GOOGLIES & CHINAMEN
An Occasional Cricketing Journal
Edition 115
July 2012
Out and About with the Professor
I have never much liked cards.
You know, playing cards – whist and rummy and all that sort of thing.
I know that Bridge is supposed to be very cerebral and that Poker is famously psychological but I have never cared for any of it…and I think the reason is down to cricket.
As a boy playing in men’s teams one of my clearest memories is of days when the rain stopped the game. Off we all trudged into the changing rooms – in all probability a hut in those days – and two things would happen. First the men would light up cigarettes and second, often with real enthusiasm, one of them would say: “Let’s get out the cards”. When that happened I knew there would be no more cricket. These oafish blokes would have to be dragged back onto the field rather than interrupt their game. Thus “cards” for me is forever associated with the smell of damp wool, sweat and cigarette smoke…not a happy combination.
I was musing on all this as I was watching Harrogate first XI last week. It has, it would be fair to say, been a difficult month for club cricket – the rain has been lashing down and doubtless, throughout the land, groups of sweaty, wet-woolled men have been playing cards. Harrogate have been having an excellent season, they top the Yorkshire League having played 11 games with five “complete wins” and three “incomplete wins” (don’t ask). This is quite a turnaround. For the past few seasons they have been languishing at the foot of the table and would have been relegated if the Yorkshire League had such a thing. In addition they had, as reported in these pages, had their pavilion burnt to the ground – a pavilion in which some of the greatest cricketers who ever lived have put on their pads.
Still the Club has risen, in the phrase attributed to Daren Gough: “Like a pheasant from the ashes”.
Moreover they seem to have done this without buying in star players. One virtue of the “no relegation” rule is that famous clubs fallen on hard times have an opportunity to recover, bring on players from the junior sides, and end up back where they have, in the past, belonged. The Maurice Leyland gates now have a new coat of paint and, if it ever stops raining, they will open for a decent crowd to watch top class club cricket. As it is, the last game was rained off and when I walked round the boundary to have a consoling beer I spotted several players sat down playing bloody cards.
Incidentally, it is alleged that when “Goughy” made his ornithological error he was corrected by another member of the England team who called him a daft, dim, stupid northern twat and told him that he meant “phoenix” not “pheasant”. The not terribly bright northern ballroom star is supposed to have replied:
“Oh right. “Phoenix” not “Pheasant”. Well…I knew it were something beginning with an “f””.
Middlesex Matters
The Great Jack Morgan has been putting in the hard yards for us
Middlesex lost yet another toss in the home Championship match against Sussex at Lord’s, but on this occasion, visiting skipper Mike Yardy chose to bat first on a track that looked less green than most of the wickets at Lord’s in the last couple of seasons, but I am sure that most captains would have done the usual thing and asked Middlesex to bat. This error was soon confirmed as Sussex slumped to 66 for 5, but ex-Middlesex man Ed Joyce (77) and keeper Ben Brown (70) inspired a fight back with a stand of 81 for the sixth wicket. Naved Arif Gondal (38) helped Brown add 63 for the seventh wicket and the tail managed to take the total up to a respectable 283 (in 109.3 overs). Middlesex had strengthened their side considerably by bringing in pace bowlers Steve Finn and Toby Roland-Jones, but it was Tim Murtagh, bowling beautifully, who took the honours with 5 for 55, while Finny picked up 3 for 76.
The ball was still moving around at the start of the Middlesex reply, but slowly captain Bucky Rogers and the in-form Joe Denly (67) built a crucial second wicket partnership of 145 and this was followed by another fine stand of 97 between Rogers (98) and Eoin Morgan (71) for the fourth wicket. Middlesex then pressed home their advantage as John Simpson (34), Gareth Berg (45), Ollie Rayner (69 with 9 fours and a six) and Toby R-J (52 off 63 balls) saw Middlesex to an impressive 491 all out and a lead of 208; Chris Nash took 3 for 45 with his off spinners.
However, rain and bad light had reduced the time available for play on all three days so far and Middlesex had little more than a day left to force the victory. Nash batted well for 40, but he could not prevent the visitors tumbling to 101 for 6. For the second time in the match, Brown (53) demonstrated his fighting qualities and, this time, it was Aussie opening bowler Steve Magoffin (37) who helped out, but still Sussex were all out for 225, leaving Middlesex to make only 18 to seal the 10 wicket win with time to spare on day 4. Bergy finished with 3 for 53 and Finny 3 for 66.
This was a convincing win, but Sussex looked a poor side. I would hate to slag off Mike Yardy, who we all know has had his own personal problems, but it has to be said that he made the wrong choice on winning the toss, twice batted badly (8 and 10) and bowled two of the worst overs I have ever seen in first class cricket (2-0-25-0). I have only recently started to note the huge numbers of twelfth men that are used in Championship matches these days, but for me, Middlesex set a new record in using seven different players for twelfth man duties on the pitch (Neil Dexter, Corey Collymore, Josh Davey, Tom Scollay, Adam London, Robbie Williams and Adam Rossington) in this match. Middlesex 23 points; Sussex 4.
Middlesex won a rare toss in the Championship match against Somerset at Lord's and, as is customary, asked the visitors to bat first on yet another seamers' track. The home team gained immediate reward as two wickets went down with only one on the board and when a third went with 45 scored, Middlesex were clearly on top. However, James Hildreth (58 with 6 fours) and Craig Kieswetter (48 with 7 fours) played impressively to put on 80 for the fourth wicket and although Hildreth departed shortly before the rain curtailed play halfway through day 1, Somerset were not badly placed at 130 for 4. However, day 2 started sensationally as 4 wickets (including Kieswetter) fell in the first 10 balls of the day and it was only a lively 38 from Peter Trego (5 fours) that allowed the visitors to reach a modest 173 all out. The credit went to the Middlesex swing and seam bowlers Tim Murtagh (3-42), Toby Roland-Jones (3-47) and Gareth Berg (3-59).
Middlesex had obviously heard the terrible weather forecast and scored their runs at a terrific rate as skipper Chris Rogers, recovering quickly from a poor start to the season, and Joe Denly, enjoying an exceptional purple patch, added a brilliant 245 for the second wicket. When Rogers fell for a best for the county of 173 (off 191 balls with 23 fours and 3 sixes) he had made 419 runs in his last three innings for twice out and became the leading scorer so far this season. Dawid Malan has also been struggling, but he played a fine innings of 51 (8 fours and a six) in a stand of 74 with Denly, however only 17.5 overs were possible on day 3 and when the start was also delayed on day 4, Rogers was forced to sacrifice the certain fifth batting point and declare at the overnight score of 364 for 3 in order to give the lads a chance of victory. This left Denly unbeaten on 116 (off 219 balls with 12 fours and a six) and although Chris overtook Joe as the leading scorer so far this season, Denly (the Middlesex Player of the Month for May) retained his place at the top of the averages.
