working till 8.30pm tomorrow night, so the game will be pretty much done by the time I get home. Maybe that's no bad thing, but I am a man of simple pleasures and hope for just two things tomorrow:
Please let's bat against the clock, rather than the sundial in the Powerplay
Let's rotate the bowlers and throw more spin at them.
If nothing else, the latter will keep the seamers fresh for the game that starts against Leicestershire on Sunday, one that affords a genuine opportunity of a win.
But if somehow we can beat the Nottinghamshire Predators...sorry....Outlaws....we'd not say no, would we?
Welch the right man?
I've had two or three emails in the past week or so, asking for my thoughts on the current situation and whether I still felt that Graeme Welch was the right man for Derbyshire County Cricket Club.
Mark, below the last post, is the first to ask this question in the public domain, so I am happy to give a response.
I can understand the comments. Ten competitive games into the season, we await our first win and the form of a number of players is a matter of concern. There has been what could be perceived as a lack of clarity in team selections and a continuation of the sort of batting slides with which Derbyshire fans have become all too familiar. Some of the one-day bowling has hinted at a dearth of requisite skills, while the same format has highlighted a lack of urgency in the crucial power play overs that is worrying and lamentable in equal measure.
Welch is approaching the five-month anniversary of his three-year appointment and that needs to be remembered. I've had a number of jobs over the years and have always maintained that it takes six months before you feel you have a genuine understanding of the role and its responsibilities. You contribute earlier than that, of course, but to start to develop takes considerably longer and requires the building up of knowledge on the systems and processes, as well as the people that you work with. Importantly, it also depends on the people who work under you.
Having built up an excellent reputation as a number two, or bowling coach at other counties, Welch was always going to have to step up a little. The new coaching structure, while perhaps something similar to what he had been a part of in the past, required him to be the man in charge for the first time. It would be very surprising if this did not bring challenges, as it does for most people.
He has nothing to prove as a coach, nor indeed do his staff, all of who have reputations as being very good at their job. Yet the proof of the pudding, as they say, is in the eating and ours hasn't been the tastiest of dishes thus far.
I think that Welch was and is the man for the job, but he needs time. He has gone on record as intending to give opportunities to players this summer and will already know that he has something of a curate's egg of a playing staff. Two things need to be remembered, however.
One is that it is a squad that he inherited, not one that he built. Critics will say that certain players performed well under Karl Krikken, but the reality is that there has been a marked decline in the performances of some players since 2012. At the end of that summer, a number were given contracts to retain their services in the euphoria of the title success, that perhaps didn't fully understand their longer term value, especially when they were untried at a higher level.
For some, that proved a level too far and they have not recaptured the form of that summer and may not do so. If one thing has been learned, it is that there is a fine line between a contract that retains the services of a good player and one that inadvertently encourages complacency. A player given a longish contract who turns out to have shortcomings is taking up space and blocking the progress of youth. By the same token, if you don't give them the longer deal, the risk of predatory neighbours coming scavenging is heightened. Between the devil and the deep blue sea, eh?
How do you know? If a player scores heavily in a summer, or takes fifty wickets, how do you tell if it is a breakthrough or just a one-off, the stars coming into alignment for a while? I don't know the answer to that one, but suspect that a top coach stands or falls on making the right call.
The role isn't easy at Derbyshire. A more affluent county can go and sign an experienced county professional or two with the expectation of an improvement in playing fortunes. Two players at £80-100K a summer might do that, but we don't have that money to throw around. Nor does it always work, as John Morris found with Rikki Clarke, a good player who enjoyed little success at Derby.
People have mailed me to say that the time to judge Graeme Welch is next summer, but there aren't too many of the current staff whose deals expire at the end of this one. That is going to limit the money he has to change things around, should he decide to do so and I suspect that the required works will need at least until year three before he has had an opportunity to be more radical.