When Somerset slumped to 4 for 2 and 113 for 5 (Hildreth 38) in their second innings, it looked as if Middlesex might pull off an astonishing win, but a praiseworthy stand of 63 for the sixth wicket by ex-Middlesex men Nick Compton, mainly defending, and Trego (50 off 54 balls with 9 fours and a six), mainly attacking, had almost rescued Somerset when Murtagh took two quick wickets and rekindled Middx's victory hopes. However, the rock Compton (69* off 150 balls with 8 fours) was now joined by skipper Alfonso Thomas (39* with 7 fours) in a stand of 51* for the eighth wicket which ensured the draw, despite Middlesex employing three of their four leg-spinners (Malan, Denly and Robson) in their unsuccessful push for victory. Murtagh (3 for 36) was again the pick of the Middx bowlers and he is the leading bowler this season with 32 wickets, though Roland-Jones still has the best average in the Championship. John Simpson, last season's leading wicket keeper in the country, took five first innings catches and with one in the second innings, he moved on to 25 victims for the season. Malan's three second innings catches took him to 15 for the season, easily the best tally for a fieldsman. Middlesex moved to within one point of Somerset in the table with a match in hand. Middlesex 23 points; Somerset 4.
For the 50 over game against West Indies at Lord's on June 13, Middlesex fielded a strongish Second XI while WI selected a strong First XI and the game was every bit as one-sided as we all expected it to be. From among the Middx absentees, a useful looking eleven could be selected: Chris Rogers, Andrew Strauss, Joe Denly, Eoin Morgan, Gareth Berg, John Simpson, Ollie Rayner, Steve Crook, Toby Roland-Jones, Steve Finn and Corey Collymore. Neil Dexter won the toss and asked the tourists to bat, presumably to make sure the match lasted into the afternoon. Dwayne Smith dominated the West Indies' innings with a thoroughly entertaining innings of 96 off 81 balls with 10 fours and 2 sixes. He received excellent support from Darren Bravo in a stand of 160 for the third wicket; Bravo was slightly slower to get into his stride, but ended up with 112* off 112 balls with 7 fours and 2 sixes. Towards the end of the innings, Darren was joined by his older brother Dwayne (40* off 21 balls with 2 fours and 3 sixes) in a fantastic stand of 73* in a little over 5 overs as WI closed on 335 for 4. Paul Stirling stood out for Middlesex with 1 for 26 in 7 tight overs and two finely judged catches in the outfield. The Middlesex innings reminded me of one those junior schoolboy matches where lads get a clap for reaching double figures; five Middlesex batsmen qualified for a clap, the best of them being Josh Davey with 24* as Middlesex could manage only 107 to lose by 228 runs. So why do we bother to attend such rubbish matches? In my case, it was because i) at 10.45am, the start was the only first team one day match of the season to begin at an acceptable time; and ii) the season's schedule is such a nonsense this year that there is not another match at Lord's for me to watch until September 4.
More Boothroyd Matters
Allen Bruton continues to be a fount of knowledge
Having been outed as a fully fledged nerd I feel obliged to add to the information concerning Dick Boothroyd. It seems he played for Walsall in the Birmingham League after his South Hampstead season and this would explain how he came to the attention of Staffordshire CCC. His career figures as below in Minor Counties Championship confirm our recollection of a clueless batsman and remarkable bowler, almost 30% of his overs being maidens, testimony to his unerring accuracy.
Please do not feel obliged to put this in C&G as I suspect I may be the only recipient to find this in the slightest bit interesting.
STAFFORDSHIRE (DEBUT 1974)
28 MATCHES
18 INNINGS 803 OVERS
10 N.O. 229 MAIDENS
RUNS 11 1,897 RUNS
HS 4 86 WICKETS
AVE 1.37 B.B. 6- 20
AVE 22.05
Off to Yorkshire on holiday next week and unless I find a building with a circular blue plaque identifying the birthplace of Richard Boothroyd, I promise this is my last word on the subject.
Twenty/20 stuff
Derbyshire v Durham
I watched the highlights of this match on the afternoon of the day I flew back last week. At first I thought that I was watching the match live and it seemed that Derby were going very well, but once I twigged that it was highlights I realised that in fact they had only scored 60 odd in the first ten overs. No one dominated and Khawaja top scored with 36. Like Hughes he seems to have gone backwards since getting his chance at international level. I mean of course Phil not Chesney who hit the only six of the innings, an enormous blow off Onions.
Derbyshire’s 141 never looked enough to me although the commentators try to talk it up as a competitive score using a range of excuses such as the fact that the pitch has been used before, batting in the half light is tricky, the dew will help the bowlers etc. The same reasoning is used in reverse to justify when a team easily knocks off such paltry totals. Actually it is just an excuse to set up use of the new most irritating expletive “Game on”. I think that Botham was the first exponent of this phrase which is now used whenever anything happens which might have the slightest impact on the outcome of the match.
Durham opened with Gibbs and Mustard. The Colonel didn’t last long but it was good to see the 38 year old Herschelle tonking the ball around making it all look very easy. Stokes only made a brief appearance and I fear that his ranking amongst the young guns has slipped. Few of them have been as prolific this year with conditions often favouring the bowlers. The front runners now seem to be Bairstow, Hales and Buttler. Division two must be Stokes, Taylor and Root. Division three: Vince, Cobb and Roy. The forgotten men, who are too old, are Wright, Gale, Hildreth, Compton, Denly and Moore. Incidentally I saw the highlights of Taylor’s innings at The Rose Bowl against Hants in a forty over match when he played some extraordinary shots in an unbeaten hundred. He seems to be unlucky at present with the selectors.
Gibbs was unexpectedly bowled for 38 by the Yorks reject, Wainwright, and Benkenstein soon followed- “Game on”! Johann Myburgh had other ideas and played some powerful shots. He doesn’t appear in Playfair but is presumably a Kolpak or whatever they are called these days. He was caught at cover off Turner but Gordon Muchall did the necessary and it was soon “Game Off” with more than an over to spare. The commentators talked Turner up as being genuinely quick as a ninety mile an hour bowler. He may be one to watch as extreme pace seems to be one of the preferred options in the short form of the game at present as Bresnan found when Finn was preferred at Trent Bridge. The purveyors of slow long hops are started to be sorted out as Dernbach found out at the hands of Bravo and Pollard.