There's always the possibility of coming to an agreement with some who are deemed surplus to requirements, but we may see a younger side emerge with too many higher paid people in the seconds for comfort. Then again, we might also see a rediscovery of collective mojo, which would be nice but is not, in some cases, looking especially likely.
On the upside, I would hope that our extended coaching network might bear fruit from a wider contact base and Welch will undoubtedly look carefully at the overseas role and who is available to fill it. Perhaps there is a need for a more demonstrative, ebullient overseas player in the style of Martin Guptill, though the possibility of perhaps a Kolpak deal for Shiv Chanderpaul, were finances available and the player retired from international cricket, holds considerable appeal in a young and developing side. It would be hard to find a better role model, even if the weight of runs from his greatest days has reduced.
We'll need to see. When Graeme Welch was appointed, there wasn't a single dissenting voice. Early results have been a major disappointment, but he needs and deserves the time to do the job properly. The tragedy affecting both the Poynton family and the club, as well as the anxiety issues that have cost us Peter Burgoyne and Richard Johnson, will have had an effect on everyone, even if they have fought well to keep it under control.
As supporters, we need to give Graeme Welch and his staff the opportunity to build the club.
Time, gentlemen, please.
Mark, below the last post, is the first to ask this question in the public domain, so I am happy to give a response.
I can understand the comments. Ten competitive games into the season, we await our first win and the form of a number of players is a matter of concern. There has been what could be perceived as a lack of clarity in team selections and a continuation of the sort of batting slides with which Derbyshire fans have become all too familiar. Some of the one-day bowling has hinted at a dearth of requisite skills, while the same format has highlighted a lack of urgency in the crucial power play overs that is worrying and lamentable in equal measure.
Welch is approaching the five-month anniversary of his three-year appointment and that needs to be remembered. I've had a number of jobs over the years and have always maintained that it takes six months before you feel you have a genuine understanding of the role and its responsibilities. You contribute earlier than that, of course, but to start to develop takes considerably longer and requires the building up of knowledge on the systems and processes, as well as the people that you work with. Importantly, it also depends on the people who work under you.
Having built up an excellent reputation as a number two, or bowling coach at other counties, Welch was always going to have to step up a little. The new coaching structure, while perhaps something similar to what he had been a part of in the past, required him to be the man in charge for the first time. It would be very surprising if this did not bring challenges, as it does for most people.
He has nothing to prove as a coach, nor indeed do his staff, all of who have reputations as being very good at their job. Yet the proof of the pudding, as they say, is in the eating and ours hasn't been the tastiest of dishes thus far.
I think that Welch was and is the man for the job, but he needs time. He has gone on record as intending to give opportunities to players this summer and will already know that he has something of a curate's egg of a playing staff. Two things need to be remembered, however.
One is that it is a squad that he inherited, not one that he built. Critics will say that certain players performed well under Karl Krikken, but the reality is that there has been a marked decline in the performances of some players since 2012. At the end of that summer, a number were given contracts to retain their services in the euphoria of the title success, that perhaps didn't fully understand their longer term value, especially when they were untried at a higher level.
For some, that proved a level too far and they have not recaptured the form of that summer and may not do so. If one thing has been learned, it is that there is a fine line between a contract that retains the services of a good player and one that inadvertently encourages complacency. A player given a longish contract who turns out to have shortcomings is taking up space and blocking the progress of youth. By the same token, if you don't give them the longer deal, the risk of predatory neighbours coming scavenging is heightened. Between the devil and the deep blue sea, eh?
How do you know? If a player scores heavily in a summer, or takes fifty wickets, how do you tell if it is a breakthrough or just a one-off, the stars coming into alignment for a while? I don't know the answer to that one, but suspect that a top coach stands or falls on making the right call.
The role isn't easy at Derbyshire. A more affluent county can go and sign an experienced county professional or two with the expectation of an improvement in playing fortunes. Two players at £80-100K a summer might do that, but we don't have that money to throw around. Nor does it always work, as John Morris found with Rikki Clarke, a good player who enjoyed little success at Derby.
People have mailed me to say that the time to judge Graeme Welch is next summer, but there aren't too many of the current staff whose deals expire at the end of this one. That is going to limit the money he has to change things around, should he decide to do so and I suspect that the required works will need at least until year three before he has had an opportunity to be more radical.
There's always the possibility of coming to an agreement with some who are deemed surplus to requirements, but we may see a younger side emerge with too many higher paid people in the seconds for comfort. Then again, we might also see a rediscovery of collective mojo, which would be nice but is not, in some cases, looking especially likely.
On the upside, I would hope that our extended coaching network might bear fruit from a wider contact base and Welch will undoubtedly look carefully at the overseas role and who is available to fill it. Perhaps there is a need for a more demonstrative, ebullient overseas player in the style of Martin Guptill, though the possibility of perhaps a Kolpak deal for Shiv Chanderpaul, were finances available and the player retired from international cricket, holds considerable appeal in a young and developing side. It would be hard to find a better role model, even if the weight of runs from his greatest days has reduced.
We'll need to see. When Graeme Welch was appointed, there wasn't a single dissenting voice. Early results have been a major disappointment, but he needs and deserves the time to do the job properly. The tragedy affecting both the Poynton family and the club, as well as the anxiety issues that have cost us Peter Burgoyne and Richard Johnson, will have had an effect on everyone, even if they have fought well to keep it under control.
As supporters, we need to give Graeme Welch and his staff the opportunity to build the club.
Time, gentlemen, please.
Wednesday, 4 June 2014
Hampshire v Derbyshire day 4
Not much to say tonight, except we were lucky - very, very lucky - to escape from this one with a draw.
I'd be hard pushed to say we deserved it and won't, but full marks to Alex Hughes for a gritty, stoic unbeaten sixteen that got us a few extra points. It is further evidence of why I like the lad as a cricketer and why I predict a bright future for him, if he continues to work at his game. There are times in your cricket playing where scoring runs is relatively easy, but I take more interest in people who score them when the chips are down.
That's why I had so much time for Fred Swarbrook in his time, a man who would fight to the end, as well as for Tony Palladino and Tim Groenewald, who have rescued a few lost causes themselves. There's been a few more besides - people like Alan Hill and Tony Borrington, who you knew teams would have to dig out. Both had their shots - they were the first two men to score forty-over centuries for the county, after all - but they rarely gave it away.
We could have done with more of that spirit today, because we shouldn't have lost so many wickets so quickly. A draw should have been straightforward with the amount of time lost, but we almost made an unholy mess of that.
In short, we got draw points, but it was a long way from impressive.
Next up is Nottinghamshire in the T20 on Friday. More on that tomorrow, but even positive Peakfan will struggle to see anything other than a defeat against our neighbours, especially in our current form.
I'd be hard pushed to say we deserved it and won't, but full marks to Alex Hughes for a gritty, stoic unbeaten sixteen that got us a few extra points. It is further evidence of why I like the lad as a cricketer and why I predict a bright future for him, if he continues to work at his game. There are times in your cricket playing where scoring runs is relatively easy, but I take more interest in people who score them when the chips are down.
That's why I had so much time for Fred Swarbrook in his time, a man who would fight to the end, as well as for Tony Palladino and Tim Groenewald, who have rescued a few lost causes themselves. There's been a few more besides - people like Alan Hill and Tony Borrington, who you knew teams would have to dig out. Both had their shots - they were the first two men to score forty-over centuries for the county, after all - but they rarely gave it away.
We could have done with more of that spirit today, because we shouldn't have lost so many wickets so quickly. A draw should have been straightforward with the amount of time lost, but we almost made an unholy mess of that.
In short, we got draw points, but it was a long way from impressive.
Next up is Nottinghamshire in the T20 on Friday. More on that tomorrow, but even positive Peakfan will struggle to see anything other than a defeat against our neighbours, especially in our current form.