Middlesex v Essex
All of the Essex batsmen got in but none went on to make a significant score. As usual it was Napier who played the significant innings. He came in at 103 for 3 to replace ten Doeschate who had been given LBW to Dexter’s wobblers. Napier was fed some friendly stuff and hit 28 from 12 deliveries which enabled Essex to reach a sort or par score of 155. Middlesex’ stand out bowler was Olly who took 2 for 16 from his four overs. Roland-Jones looked good but took some of the brunt of Napier’s onslaught and wasn’t helped when Rossington dropped a straightforward boundary catch.
In reply Middlesex were awful. Denly, Rogers and Malan all holed out early on as if they were chasing 200 plus. I never see Malan get any runs. Does anyone? He averaged only 31 last year and hasn’t got many this year. He could be looking for a new county in September. Rossington strangely looked as he was the senior player and made a pleasant 22 before being given out LBW to a ball which almost took a chunk out of his bat before hitting the pad. Dexter, Berg and Simpson then blocked as if they could redeem themselves by playing for a draw. After Dexter and Simpson had gone Berg decided that slogging was the order of the day and he mixed hearty blows with missed reverse sweeps. His new partner was Ollie who started indifferently but Berg was caught by Foster standing up down the leg side off a cut having stepped away to the leg side. This was an extraordinary achievement by Foster.
This left Middlesex needing 67 from five overs. Crook was the new batsman and he decided to go for the short boundary which he cleared easily and then repeated his effort at the other end. Olly joined in and suddenly Middlesex only needed thirty from the final two overs – “Game on”! The slog fest continued and Middlesex fell an unlikely six short. Indeed they almost won as Pettini caught Crook on the boundary’s edge off a blow that would have carried for six.
But Middlesex looked a very poor side batting. Dexter must be struggling to keep his place in the side and seems to have more claims as a bowler now. He certainly isn’t worth a place in the top five.
England v West Indies
I opted to watch the highlights of this rather than the miserable offerings of the England team in Kiev. England were off to a great start when they suckered the Great Gale out with Finn getting him to top edge to fine leg. I missed Gale’s innings at the Oval and he is now being described as a one day specialist. He always has been but it seems odd to relegate him to this status since he is one of the two world players to have registered two test triple centuries. I think that what they mean is that he has worked out how to score consistently in the short form of the game by not indiscriminately slogging. Because he is a big six hitter he knows that he will score quickly by just taking a six every few balls and adding bits and pieces to it. This way he doesn’t need to give his wicket away. He averages over 50 in the IPL and Watson and Marsh are the only other players to have an average over 40. This is an extraordinary achievement and will make him a very rich man.
Like Gibbs, it was good to see Duane Smith in good form and slapping it around. Simmons and Samuels fell cheaply which brought Bravo to the crease. Not Darren but his big brother Dwayne. How unlikely is it that there could be two Duanes at the crease at the same time? Finny came back and despite being hit for a prodigious blow by Smith he got him caught behind by the new fast bowler’s special weapon, the full length delivery as wide of the off stump as the laws will allow. Smith had got 70 out of 107 for 4 with only five overs left.
Pollard joined Bravo and they added 65 laying into all the remaining bowlers Patel, Broad and Dernbach. Someone thinks that Dernbach is a good bowler or has promise or something but it surely isn’t anyone who has seen him bowl? Now his endless slow crap has been exposed for what it really is surely he should go back to the nets and learn to bowl properly?
The West Indies innings included ten sixes and only nine fours. This means that they scored a third of their runs in sixes. This is the way to big scores in this form of the game. Kieswetter is still not a good judge of which ball to slog. He only just survived the first over, lobbing the ball over mid on’s head and falling to a mishit pull in the third. Hales then took over and looked supreme, scoring at well over a run a ball and picking up sixes on a regular basis. No one mentioned the absence of KP, who wasn’t missed. I have long been a fan of Bopara’s, at least in the shorter form of the game, and he played a supporting role. However, both got out with less than four required to win and that spoiled an otherwise emphatic win, particularly in Hales’ case as he missed out on being the first Englishman to score an international T20 hundred.
Lancashire v Durham
When Myburgh (a WGCCC player) was dismissed Durham were reduced to 65 for 5 and the game was effectively over. Gareth Breese then played remarkably fluently but when he holed out for 33 the tail folded and the final total was a miserable 121. Ajmal Shahzad took three wickets and this gave him the most wickets in English Twenty20 cricket.
Moore opened with Smith for Lancashire but he fell early-“Game on”. This brought Stephen Croft to the wicket. He has always looked a bits and pieces player to me and has never really impressed. It turns out that he has been hiding his light under a bushel or the covers or somewhere. He laid into the accomplished Durham attack with gusto and reached 65 not out with four sixes by the time this very one sided game had been won.
I have to say that the 2012 upgrades to Old Trafford look much more acceptable than the red pillar box of 2010 and appear to be conventional stands in their incomplete state. It does seem odd with the wicket round the other way but I suppose we will get used to that.
Kent v Middlesex
Paul Stirling has started to make a habit of killing games with his devastating hitting and there would be talk of him being fast tracked into the England line up if he wasn’t Irish or at least Irish enough to be playing in their set up. Still I suppose if he gets good enough he can become English like Joyce and Morgan. Joyce of course became not so good and reverted to being Irish. On this occasion Stirling opened at Canterbury and made 63 from 37 balls with clean hitting not slogging. This has become a feature of the one day games. Until recently there was playing normally and then there was slogging. Now players manoeuvre themselves into different positions and hit through the ball whilst “keeping their shape”. In Stirling’s case he will give himself room to hit through and normally over the off side. In the powerplay there is almost nothing that the fielding side can do to stop this, short of bowling Yorkers.
The bad news for Kent was that when Kent dismissed him he was replaced by Morgan who proceeded to play a cameo masterpiece. He made 36 from eighteen deliveries including three sixes. Most of Morgan’s big hits are straight or over extra cover which he achieves by managing to get under fairly full deliveries. This requires strong wrists, fast hands and exquisite timing. It was good to see him back in good touch after his wretched winter. Meanwhile at the other end Denly after a slow start played increasingly well and he finished on 90 not out as Middlesex reached 207 for 2. Ajmal the previous night had overtaken Azhar Mahmood as the top wicket taker in this competition and the latter looked a sorry figure as his four overs disappeared for 61.