Tuesday, 3 June 2014
Hampshire v Derbyshire day 3
Derbyshire fought back well on day three, ending the day on 31-0 and requiring a further 315 to win the game. The latter seems largely irrelevant in the light of tomorrow's weather forecast, one that suggests any play before late afternoon, at the earliest, is unlikely.
I referred to needing a 'special' performance to lift the mood and it came today from Tony Palladino, one of the most admirable of cricketers. I like Tony, as he will always give a hundred per cent, even if the conditions aren't in his favour. With good support from the lion-hearted Tim Groenewald, the two took their side past the follow-on mark, albeit one that was unlikely to be enforced.
Hampshire's reply was lively, as might have been expected, but there were two wickets for Scott Elstone to reinforce his positive impression, before Paul Borrington and Stephen Moore took us through to the close with a degree of confidence that was encouraging.
Finally tonight, closing comments on the "To bat or not to bat" piece that caused an interesting level of discussion over recent days.
In today's Derby Evening Telegraph I read:
I referred to needing a 'special' performance to lift the mood and it came today from Tony Palladino, one of the most admirable of cricketers. I like Tony, as he will always give a hundred per cent, even if the conditions aren't in his favour. With good support from the lion-hearted Tim Groenewald, the two took their side past the follow-on mark, albeit one that was unlikely to be enforced.
Hampshire's reply was lively, as might have been expected, but there were two wickets for Scott Elstone to reinforce his positive impression, before Paul Borrington and Stephen Moore took us through to the close with a degree of confidence that was encouraging.
Finally tonight, closing comments on the "To bat or not to bat" piece that caused an interesting level of discussion over recent days.
In today's Derby Evening Telegraph I read:
Stephen Moore acknowledged that Hampshire
should not have been allowed such a position of strength as they went on
to score 388 in their first innings.
“If we had taken our catches they would probably have been 240 and this game would have been wide open then,” he added.
Which was my point exactly, nicely emphasised by someone who had played on the wicket, rather than following the game from a distance. We didn't bowl as well as we might, but the decision was fine.
Such is the nature of the game.
“If we had taken our catches they would probably have been 240 and this game would have been wide open then,” he added.
Which was my point exactly, nicely emphasised by someone who had played on the wicket, rather than following the game from a distance. We didn't bowl as well as we might, but the decision was fine.
Such is the nature of the game.
Monday, 2 June 2014
Hampshire v Derbyshire day 2
After day two of this game, it appears that Derbyshire are sliding to the latest defeat of a horrid season.
The top six all got starts, but none went on to the sort of score that was badly needed for us to retain parity in this game. Granted we are up against an attack that I regard as the best in the division, but we require a major effort to avoid the follow on tomorrow and I just don't get the impression that the side is up for it at present.
Marcus North apparently got a poor decision, but for the rest it was a battle that they survived for so long but were then dismissed. There were encouraging signs, against a team that includes two international bowlers and two England Lions, but the unavoidable truth is that this team of ours needs time to come together and glean the personnel and experience to compete at this level.
The Hampshire side is packed with players of great individual talent that are playing as a team, I have no doubt that we have players of talent, but they aren't playing as a unit, which is what happened when we won this title in 2012.
We played above ourselves that year, having got off to a flyer with some good fortune with the weather and inspirational performances from Martin Guptill. The latter was more important than a lot realised, his confident approach on a cricket field rubbing off on young and impressionable team mates.
This year, whether on or off the pitch, Lady Luck has deserted us. I'm not buying into the 'bring Krikk back' comments, as that's gone now. Graeme Welch is in charge, as everyone hoped he would be when Karl Krikken declined to apply for his own role and we must now be patient and allow Welch the time and breathing space to shape this team.
His start has been the stuff of nightmares, but we have to show the patience referred to by Chris Grant last week and by Rob Enderby in an excellent piece below my last article. There is no alternative. The club doesn't have the money to make wholesale changes and perhaps a few players reached a career peak in that 2012 summer that seems a long way off right now.
Subsequent performances certainly suggest that and we need a major effort in the coming weeks to recover some of the respect that we have built up over the past two summers.
And with that, for now, I bid you a good night.
Postscript - great to see Tom Poynton taking a lead in the Cricket Derbyshire India Club. If we can tap into a large and growing community and see some of them at the ground on a regular basis, it will be of huge future benefit to our club.
I wish him all the luck in the world and hope the initiative results in a bumper crowd for the visit of some legendary cricketers - and more county members in the long term.
The top six all got starts, but none went on to the sort of score that was badly needed for us to retain parity in this game. Granted we are up against an attack that I regard as the best in the division, but we require a major effort to avoid the follow on tomorrow and I just don't get the impression that the side is up for it at present.
Marcus North apparently got a poor decision, but for the rest it was a battle that they survived for so long but were then dismissed. There were encouraging signs, against a team that includes two international bowlers and two England Lions, but the unavoidable truth is that this team of ours needs time to come together and glean the personnel and experience to compete at this level.
The Hampshire side is packed with players of great individual talent that are playing as a team, I have no doubt that we have players of talent, but they aren't playing as a unit, which is what happened when we won this title in 2012.
We played above ourselves that year, having got off to a flyer with some good fortune with the weather and inspirational performances from Martin Guptill. The latter was more important than a lot realised, his confident approach on a cricket field rubbing off on young and impressionable team mates.
This year, whether on or off the pitch, Lady Luck has deserted us. I'm not buying into the 'bring Krikk back' comments, as that's gone now. Graeme Welch is in charge, as everyone hoped he would be when Karl Krikken declined to apply for his own role and we must now be patient and allow Welch the time and breathing space to shape this team.
His start has been the stuff of nightmares, but we have to show the patience referred to by Chris Grant last week and by Rob Enderby in an excellent piece below my last article. There is no alternative. The club doesn't have the money to make wholesale changes and perhaps a few players reached a career peak in that 2012 summer that seems a long way off right now.
Subsequent performances certainly suggest that and we need a major effort in the coming weeks to recover some of the respect that we have built up over the past two summers.
And with that, for now, I bid you a good night.
Postscript - great to see Tom Poynton taking a lead in the Cricket Derbyshire India Club. If we can tap into a large and growing community and see some of them at the ground on a regular basis, it will be of huge future benefit to our club.
I wish him all the luck in the world and hope the initiative results in a bumper crowd for the visit of some legendary cricketers - and more county members in the long term.
To bat, or not to bat? That is the question
There have been several comments below yesterday's piece with regard to the decision to put Hampshire in to bat at The Rose Bowl. Those comments were based on generalities such as "when the sun is shining, you should bat", as well as the time-honoured tactic of being wise after the event and, of course, being able to read a wicket from a distance of hundreds of miles away.
The truth of the matter is somewhat different. Wayne Madsen and Graeme Welch went out to inspect the wicket yesterday and with over thirty years of collective first-class playing and coaching experience between them, reckoned that our best chance of success, were we to win the toss, was to field.
Mark Eklid's report in the Derby Telegraph today confirms that we should have had success in the first period. They would have, had the skipper not put down his opposite number, Jimmy Adams, in Mark Footitt's opening over. That cost us sixty runs, but as I said last night, it happens. Maybe the skipper might benefit from being at mid-off in the early exchanges while he is pondering the options of the day, but we have lost two first choice slip fielders in Wes Durston and Chesney Hughes, so practice has suggested Madsen is the best replacement. He has held some blinders in his time at the county, so it would be silly to argue.
There were plenty of plays and misses that on another day could have seen wickets go down, but having already seen a drop cost us 60 runs, Gareth Cross then put down the free-scoring Adam Wheater, which cost us another 87. Take those runs from the total and Hampshire could easily have gone for under 250.