The chase was always going to be daunting and it wasn’t helped as Northeast and Billings made a circumspect start taking only four runs from the first two overs. However, they started to play a few shots and got stuck into Roland-Jones and Berg but Billings was then caught by Dexter at extra cover, who decided to take matters into his own hands, came on to bowl and immediately caught and bowled Stevens. Denly then dropped Azhar at long on which could have been expensive and Kent at 120 for 2 were in touch with the asking rate- “Game on”. This all changed as Kent suddenly lost four wickets in four balls. Off the fifth and sixth balls of Dexters’s second over both Northeast and Azhar were caught at long on by Morgan. Then Coles was caught off the first ball of Stirling’s over at the other end and Blake was run out off the second. Suddenly Kent were 121 for 6 - “Game off”. Finn seems a real handful these days and causes problems with serious pace and more accuracy than has been seen since his debut year. His four overs went for just 15 runs.
Essex v Sussex
Essex looked like making a mess of their innings at Fortress Chelmsford as Franklin, Napier and ten Doeschate all got out for under thirty after establishing themselves at the crease. However, they reached a respectable, if below par, 177 thanks almost exclusively to James Foster’s 65 not out from 31 balls which included four sixes. During this innings he displayed two of the modern batting techniques which are increasingly adopted plus one uniquely his own. The first is to give room to play a lofted drive over extra cover. At present this is a safe ploy since no captain has a fielder on the extra cover boundary. It is not uncommon for this shot to carry for six if the batsman gets it anywhere near the middle. The second technique is to stand deep in the crease to make it harder for the bowler to deliver effective Yorkers. I don’t understand why this hasn’t given rise to a spate of hit wicket dismissals but I haven’t seen any. This has no impact on Foster, though, whose own new technique is to take guard outside the offside exposing all of his stumps behind his legs to the bowler. This enables him to hit anything to the on side. If you think that it cannot work just look at his stats this season. Jack Robertson would shudder if he knew.
Sussex kept looking as if they would overhaul the Essex score easily but Nash, Wright and Prior all got out when well set. Game on! Goodwin, Gatting and Yardy all got out playing silly shots and it was left to Will Beer who played with a surprising calm maturity to see Sussex home in the final over. This was a good t20 match unlike many of the one sided affairs described above.
Red Mist Matters
When Middlesex played Lancashire at Lord’s in a Clydesdale Bank 40 over match Paul Stirling played a typically aggressive innings of 119 from 99 balls which included five sixes. However, on this occasion he was completely upstaged by Eion Morgan who made 116 from 54 deliveries in an innings that included eleven sixes. On the back of these two efforts Middlesex reached 350 for 6 from their forty overs. Red Mist Rules! Sixes win matches.
Twin Matters
Allen Bruton is going out of his way to achieve nerd of the season status. He sent me this
The day prior to receiving C&G I had been to New Road Worcester and coincidentally seen the Overton twins playing for Somerset. This set me off trying to recall other sets of twins who have played first class cricket and I can only recall the Waughs and Bedsers. It could even be that the last named enjoyed a last wicket partnership exceeding 38runs as Eric batted lower middle order and Alec a tailender.
Boycott Matters
The Professor continues to dine on the top table at Headingley
Lunch yesterday yielded a few interesting things mainly about the much-hated President, Geoffrey Boycott. The following two stories are from impeccable sources:
1. 1983 the debut of Ashley Metcalfe. A misty day at Bradford, Notts the visitors and Metcalfe and Boycott opening against Hendrick at his best. To the surprise of all, Metcalfe, the nervous teenager, took the first over. Three LBW shouts in the first six balls, a couple of plays and misses and a scrambled single. At the end of the over the Great Man walks down the wicket and has an avuncular word. My source interviewed Metclafe at the end of the day (he went on to get a hundred on debut and was dropped for the next game...well it is Yorkshire).
"Did Geoff offer any useful words of advice to you Ashley at the end of that first torrid over?"
"Not exactly"
"What did he say?"
"He said, 'This lot 'ave come to watch me bat and you can fuck off if you can't 'andle the bowling'".
2. 1978. Boycott became captain of England, you will recall, when Brearley broke his arm in Pakistan. They went on to New Zealand where they drew the series one each. Immediately prior to the Test the father of the New Zealand wicket keeper, Lees, had been killed in a car crash. At the team talk Sir Geoffrey proposed that if Lees should start to look comfortable at the wicket anyone fielding close should ask him if his father's body was badly mangled; arms, legs, head missing - that sort of thing. In that side were the current Chairman of Selectors and pundits Botham and Willis.
I had always thought that opinion about Boycott was divided...OK he was single-minded but he was a great player, had true Yorkshire qualities, told it like it was, and so on. It seems that most of the people who played with him actually hated him...and still do.
Rangers Matters
Jim Revier responded to my list last month with the following nine reasons why the Rangers deserved to stay up
1. The courage of Anton Ferdinand in taking that vile apology for a human being, Mr. Terry, all the way to court.
2. We lost to Bolton at home but beat Chelscum, Spurs, Liverpool and the Arsenal.
3. I find Cisse's beard rather fetching and at least it can be disposed of unlike all the dreadful tattoos that "decorate" some players bodies.
4. Yes, Stoke's goal was a bit iffy but have you forgotten Clint Hill's disallowed goal at Bolton which was about a yard over the line.
5. Clint Hill. A player thought to be out of his depth at the top level and loaned out to Forest. He returned to win both the Players and supporters player of the year awards.
6. Jamie Mackie. Proving that bargains do exist from the lower leagues. £600k from Plymouth, I believe.
7. We were without our leading Scorer (Helguson) and our best player (Faurlin) for the second half of the season.
8. I was upset that after elbowing Tevez, Kneeing Aguerro and attempting to head butt Kompany Joey didn't go for the full set by pushing the ref over.
9. We gave Man City two of their hardest games of the season.
Book Matters
Tom Rodwell sent me this
Thought you and your fine coterie of readers might be interested in my book 'Third Man in Havana', published last month, which Scyld Berry has described in July's Cricketer magazine as ' the most important cricket book yet published'. That makes it sound a bit dry, as it's a jolly tale of my travels round the world using cricket to help kids. It is available from Amazon.
Bob Proctor
Bob Proctor died recently. I am indebted to Malcolm Cromer and Kelvin West who have sent me updates on his health over recent years. I will be happy publish any anecdotes or tributes to Bob in future editions. I covered his six onto the library roof in one of the early editions of Googlies.
Old Danes Gathering 2012
The 2012 Old Danes Gathering will be held on Friday 27 July. Once again Shepherds Bush CC have kindly agreed to host this event. The Gathering will take place between 2pm and 8pm and we hope to see as many Old Danes as can make it. Even if you can only pop in for an hour you will be warmly greeted and made to feel welcome. There will be a bar and food available throughout. Please let me know whether you plan to attend and I will circulate a list regularly between now and the event.