I prefer to look at facts, not supposition. The facts are that in eight LV County Championship matches at The Rose Bowl last year, on five occasions the side winning the toss bowled first. Fast forward to this year and the side winning the toss has so far bowled on EVERY occasion. Feel free to check if you wish. I did and was prepared to make a concession, had the figures proved otherwise. To suggest that Wayne Madsen and Graeme Welch made a mistake yesterday is just churlish. Of course, they wouldn't have wanted, nor expected, a closing score of 332-7, but as explained above, that could have been very different.
In high summer, when the sun is shining, the wicket is hard and dry and there is a strong likelihood of turn later on, of course you bat. Even then, if it is 'muggy' and the ball is likely to swing, you cannot always say you will do so, as you factor in other things, perhaps including the opposition overseas player who is a past master in such conditions. Only the people on the field, looking at the wicket and in full possession of the facts are qualified to make such judgements - on which they stand or fall, of course, unlike those of us commenting from afar.
I have been critical of Wayne Madsen this summer - I felt the rotation and handling of bowlers at Leicester in the T20 was poor, but there could have been factors we were unaware of. We don't know if player A had a bruised spinning finger, sustained in making a stop, or player B had a niggle that prevented him from bowling. From a distance, decisions seemed odd, but they were made for a reason, not, presumably, on a whim.
In my club game yesterday, the opposition skipper was delighted to win the toss and put us in on a wicket that was awful. Balls would lift spitefully off a length and then shoot through from a similar spot next ball. We were in big trouble early on, but, as I pointed out to successive batting partners, if we made a hundred they'd not get near it. This was in a forty-over game and we got past the ton with a few runs to spare in the end.
The efforts weren't pretty, but I was right. Our opponents didn't get fifty. The track was only going to worsen, as far as I could see, but someone else thought otherwise. Some you win, some you lose...
Derbyshire may or may not struggle when it is our turn to bat today. Yet the facts suggest we may have done a lot worse had we done so yesterday against a high-class seam attack offered help on a first morning.
The truth of the matter is somewhat different. Wayne Madsen and Graeme Welch went out to inspect the wicket yesterday and with over thirty years of collective first-class playing and coaching experience between them, reckoned that our best chance of success, were we to win the toss, was to field.
Mark Eklid's report in the Derby Telegraph today confirms that we should have had success in the first period. They would have, had the skipper not put down his opposite number, Jimmy Adams, in Mark Footitt's opening over. That cost us sixty runs, but as I said last night, it happens. Maybe the skipper might benefit from being at mid-off in the early exchanges while he is pondering the options of the day, but we have lost two first choice slip fielders in Wes Durston and Chesney Hughes, so practice has suggested Madsen is the best replacement. He has held some blinders in his time at the county, so it would be silly to argue.
There were plenty of plays and misses that on another day could have seen wickets go down, but having already seen a drop cost us 60 runs, Gareth Cross then put down the free-scoring Adam Wheater, which cost us another 87. Take those runs from the total and Hampshire could easily have gone for under 250.
I prefer to look at facts, not supposition. The facts are that in eight LV County Championship matches at The Rose Bowl last year, on five occasions the side winning the toss bowled first. Fast forward to this year and the side winning the toss has so far bowled on EVERY occasion. Feel free to check if you wish. I did and was prepared to make a concession, had the figures proved otherwise. To suggest that Wayne Madsen and Graeme Welch made a mistake yesterday is just churlish. Of course, they wouldn't have wanted, nor expected, a closing score of 332-7, but as explained above, that could have been very different.
In high summer, when the sun is shining, the wicket is hard and dry and there is a strong likelihood of turn later on, of course you bat. Even then, if it is 'muggy' and the ball is likely to swing, you cannot always say you will do so, as you factor in other things, perhaps including the opposition overseas player who is a past master in such conditions. Only the people on the field, looking at the wicket and in full possession of the facts are qualified to make such judgements - on which they stand or fall, of course, unlike those of us commenting from afar.
I have been critical of Wayne Madsen this summer - I felt the rotation and handling of bowlers at Leicester in the T20 was poor, but there could have been factors we were unaware of. We don't know if player A had a bruised spinning finger, sustained in making a stop, or player B had a niggle that prevented him from bowling. From a distance, decisions seemed odd, but they were made for a reason, not, presumably, on a whim.
In my club game yesterday, the opposition skipper was delighted to win the toss and put us in on a wicket that was awful. Balls would lift spitefully off a length and then shoot through from a similar spot next ball. We were in big trouble early on, but, as I pointed out to successive batting partners, if we made a hundred they'd not get near it. This was in a forty-over game and we got past the ton with a few runs to spare in the end.
The efforts weren't pretty, but I was right. Our opponents didn't get fifty. The track was only going to worsen, as far as I could see, but someone else thought otherwise. Some you win, some you lose...
Derbyshire may or may not struggle when it is our turn to bat today. Yet the facts suggest we may have done a lot worse had we done so yesterday against a high-class seam attack offered help on a first morning.
Sunday, 1 June 2014
Hampshire v Derbyshire day 1
Earlier today I got an anonymous mail berating the decision to put Hampshire in to bat at the Rose Bowl. I didn't print it, as there seemed little point. We can all be wise after the event and Derbyshire's decision could - and should - have been a wise one, had they not had a poor day in the field.
Two people who are normally sound in that area, Wayne Madsen and Gareth Cross, put down chances that might otherwise have seen the hosts bowled out for under 300 and the decision fully vindicated. Cross put down two, one of them straightforward and will be disappointed to do so as a man with a sound reputation for good hands.
Yet they all drop them, as does anyone who has played the game. Those who say otherwise have never done so, because there's no surer thing than that we all have days when the ball appears to be soap and our hands and eyes are not in synch. You can practice all you like - and I know our lads work especially hard on that area - but sometimes they go down.
It didn't help, of course and despite four wickets for Tony Palladino, I think we will look at this as a missed opportunity. Tomorrow, Hampshire will aim to push on to 400 and then unleash their pace attack on our batting. It would be good to think that we will respond in an appropriate manner, but we will have to wait and see on that one.
Still, we're not alone in not making the most of a decision to bowl. Middlesex did the same at Durham today and ended up looking down the barrel of a home score of 411-4...
And with that adieu for this evening. A winning start for my club today and a few aching leg muscles for old Peakfan after a long bat. I might have gone for the ice bath remedy favoured today, except our ice tray's twelve cubes didn't suggest it would cover a great deal. Besides, a hot bath seemed much more palatable.
Tomorrow I hope to be able to walk without limping...
Two people who are normally sound in that area, Wayne Madsen and Gareth Cross, put down chances that might otherwise have seen the hosts bowled out for under 300 and the decision fully vindicated. Cross put down two, one of them straightforward and will be disappointed to do so as a man with a sound reputation for good hands.
Yet they all drop them, as does anyone who has played the game. Those who say otherwise have never done so, because there's no surer thing than that we all have days when the ball appears to be soap and our hands and eyes are not in synch. You can practice all you like - and I know our lads work especially hard on that area - but sometimes they go down.
It didn't help, of course and despite four wickets for Tony Palladino, I think we will look at this as a missed opportunity. Tomorrow, Hampshire will aim to push on to 400 and then unleash their pace attack on our batting. It would be good to think that we will respond in an appropriate manner, but we will have to wait and see on that one.
Still, we're not alone in not making the most of a decision to bowl. Middlesex did the same at Durham today and ended up looking down the barrel of a home score of 411-4...
And with that adieu for this evening. A winning start for my club today and a few aching leg muscles for old Peakfan after a long bat. I might have gone for the ice bath remedy favoured today, except our ice tray's twelve cubes didn't suggest it would cover a great deal. Besides, a hot bath seemed much more palatable.
Tomorrow I hope to be able to walk without limping...
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