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An Occasional Cricketing Journal
Edition 115
July 2012
Out and About with the Professor
I have never much liked cards.
You know, playing cards – whist and rummy and all that sort of thing.
I know that Bridge is supposed to be very cerebral and that Poker is famously psychological but I have never cared for any of it…and I think the reason is down to cricket.
As a boy playing in men’s teams one of my clearest memories is of days when the rain stopped the game. Off we all trudged into the changing rooms – in all probability a hut in those days – and two things would happen. First the men would light up cigarettes and second, often with real enthusiasm, one of them would say: “Let’s get out the cards”. When that happened I knew there would be no more cricket. These oafish blokes would have to be dragged back onto the field rather than interrupt their game. Thus “cards” for me is forever associated with the smell of damp wool, sweat and cigarette smoke…not a happy combination.
I was musing on all this as I was watching Harrogate first XI last week. It has, it would be fair to say, been a difficult month for club cricket – the rain has been lashing down and doubtless, throughout the land, groups of sweaty, wet-woolled men have been playing cards. Harrogate have been having an excellent season, they top the Yorkshire League having played 11 games with five “complete wins” and three “incomplete wins” (don’t ask). This is quite a turnaround. For the past few seasons they have been languishing at the foot of the table and would have been relegated if the Yorkshire League had such a thing. In addition they had, as reported in these pages, had their pavilion burnt to the ground – a pavilion in which some of the greatest cricketers who ever lived have put on their pads.
Still the Club has risen, in the phrase attributed to Daren Gough: “Like a pheasant from the ashes”.
Moreover they seem to have done this without buying in star players. One virtue of the “no relegation” rule is that famous clubs fallen on hard times have an opportunity to recover, bring on players from the junior sides, and end up back where they have, in the past, belonged. The Maurice Leyland gates now have a new coat of paint and, if it ever stops raining, they will open for a decent crowd to watch top class club cricket. As it is, the last game was rained off and when I walked round the boundary to have a consoling beer I spotted several players sat down playing bloody cards.
Incidentally, it is alleged that when “Goughy” made his ornithological error he was corrected by another member of the England team who called him a daft, dim, stupid northern twat and told him that he meant “phoenix” not “pheasant”. The not terribly bright northern ballroom star is supposed to have replied:
“Oh right. “Phoenix” not “Pheasant”. Well…I knew it were something beginning with an “f””.
Middlesex Matters
The Great Jack Morgan has been putting in the hard yards for us
Middlesex lost yet another toss in the home Championship match against Sussex at Lord’s, but on this occasion, visiting skipper Mike Yardy chose to bat first on a track that looked less green than most of the wickets at Lord’s in the last couple of seasons, but I am sure that most captains would have done the usual thing and asked Middlesex to bat. This error was soon confirmed as Sussex slumped to 66 for 5, but ex-Middlesex man Ed Joyce (77) and keeper Ben Brown (70) inspired a fight back with a stand of 81 for the sixth wicket. Naved Arif Gondal (38) helped Brown add 63 for the seventh wicket and the tail managed to take the total up to a respectable 283 (in 109.3 overs). Middlesex had strengthened their side considerably by bringing in pace bowlers Steve Finn and Toby Roland-Jones, but it was Tim Murtagh, bowling beautifully, who took the honours with 5 for 55, while Finny picked up 3 for 76.
The ball was still moving around at the start of the Middlesex reply, but slowly captain Bucky Rogers and the in-form Joe Denly (67) built a crucial second wicket partnership of 145 and this was followed by another fine stand of 97 between Rogers (98) and Eoin Morgan (71) for the fourth wicket. Middlesex then pressed home their advantage as John Simpson (34), Gareth Berg (45), Ollie Rayner (69 with 9 fours and a six) and Toby R-J (52 off 63 balls) saw Middlesex to an impressive 491 all out and a lead of 208; Chris Nash took 3 for 45 with his off spinners.
However, rain and bad light had reduced the time available for play on all three days so far and Middlesex had little more than a day left to force the victory. Nash batted well for 40, but he could not prevent the visitors tumbling to 101 for 6. For the second time in the match, Brown (53) demonstrated his fighting qualities and, this time, it was Aussie opening bowler Steve Magoffin (37) who helped out, but still Sussex were all out for 225, leaving Middlesex to make only 18 to seal the 10 wicket win with time to spare on day 4. Bergy finished with 3 for 53 and Finny 3 for 66.
This was a convincing win, but Sussex looked a poor side. I would hate to slag off Mike Yardy, who we all know has had his own personal problems, but it has to be said that he made the wrong choice on winning the toss, twice batted badly (8 and 10) and bowled two of the worst overs I have ever seen in first class cricket (2-0-25-0). I have only recently started to note the huge numbers of twelfth men that are used in Championship matches these days, but for me, Middlesex set a new record in using seven different players for twelfth man duties on the pitch (Neil Dexter, Corey Collymore, Josh Davey, Tom Scollay, Adam London, Robbie Williams and Adam Rossington) in this match. Middlesex 23 points; Sussex 4.
Middlesex won a rare toss in the Championship match against Somerset at Lord's and, as is customary, asked the visitors to bat first on yet another seamers' track. The home team gained immediate reward as two wickets went down with only one on the board and when a third went with 45 scored, Middlesex were clearly on top. However, James Hildreth (58 with 6 fours) and Craig Kieswetter (48 with 7 fours) played impressively to put on 80 for the fourth wicket and although Hildreth departed shortly before the rain curtailed play halfway through day 1, Somerset were not badly placed at 130 for 4. However, day 2 started sensationally as 4 wickets (including Kieswetter) fell in the first 10 balls of the day and it was only a lively 38 from Peter Trego (5 fours) that allowed the visitors to reach a modest 173 all out. The credit went to the Middlesex swing and seam bowlers Tim Murtagh (3-42), Toby Roland-Jones (3-47) and Gareth Berg (3-59).
Middlesex had obviously heard the terrible weather forecast and scored their runs at a terrific rate as skipper Chris Rogers, recovering quickly from a poor start to the season, and Joe Denly, enjoying an exceptional purple patch, added a brilliant 245 for the second wicket. When Rogers fell for a best for the county of 173 (off 191 balls with 23 fours and 3 sixes) he had made 419 runs in his last three innings for twice out and became the leading scorer so far this season. Dawid Malan has also been struggling, but he played a fine innings of 51 (8 fours and a six) in a stand of 74 with Denly, however only 17.5 overs were possible on day 3 and when the start was also delayed on day 4, Rogers was forced to sacrifice the certain fifth batting point and declare at the overnight score of 364 for 3 in order to give the lads a chance of victory. This left Denly unbeaten on 116 (off 219 balls with 12 fours and a six) and although Chris overtook Joe as the leading scorer so far this season, Denly (the Middlesex Player of the Month for May) retained his place at the top of the averages.
When Somerset slumped to 4 for 2 and 113 for 5 (Hildreth 38) in their second innings, it looked as if Middlesex might pull off an astonishing win, but a praiseworthy stand of 63 for the sixth wicket by ex-Middlesex men Nick Compton, mainly defending, and Trego (50 off 54 balls with 9 fours and a six), mainly attacking, had almost rescued Somerset when Murtagh took two quick wickets and rekindled Middx's victory hopes. However, the rock Compton (69* off 150 balls with 8 fours) was now joined by skipper Alfonso Thomas (39* with 7 fours) in a stand of 51* for the eighth wicket which ensured the draw, despite Middlesex employing three of their four leg-spinners (Malan, Denly and Robson) in their unsuccessful push for victory. Murtagh (3 for 36) was again the pick of the Middx bowlers and he is the leading bowler this season with 32 wickets, though Roland-Jones still has the best average in the Championship. John Simpson, last season's leading wicket keeper in the country, took five first innings catches and with one in the second innings, he moved on to 25 victims for the season. Malan's three second innings catches took him to 15 for the season, easily the best tally for a fieldsman. Middlesex moved to within one point of Somerset in the table with a match in hand. Middlesex 23 points; Somerset 4.
For the 50 over game against West Indies at Lord's on June 13, Middlesex fielded a strongish Second XI while WI selected a strong First XI and the game was every bit as one-sided as we all expected it to be. From among the Middx absentees, a useful looking eleven could be selected: Chris Rogers, Andrew Strauss, Joe Denly, Eoin Morgan, Gareth Berg, John Simpson, Ollie Rayner, Steve Crook, Toby Roland-Jones, Steve Finn and Corey Collymore. Neil Dexter won the toss and asked the tourists to bat, presumably to make sure the match lasted into the afternoon. Dwayne Smith dominated the West Indies' innings with a thoroughly entertaining innings of 96 off 81 balls with 10 fours and 2 sixes. He received excellent support from Darren Bravo in a stand of 160 for the third wicket; Bravo was slightly slower to get into his stride, but ended up with 112* off 112 balls with 7 fours and 2 sixes. Towards the end of the innings, Darren was joined by his older brother Dwayne (40* off 21 balls with 2 fours and 3 sixes) in a fantastic stand of 73* in a little over 5 overs as WI closed on 335 for 4. Paul Stirling stood out for Middlesex with 1 for 26 in 7 tight overs and two finely judged catches in the outfield. The Middlesex innings reminded me of one those junior schoolboy matches where lads get a clap for reaching double figures; five Middlesex batsmen qualified for a clap, the best of them being Josh Davey with 24* as Middlesex could manage only 107 to lose by 228 runs. So why do we bother to attend such rubbish matches? In my case, it was because i) at 10.45am, the start was the only first team one day match of the season to begin at an acceptable time; and ii) the season's schedule is such a nonsense this year that there is not another match at Lord's for me to watch until September 4.
More Boothroyd Matters
Allen Bruton continues to be a fount of knowledge
Having been outed as a fully fledged nerd I feel obliged to add to the information concerning Dick Boothroyd. It seems he played for Walsall in the Birmingham League after his South Hampstead season and this would explain how he came to the attention of Staffordshire CCC. His career figures as below in Minor Counties Championship confirm our recollection of a clueless batsman and remarkable bowler, almost 30% of his overs being maidens, testimony to his unerring accuracy.
Please do not feel obliged to put this in C&G as I suspect I may be the only recipient to find this in the slightest bit interesting.
STAFFORDSHIRE (DEBUT 1974)
28 MATCHES
18 INNINGS 803 OVERS
10 N.O. 229 MAIDENS
RUNS 11 1,897 RUNS
HS 4 86 WICKETS
AVE 1.37 B.B. 6- 20
AVE 22.05
Off to Yorkshire on holiday next week and unless I find a building with a circular blue plaque identifying the birthplace of Richard Boothroyd, I promise this is my last word on the subject.
Twenty/20 stuff
Derbyshire v Durham
I watched the highlights of this match on the afternoon of the day I flew back last week. At first I thought that I was watching the match live and it seemed that Derby were going very well, but once I twigged that it was highlights I realised that in fact they had only scored 60 odd in the first ten overs. No one dominated and Khawaja top scored with 36. Like Hughes he seems to have gone backwards since getting his chance at international level. I mean of course Phil not Chesney who hit the only six of the innings, an enormous blow off Onions.
Derbyshire’s 141 never looked enough to me although the commentators try to talk it up as a competitive score using a range of excuses such as the fact that the pitch has been used before, batting in the half light is tricky, the dew will help the bowlers etc. The same reasoning is used in reverse to justify when a team easily knocks off such paltry totals. Actually it is just an excuse to set up use of the new most irritating expletive “Game on”. I think that Botham was the first exponent of this phrase which is now used whenever anything happens which might have the slightest impact on the outcome of the match.
Durham opened with Gibbs and Mustard. The Colonel didn’t last long but it was good to see the 38 year old Herschelle tonking the ball around making it all look very easy. Stokes only made a brief appearance and I fear that his ranking amongst the young guns has slipped. Few of them have been as prolific this year with conditions often favouring the bowlers. The front runners now seem to be Bairstow, Hales and Buttler. Division two must be Stokes, Taylor and Root. Division three: Vince, Cobb and Roy. The forgotten men, who are too old, are Wright, Gale, Hildreth, Compton, Denly and Moore. Incidentally I saw the highlights of Taylor’s innings at The Rose Bowl against Hants in a forty over match when he played some extraordinary shots in an unbeaten hundred. He seems to be unlucky at present with the selectors.
Gibbs was unexpectedly bowled for 38 by the Yorks reject, Wainwright, and Benkenstein soon followed- “Game on”! Johann Myburgh had other ideas and played some powerful shots. He doesn’t appear in Playfair but is presumably a Kolpak or whatever they are called these days. He was caught at cover off Turner but Gordon Muchall did the necessary and it was soon “Game Off” with more than an over to spare. The commentators talked Turner up as being genuinely quick as a ninety mile an hour bowler. He may be one to watch as extreme pace seems to be one of the preferred options in the short form of the game at present as Bresnan found when Finn was preferred at Trent Bridge. The purveyors of slow long hops are started to be sorted out as Dernbach found out at the hands of Bravo and Pollard.
Middlesex v Essex
All of the Essex batsmen got in but none went on to make a significant score. As usual it was Napier who played the significant innings. He came in at 103 for 3 to replace ten Doeschate who had been given LBW to Dexter’s wobblers. Napier was fed some friendly stuff and hit 28 from 12 deliveries which enabled Essex to reach a sort or par score of 155. Middlesex’ stand out bowler was Olly who took 2 for 16 from his four overs. Roland-Jones looked good but took some of the brunt of Napier’s onslaught and wasn’t helped when Rossington dropped a straightforward boundary catch.
In reply Middlesex were awful. Denly, Rogers and Malan all holed out early on as if they were chasing 200 plus. I never see Malan get any runs. Does anyone? He averaged only 31 last year and hasn’t got many this year. He could be looking for a new county in September. Rossington strangely looked as he was the senior player and made a pleasant 22 before being given out LBW to a ball which almost took a chunk out of his bat before hitting the pad. Dexter, Berg and Simpson then blocked as if they could redeem themselves by playing for a draw. After Dexter and Simpson had gone Berg decided that slogging was the order of the day and he mixed hearty blows with missed reverse sweeps. His new partner was Ollie who started indifferently but Berg was caught by Foster standing up down the leg side off a cut having stepped away to the leg side. This was an extraordinary achievement by Foster.
This left Middlesex needing 67 from five overs. Crook was the new batsman and he decided to go for the short boundary which he cleared easily and then repeated his effort at the other end. Olly joined in and suddenly Middlesex only needed thirty from the final two overs – “Game on”! The slog fest continued and Middlesex fell an unlikely six short. Indeed they almost won as Pettini caught Crook on the boundary’s edge off a blow that would have carried for six.
But Middlesex looked a very poor side batting. Dexter must be struggling to keep his place in the side and seems to have more claims as a bowler now. He certainly isn’t worth a place in the top five.
England v West Indies
I opted to watch the highlights of this rather than the miserable offerings of the England team in Kiev. England were off to a great start when they suckered the Great Gale out with Finn getting him to top edge to fine leg. I missed Gale’s innings at the Oval and he is now being described as a one day specialist. He always has been but it seems odd to relegate him to this status since he is one of the two world players to have registered two test triple centuries. I think that what they mean is that he has worked out how to score consistently in the short form of the game by not indiscriminately slogging. Because he is a big six hitter he knows that he will score quickly by just taking a six every few balls and adding bits and pieces to it. This way he doesn’t need to give his wicket away. He averages over 50 in the IPL and Watson and Marsh are the only other players to have an average over 40. This is an extraordinary achievement and will make him a very rich man.
Like Gibbs, it was good to see Duane Smith in good form and slapping it around. Simmons and Samuels fell cheaply which brought Bravo to the crease. Not Darren but his big brother Dwayne. How unlikely is it that there could be two Duanes at the crease at the same time? Finny came back and despite being hit for a prodigious blow by Smith he got him caught behind by the new fast bowler’s special weapon, the full length delivery as wide of the off stump as the laws will allow. Smith had got 70 out of 107 for 4 with only five overs left.
Pollard joined Bravo and they added 65 laying into all the remaining bowlers Patel, Broad and Dernbach. Someone thinks that Dernbach is a good bowler or has promise or something but it surely isn’t anyone who has seen him bowl? Now his endless slow crap has been exposed for what it really is surely he should go back to the nets and learn to bowl properly?
The West Indies innings included ten sixes and only nine fours. This means that they scored a third of their runs in sixes. This is the way to big scores in this form of the game. Kieswetter is still not a good judge of which ball to slog. He only just survived the first over, lobbing the ball over mid on’s head and falling to a mishit pull in the third. Hales then took over and looked supreme, scoring at well over a run a ball and picking up sixes on a regular basis. No one mentioned the absence of KP, who wasn’t missed. I have long been a fan of Bopara’s, at least in the shorter form of the game, and he played a supporting role. However, both got out with less than four required to win and that spoiled an otherwise emphatic win, particularly in Hales’ case as he missed out on being the first Englishman to score an international T20 hundred.
Lancashire v Durham
When Myburgh (a WGCCC player) was dismissed Durham were reduced to 65 for 5 and the game was effectively over. Gareth Breese then played remarkably fluently but when he holed out for 33 the tail folded and the final total was a miserable 121. Ajmal Shahzad took three wickets and this gave him the most wickets in English Twenty20 cricket.
Moore opened with Smith for Lancashire but he fell early-“Game on”. This brought Stephen Croft to the wicket. He has always looked a bits and pieces player to me and has never really impressed. It turns out that he has been hiding his light under a bushel or the covers or somewhere. He laid into the accomplished Durham attack with gusto and reached 65 not out with four sixes by the time this very one sided game had been won.
I have to say that the 2012 upgrades to Old Trafford look much more acceptable than the red pillar box of 2010 and appear to be conventional stands in their incomplete state. It does seem odd with the wicket round the other way but I suppose we will get used to that.
Kent v Middlesex
Paul Stirling has started to make a habit of killing games with his devastating hitting and there would be talk of him being fast tracked into the England line up if he wasn’t Irish or at least Irish enough to be playing in their set up. Still I suppose if he gets good enough he can become English like Joyce and Morgan. Joyce of course became not so good and reverted to being Irish. On this occasion Stirling opened at Canterbury and made 63 from 37 balls with clean hitting not slogging. This has become a feature of the one day games. Until recently there was playing normally and then there was slogging. Now players manoeuvre themselves into different positions and hit through the ball whilst “keeping their shape”. In Stirling’s case he will give himself room to hit through and normally over the off side. In the powerplay there is almost nothing that the fielding side can do to stop this, short of bowling Yorkers.
The bad news for Kent was that when Kent dismissed him he was replaced by Morgan who proceeded to play a cameo masterpiece. He made 36 from eighteen deliveries including three sixes. Most of Morgan’s big hits are straight or over extra cover which he achieves by managing to get under fairly full deliveries. This requires strong wrists, fast hands and exquisite timing. It was good to see him back in good touch after his wretched winter. Meanwhile at the other end Denly after a slow start played increasingly well and he finished on 90 not out as Middlesex reached 207 for 2. Ajmal the previous night had overtaken Azhar Mahmood as the top wicket taker in this competition and the latter looked a sorry figure as his four overs disappeared for 61.
The chase was always going to be daunting and it wasn’t helped as Northeast and Billings made a circumspect start taking only four runs from the first two overs. However, they started to play a few shots and got stuck into Roland-Jones and Berg but Billings was then caught by Dexter at extra cover, who decided to take matters into his own hands, came on to bowl and immediately caught and bowled Stevens. Denly then dropped Azhar at long on which could have been expensive and Kent at 120 for 2 were in touch with the asking rate- “Game on”. This all changed as Kent suddenly lost four wickets in four balls. Off the fifth and sixth balls of Dexters’s second over both Northeast and Azhar were caught at long on by Morgan. Then Coles was caught off the first ball of Stirling’s over at the other end and Blake was run out off the second. Suddenly Kent were 121 for 6 - “Game off”. Finn seems a real handful these days and causes problems with serious pace and more accuracy than has been seen since his debut year. His four overs went for just 15 runs.
Essex v Sussex
Essex looked like making a mess of their innings at Fortress Chelmsford as Franklin, Napier and ten Doeschate all got out for under thirty after establishing themselves at the crease. However, they reached a respectable, if below par, 177 thanks almost exclusively to James Foster’s 65 not out from 31 balls which included four sixes. During this innings he displayed two of the modern batting techniques which are increasingly adopted plus one uniquely his own. The first is to give room to play a lofted drive over extra cover. At present this is a safe ploy since no captain has a fielder on the extra cover boundary. It is not uncommon for this shot to carry for six if the batsman gets it anywhere near the middle. The second technique is to stand deep in the crease to make it harder for the bowler to deliver effective Yorkers. I don’t understand why this hasn’t given rise to a spate of hit wicket dismissals but I haven’t seen any. This has no impact on Foster, though, whose own new technique is to take guard outside the offside exposing all of his stumps behind his legs to the bowler. This enables him to hit anything to the on side. If you think that it cannot work just look at his stats this season. Jack Robertson would shudder if he knew.
Sussex kept looking as if they would overhaul the Essex score easily but Nash, Wright and Prior all got out when well set. Game on! Goodwin, Gatting and Yardy all got out playing silly shots and it was left to Will Beer who played with a surprising calm maturity to see Sussex home in the final over. This was a good t20 match unlike many of the one sided affairs described above.
Red Mist Matters
When Middlesex played Lancashire at Lord’s in a Clydesdale Bank 40 over match Paul Stirling played a typically aggressive innings of 119 from 99 balls which included five sixes. However, on this occasion he was completely upstaged by Eion Morgan who made 116 from 54 deliveries in an innings that included eleven sixes. On the back of these two efforts Middlesex reached 350 for 6 from their forty overs. Red Mist Rules! Sixes win matches.
Twin Matters
Allen Bruton is going out of his way to achieve nerd of the season status. He sent me this
The day prior to receiving C&G I had been to New Road Worcester and coincidentally seen the Overton twins playing for Somerset. This set me off trying to recall other sets of twins who have played first class cricket and I can only recall the Waughs and Bedsers. It could even be that the last named enjoyed a last wicket partnership exceeding 38runs as Eric batted lower middle order and Alec a tailender.
Boycott Matters
The Professor continues to dine on the top table at Headingley
Lunch yesterday yielded a few interesting things mainly about the much-hated President, Geoffrey Boycott. The following two stories are from impeccable sources:
1. 1983 the debut of Ashley Metcalfe. A misty day at Bradford, Notts the visitors and Metcalfe and Boycott opening against Hendrick at his best. To the surprise of all, Metcalfe, the nervous teenager, took the first over. Three LBW shouts in the first six balls, a couple of plays and misses and a scrambled single. At the end of the over the Great Man walks down the wicket and has an avuncular word. My source interviewed Metclafe at the end of the day (he went on to get a hundred on debut and was dropped for the next game...well it is Yorkshire).
"Did Geoff offer any useful words of advice to you Ashley at the end of that first torrid over?"
"Not exactly"
"What did he say?"
"He said, 'This lot 'ave come to watch me bat and you can fuck off if you can't 'andle the bowling'".
2. 1978. Boycott became captain of England, you will recall, when Brearley broke his arm in Pakistan. They went on to New Zealand where they drew the series one each. Immediately prior to the Test the father of the New Zealand wicket keeper, Lees, had been killed in a car crash. At the team talk Sir Geoffrey proposed that if Lees should start to look comfortable at the wicket anyone fielding close should ask him if his father's body was badly mangled; arms, legs, head missing - that sort of thing. In that side were the current Chairman of Selectors and pundits Botham and Willis.
I had always thought that opinion about Boycott was divided...OK he was single-minded but he was a great player, had true Yorkshire qualities, told it like it was, and so on. It seems that most of the people who played with him actually hated him...and still do.
Rangers Matters
Jim Revier responded to my list last month with the following nine reasons why the Rangers deserved to stay up
1. The courage of Anton Ferdinand in taking that vile apology for a human being, Mr. Terry, all the way to court.
2. We lost to Bolton at home but beat Chelscum, Spurs, Liverpool and the Arsenal.
3. I find Cisse's beard rather fetching and at least it can be disposed of unlike all the dreadful tattoos that "decorate" some players bodies.
4. Yes, Stoke's goal was a bit iffy but have you forgotten Clint Hill's disallowed goal at Bolton which was about a yard over the line.
5. Clint Hill. A player thought to be out of his depth at the top level and loaned out to Forest. He returned to win both the Players and supporters player of the year awards.
6. Jamie Mackie. Proving that bargains do exist from the lower leagues. £600k from Plymouth, I believe.
7. We were without our leading Scorer (Helguson) and our best player (Faurlin) for the second half of the season.
8. I was upset that after elbowing Tevez, Kneeing Aguerro and attempting to head butt Kompany Joey didn't go for the full set by pushing the ref over.
9. We gave Man City two of their hardest games of the season.
Book Matters
Tom Rodwell sent me this
Thought you and your fine coterie of readers might be interested in my book 'Third Man in Havana', published last month, which Scyld Berry has described in July's Cricketer magazine as ' the most important cricket book yet published'. That makes it sound a bit dry, as it's a jolly tale of my travels round the world using cricket to help kids. It is available from Amazon.
Bob Proctor
Bob Proctor died recently. I am indebted to Malcolm Cromer and Kelvin West who have sent me updates on his health over recent years. I will be happy publish any anecdotes or tributes to Bob in future editions. I covered his six onto the library roof in one of the early editions of Googlies.
Old Danes Gathering 2012
The 2012 Old Danes Gathering will be held on Friday 27 July. Once again Shepherds Bush CC have kindly agreed to host this event. The Gathering will take place between 2pm and 8pm and we hope to see as many Old Danes as can make it. Even if you can only pop in for an hour you will be warmly greeted and made to feel welcome. There will be a bar and food available throughout. Please let me know whether you plan to attend and I will circulate a list regularly between now and the event.
Googlies and Chinamen
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Broad Lee House
Combs
High Peak
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